As Gov. Mike Pence ponders a run for president, one obstacle is that he‘s up for re-election the same year. That hurdle could evaporate in a few months.
Sen. Mike Delph, R-Carmel, is introducing a bill to let the governor or state legislators run for re-election and federal office simultaneously.
He says in a statement the conversation needs to take place, especially since Kentucky is considering a similar escape hatch for Sen. Rand Paul, R-Kentucky.
State law doesn‘t prohibit running in a presidential primary at the same time as another office, but if Pence won the nomination, he‘d have to abandon his re-election bid under current law.
Candidates for governor must submit 4,500 petition signatures , so other potential Republican candidates would likely want a clear signal of Pence‘s intentions.
Indiana law already allows federal officeholders to run for re-election and for vice president at the same time, a change made in 1988, when former Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Indiana, and former Rep. Lee Hamilton, D-Indiana, were both under consideration for vice president.
Democratic legislators quickly condemned the proposal. House Minority Leader Scott Pelath, D-Michigan City, complains there have been too many cases of state officeholders viewing their positions as springboards to higher office.