1:02 p.m. Latest story from The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Former Democratic Sen. Evan Bayh is expected to make another run for Senate in Indiana, Democratic officials said Monday, a development that would dramatically improve the party’s chances to win back the vacant seat, and Senate control along with it.
Democrats have been courting Bayh for over a year to run for the seat now held by Republican Sen. Dan Coats, who is retiring. Bayh was a top surrogate for Hillary Clinton during her unsuccessful run for president in 2008, and has been a top fund-raiser for her this cycle. One Democratic official said Clinton herself had a role in convincing Bayh to get in the race.
The Democratic officials spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of a formal announcement.
Bayh, who retired in 2010 following two terms, is sitting on nearly $10 million in left-over campaign funds. But he delayed making a decision, and when the primary happened May 3 former Democratic Rep. Baron Hill won the party’s nomination.
Hill was not considered a strong candidate to take on the GOP nominee, establishment favorite Rep. Todd Young, in the GOP-leaning state. On Monday, Hill announced he had filed papers to withdraw from the nomination. In a statement, Hill alluded to Bayh’s likely candidacy without mentioning him by name.
“Democrats have a very real chance at winning this Senate seat, especially with a strong nominee who has the money, name identification and resources to win,” Hill said. “I do not want to stand in the way of Democrats winning Indiana and the U.S. Senate. That would not be fair to my party or my state. And, the stakes are far too high in this election not to put my country above my own political ambitions. In accordance with Indiana law, I have filed the necessary paperwork to withdraw from the race.”
Bayh, 60, served as governor of Indiana before winning election in 1998 to the Senate seat his father, Birch Bayh, had held for decades. He and his family are well-known in a state that is now considered reliably Republican, although Barack Obama won Indiana in 2008.
In the Senate, Bayh was one of the most moderate Democrats, and when he announced his retirement in 2010 he complained of the partisanship and gridlock infesting Capitol Hill.
“I love helping our citizens make the most of their lives, but I do not love Congress,” he said at the time. “My passion for service to our fellow citizens is undiminished, but my desire to do so by serving in Congress has waned.”
Democrats led by Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, the No. 3 Senate Democrat, have been working on Bayh for months to bring about a change of heart, an effort that finally appears to have borne fruit. The current Senate Democratic leader, Harry Reid of Nevada, also has been involved.
Democrats need to net four or five seats to win back Senate control — four if they hang onto the White House and can send the vice president to break ties in the Senate; five if they don’t. With a handful of competitive races around the country, one seat can make all the difference, and putting Indiana in play could be crucial.
In the game of chess that Democrats and Republicans play, even if Bayh can’t win his old seat back, his candidacy would force Republicans to spend money in a state they had no plans to invest in.
Republicans scored a similar coup last month, when they convinced Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, a former presidential candidate, to abandon his retirement plans and announce he would seek re-election.
Republicans quickly declared they would hang onto the Indiana seat and signaled their lines of attack against Bayh.
Ward Baker, executive director of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, said on Twitter: “Evan Bayh cast the deciding vote for Obamacare and then left Indiana to live full-time in DC. Todd Young will beat him this November.”
The development was first reported by CNN.
12:56 p.m. Congressional Quarterly Roll Call calls new Indiana Senate race competitive
From CQ Roll Call — distributed by TNS
WASHINGTON — Former Sen. Evan Bayh will run for the Senate after all, buoying Democrats’ chances of winning the open seat in Indiana and the Senate majority.
The news, first reported by CNN’s Tom LoBianco, is surprising considering Bayh, who didn’t seek re-election in 2010, had shown no interest in running, despite Democratic recruitment efforts earlier in the cycle. Democratic nominee/former Rep. Baron Hill stepped aside on Monday to allow the state party to replace him on the ballot.
Hill wasn’t raising the money necessary for a top-tier campaign against GOP Rep. Todd Young in the race to replace Republican Sen. Dan Coats, who is retiring, but Bayh immediately changes the dynamic.
We’re changing The Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report/Roll Call rating from Republican Favored to Tossup/Tilt Democratic .
Bayh won’t have a lot of time to shake off any rust from his campaign apparatus since he hasn’t been on the general election ballot since 2004. But if he was initially turned off by a long campaign, Bayh now has a four-month sprint to November with more than $9.2 million sitting in his campaign account, so he won’t have to spend as much time raising money.
“He shakes it up,” according to one GOP sources in the state. “He left six years ago in a very classy way by attacking the system — Republicans and Democrats.”
Of course, Republicans won’t give him a free pass. They’ll bring up his votes for the Affordable Care Act, overall voting record with President Barack Obama (including the so-called stimulus bill), and lack of effectiveness while in the Senate and his lobbying record after he left.
Republicans will also highlight the lack of time he has spent in Indiana, including expensive homes in the Washington, D.C., area and Florida. (Residency was a key factor in Sen. Richard Lugar’s fall in the GOP primary in 2012.) And Bayh, a former two-term governor and son of a senator, will be portrayed as a lifelong politician.
But Indiana voters don’t automatically know, believe or remember the negative parts of Bayh’s background. Republicans will have to litigate that case in the coming months. The bottom line is that Indiana is now firmly in the list of competitive states that will decide the majority and require considerable spending from the GOP side that the party previously would not have had to spend.
12:28 p.m. State GOP: Democrats have lost faith
Indiana Republican Party Chairman Jeff Cardwell made the following statement after the breaking news of Evan Bayh replacing Baron Hill on Indiana Democrats’ ballot:
“It’s obvious that the Indiana Democrats have lost faith in the people’s choice of the Democrat Senate Candidate. Hillary Clinton’s favorite former senator, Evan Bayh, is a Washington lobbyist who voted for the crushing stimulus package and was the deciding vote on Obamacare. The Indiana Democrats continue to use re-tread candidates with out-of-touch records, in hopes of creating a winning ticket for November.”
12:18 p.m. National Republican Senatorial Committee responds to reports of Bayh running for Senate
NRSC Executive Director Ward Baker made the following statement regarding the Indiana Senate race.
“Hoosiers will have a very clear choice in November. Todd Young is a Marine who has fought to protect Indiana values, create jobs, and stood up against dangerous policies like Obamacare and cap-and-trade. Evan Bayh is a lobbyist who backed the Obama agenda 96 percent of the time as he left the Senate in 2010, knowing he couldn’t win re-election thanks to his support for the toxic Democrat agenda. His support for Obama’s job-killing policies disqualifies him from the opportunity to represent Indiana again.
“Bayh is a tax hiker and the definition of a Washington insider who didn’t even wait a month to sign a lobbying deal after he left office six years ago. And when Barack Obama and Harry Reid come calling, Bayh is standing at the ready. This bait-and-switch maneuver is the latest sign that Democrats are desperate to hang onto their diminishing chances to take the Senate in November. It won’t work. On Election Day, Hoosiers will send in a Marine to do the job of representing them in the Senate.”
12:15 p.m. John Gregg issues statement
Today, John Gregg, Democratic candidate for governor, released the following statement in reaction to former Congressman Baron Hill’s decision to withdraw from the U.S. Senate race.
“On behalf of the entire Gregg/Hale team, I want to extend our deep appreciation to Baron Hill for his years of service to the people of Indiana. While its disappointing that he won’t be continuing that service in the United States Senate, I respect his decision. We’ve been friends and colleagues for 30 years and I know that no matter what the future holds, Baron will continue make positive contributions to our state and party in the years to come.”
12:10 p.m. Young responds to reports of Bayh entering the Senate race
Todd Young Campaign Manager Trevor Foughty issued the following statement regarding a report Evan Bayh would enter the U.S. Senate race:
“After he cast the deciding vote for Obamacare, Evan Bayh left Indiana families to fend for themselves so he could cash-in with insurance companies and influence peddlers as a gold-plated lobbyist. This seat isn’t the birthright of a wealthy lobbyist from Washington, it belongs to the people of Indiana.”
11:30 a.m. Bartholomew County Democrats notified
From Nancy Ann Brown, Bartholomew County Democratic chair:
Brown sent an email to The Republic that she has received information from 6th District Chair, Patricia Yount, that Baron Hill is withdrawing from the Senate race and will be replaced by Evan Bayh.
11:28 a.m. AP: Bayh to make announcement this morning
The Associated press reports:
WASHINGTON — Former Democratic Sen. Evan Bayh is expected to make another run for Senate in Indiana, Democratic officials said Monday, a development that would dramatically improve the party’s chances to win back the vacant seat, and Senate control along with it.
Democrats have been courting Bayh for months to run for the seat now held by Republican Sen. Dan Coats, who is retiring. Bayh, who retired in 2010 following two terms, is sitting on around $10 million in left-over campaign funds.
But he held out, and when the primary happened May 3 former Democratic Rep. Baron Hill won the party’s nomination.
But Hill was not considered a strong candidate to take on the GOP nominee, establishment favorite Rep. Todd Young, in the GOP-leaning state. On Monday, Hill announced he had filed papers to withdraw from the nomination. In a statement, Hill alluded to Bayh’s likely candidacy without mentioning him by name.
“Democrats have a very real chance at winning this Senate seat, especially with a strong nominee who has the money, name identification and resources to win,” Hill said. “I do not want to stand in the way of Democrats winning Indiana and the U.S. Senate. That would not be fair to my party or my state. And, the stakes are far too high in this election not to put my country above my own political ambitions. In accordance with Indiana law, I have filed the necessary paperwork to withdraw from the race.”
The Democrats spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of a public announcement.
The development was first reported by CNN.
11:07 a.m. Pence and Stewart at the fair today
Two of the city’s native sons are coming to the fair today, and the worlds of politics and auto racing almost collide.
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence is slated to be at the Bartholomew County 4-H Fair today at 5 p.m. as speculation grows he could be Donald Trump’s running mate.
In an unrelated appearance, Tony Stewart, in his last season as a NASCAR driver, is scheduled to be at the fair today at 6 p.m.
11:05 a.m. Hill issues statement.
Here’s what Hill said in a letter to supports this morning:
Dear friends:
I can’t thank you enough for your support over the last year and a half since I first announced my candidacy for the U.S. Senate. We have worked tirelessly to raise money and to build a grassroots network that would hopefully carry us to victory on Election Day.
I got into this race to put Hoosiers first and to always do what’s right no matter the political cost. That’s how I have run each of my races before, and that’s what I have done throughout my time in public service – from the Indiana General Assembly to the U.S. House of Representatives.
I have never run away from tough decisions or tough fights. But, I am a pragmatic person who will always put my country and my state first. I am also a proud Democrat who wants to see an Indiana Democrat fighting for Hoosier families alongside Senator Joe Donnelly in the U.S. Senate. And, I want to do everything in my power to ensure a U.S. Senate that will govern responsibly.
That is why, after consulting with my family, my staff and party leaders, I am withdrawing from the U.S. Senate race and removing my name from the November ballot.
While our campaign had been making great progress and building momentum all over Indiana, it is simply not enough to fight back against the slew of out-of-state, special interest and dark money that is certain to come our way between now and November.
Democrats have a very real chance at winning this Senate seat, especially with a strong nominee who has the money, name identification and resources to win. I do not want to stand in the way of Democrats winning Indiana and the U.S. Senate. That would not be fair to my party or my state. And, the stakes are far too high in this election not to put my country above my own political ambitions.
In accordance with Indiana law, I have filed the necessary paperwork to withdraw from the race and I have notified Indiana Democratic Party Chairman John Zody. The Indiana Democratic Party’s State Central Committee will now undertake a process to fill the vacancy with a nominee who will win in November.
To those of you who have been with me from the very beginning and who have contributed to this campaign or any of my previous campaigns, I cannot thank you enough for the support you have given to Betty and me. We are eternally grateful, and your faith in us will never be forgotten.
While I am withdrawing from this race, I intend to stay involved and do everything I can to help elect a Democrat to the U.S. Senate. I hope you will continue to do the same.
Statement from the Indiana Democratic Party:
John Zody, Chairman of the Indiana Democratic Party, released the following statement after Baron Hill announced his decision to withdraw from the U.S. Senate Race.
“Baron Hill is a friend and a mentor, and I am proud to know him. His service to this state has always come from the heart – he is one of the most principled people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. Congressman Hill has informed me of his withdrawal from the U.S. Senate race, and as State Party Chair I will begin the process for the Democratic State Central Committee to fill the ballot vacancy in accordance with Indiana state law.”
Politico.com is reporting:
Democrat Baron Hill is dropping out of the Indiana Senate race and will be replaced as the Democratic nominee by former Sen. Evan Bayh, upending the race in a state Republicans expected to hold easily this fall.
Bayh, who is also a former governor of Indiana, still has approximately $9.3 million in a federal campaign account that has sat nearly dormant since he left the Senate in 2010. GOP Sen. Dan Coats won the seat that year but is retiring this fall.
Hill, a former House member, was preparing to face GOP Rep. Todd Young in the general election.
Hill’s campaign manager, Brad Howard, told POLITICO on the phone that Hill is leaving the race and Bayh is replacing him, but said afterwards he meant to be talking to someone who is not a member of the press.
The Washington Times is reporting:
CLEVELAND — Scrambling among Indiana politicians has reached the point where Republican Party insiders are convinced that presumptive presidential nominee Donald Trump will pick Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as his running mate.
Constitutional lawyer James Bopp, an Indiana delegate to the Republican National Convention who is close the governor, told The Washington Times that Indiana House Speaker Brian C. Bosma, 58, a conservative Republican, had sought advice from him on running for governor.
“He wanted my counsel on what he needed to do to set himself up to run for governor, because he expects Pence to step down as governor in order to be Trump’s running mate,” Mr. Bopp said in an interview.
The Trump election team boosted the Pence speculation Sunday by suddenly adding a campaign rally in Indianapolis to a fundraiser planned for Tuesday featuring Mr. Trump and Mr. Pence.
Several Republicans close to the campaign and to the governor have told The Times over the last 24 hours that they are now convinced it’ll be Mr. Pence.
