Jim Lucas
SEYMOUR — Incumbent District 69 Rep. Jim Lucas of Seymour has advanced to the Nov. 5 general election by fending off a challenge from Brian Savilla in Tuesday’s primary.
According to website indianavoters.gov, Lucas had secured 3,919 or 55% of the votes as of 5 a.m. Wednesday in the district that spans four counties to Savilla’s 3,188 votes or 44.9%. Vote totals for the district, however, are not final.
Lucas’s victory sets up a race with Seymour Democrat Trish Whitcomb in the general election.
Lucas, first elected to the House in 2012, did lose Jackson County to Savilla, a Brownstown teacher, by 2,550 or 48.1% to 2,705 votes (51.39%).
He did, however, win Bartholomew County by 72 votes to 53 votes and secured the win over Savilla by picking up 665 or 76.7% of the votes to Savilla’s 202 or 23.3% in Scott County and 632 votes to 228 votes in Washington County.
Brian Savilla
In Jackson County, Whitcomb received 602 votes and she received 861 votes across the district.
Other statehouse results involving Jackson County show District 62 Rep. Dave Hall, R-Norman, receiving 3,124 votes including 440 in Jackson County; District 65 Rep. Chris May, R-Bedford, receiving 4,782 votes including 108 in Jackson County; and District 44 Sen. Eric Koch, R-Bedford, garnering 9,941 votes including 4,929 in Jackson County. All three were running unopposed.
ORIGINAL STORY
SEYMOUR — An embattled state lawmaker who last year was sentenced to probation after he pleaded guilty to charges of operating a vehicle while intoxicated and leaving the scene of a crash appeared to be leading in a close Republican primary with incomplete vote totals Tuesday night.
Incumbent Rep. Jim Lucas, R-Seymour, appears to hold a slim lead over challenger Brian Savilla, a Brownstown teacher and former West Virginia state delegate, in the GOP race for Indiana House District 69.
Lucas lost his home county, Jackson, where Savilla also lives, by a total of 2,705 to 2,559 votes, but he won in Scott County by 453 votes. In Bartholomew County, Lucas won by a count of 72-53 votes.
Votes totals from from Washington County were not available at 10 p.m. Tuesday.
The winner of the Republican primary for District 69 will face Democrat Trish Whitcomb in the November general election.
The Republic will update this story as soon as final results are available.
