2012 Indiana Senate Race Candidates

The Situation

Republican Senator Richard Lugar is facing his first serious primary challenge since taking office in 1976. The challenge is partly because of a growing discontent with politicians that have been in office for decades, and partly because of conservative opposition to parts of Senator Lugar's history.

In 2010, the state of Indiana elected Republican Senator Dan Coats back to the seat that he lost to Evan Bayh in 1998. With a history of choosing candidates over party, the Indiana Senate race is likely to be labeled as leaning Republican up until a few weeks before the election when it may turn to a tossup depending upon.

The Candidates

State Treasurer Richard Mourdock is the sole opponent facing Senator Lugar in the Republican primary. Treasurer Mourdock has criticized Senator Lugar on a number of issues, ranging from his support of an assault weapons ban to his votes in favor of President Obama's Supreme Court Justices. Senator Lugar has countered this with the assertion that Treasurer Mourdock would place Social Security at risk to balance the budget and reduce spending. No single issue has been established as the primary motivator for voters. With voter turnout typically low in the primaries, the issues of Supreme Court selections and others may be enough to sway voters against the long time representative.

Debates:

There was only one debate in the primary between Treasurer Mourdock and Senator Lugar. While the debate was substantive, there were no real revelations.