Elmore in ’44?
Hamilton County Republicans brought out an all-star cast of candidates for their annual Fall Dinner Wednesday night. Held at the 502 East Event Center in Carmel, about 350 of the party faithful welcomed U.S. Senate candidate Mike Braun along with a host of other state and local GOP candidates for election on Nov. 6.
Braun, a successful Jasper businessman, says Republicans are in a position to pick up seats in the Senate which now has a razor thin GOP majority, 51-49. But, the outcome of several races including his own will depend on funding, the candidate says. Currently, Democrats are outspending Republicans.
The big news of the evening was Braun’s disclosure of results of a new Fox News poll that shows him slightly ahead of incumbent Democrat Joe Donnelly by a 45-43 percent margin, with the remainder undecided. The candidate believes “we’re in good shape” at the moment, but the lead is within the margin of error, and there are 53 days left before Election Day.
Braun said an “ace in the hole” that his campaign enjoys is the continued movement of former conservative Southern Indiana Democrats to the Republican Party, a shift that demographers have noted in recent years.
Nevertheless, Hamilton County is seen as a major battleground. Polling in past years has shown that when a GOP candidate for statewide office wins 65 percent or more of the vote here, he or she will win statewide.
County Chairwoman Laura Campbell noted that Democrats are contesting the GOP in 30 races in Hamilton County this year which presents an unusual challenge. In most elections there are few Democrats on the local ballot.
Most GOP candidates for county and township office were present at the annual rally and fundraiser, and were introduced along with current officeholders.
Also in the house with several young friends was a hard-charging and optimistic high school student, Chris Elmore, who volunteers for the party and is a leader in Young Republicans. Looking well into the future, Chris hopes to run for U.S. President in 2044. His card is found on his Facebook page. If his plans work out, folks can say they read about it here first.