Pence, others to seek governor position

Posted by Archie Parsons on July 22, 2011 Leave a comment (0) Go to comments

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Congressman Mike Pence recently announced he plans to run for Indiana governor.

Pence’s Republican backing could be large, according to White County’s GOP Chairman. Democratic candidates are expected to soon announce as well.

Republican 6th District Congressman Mike Pence made his gubernatorial announcement in a video on his new campaign website on Thursday.

“I’ve been humbled by the outpouring of encouragement we’ve received from across this state. And it’s for that reason today I’m announcing my candidacy for the Republican nomination for Governor of Indiana in 2012,” said Pence.

Pence also made the announcement during a conference call. White County GOP Chairman Shannon Mattix was one of many that listened in.

“We pretty much know what we get with Mike Pence. I think many of the people are familiar with Mike Pence even though he may not represent them in Congress,” said Mattix.

Mattix said other GOP hopefuls could include Jim Wallace and former Indiana Attorney General Steve Carter.

“I don’t know for sure if they’re in at this point, but I think they’ve formed exploratory committees. So, that should be interesting to see how that works out,” said Mattix.

Democratic State Representative Sheila Klinker said an announcement from her party is expected soon as well.

“Senator Vi Simpson who ran once before. But, I think that Representative and former Speaker John Gregg is the candidate that is going to announce fairly soon,” said Klinker.

Klinker said the upcoming race will be an exciting one, especially since Gregg and Pence worked together before their political careers began.

“I know they’re longtime friends from being on radio and being in politics together. It will be a very interesting race for governor,” said Klinker.

Earlier this year, Pence said he would not be running for president. His announcement about running for governor comes after months of speculation that he would.