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topicnews · October 24, 2024

Braun, McCormick and Rainwater face off in final debate: live updates

Braun, McCormick and Rainwater face off in final debate: live updates

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Indiana gubernatorial candidates Republican Mike Braun, Democrat Jennifer McCormick and Libertarian Donald Rainwater will soon face off in the third and final debate of the election cycle, in a race that has drawn increasing national attention and investment.

The debate between the three candidates, hosted by the Indiana Debate Commission, will be the last chance for voters to hear all three candidates on one stage before Election Day. It runs Thursday from 7 to 8 p.m. and is hosted by Laura Merrifield Wilson, professor of political science at the University of Indianapolis and host of the radio show “Positively Politics.”

A lot has happened in the race since the candidates last met in early October: McCormick has narrowed Braun’s lead in fundraising, although Braun remains ahead in both spending and fundraising. Indiana Republicans sent attack mailers against Rainwater, signaling concerns that the libertarian could harm Braun’s performance on Election Day. There was also further controversy with Braun’s vice presidential candidate Micah Beckwith, who said he would fire state employees who use pronouns in their email signatures and called for refugees to be deported from Logansport.

Follow here for updates and analysis as we live blog the third and final debate. We will start updating our blog as soon as the debate begins at 7 p.m

Indiana Voter Guide: Who is running for Congress, Statehouse, Governor, AG and School Board?

For those who want to watch the entire debate, IndyStar will broadcast the debate live below and here.

An educator by profession, Jennifer McCormick held her first and only elected position as superintendent of public schools in 2016, when she ran as a Republican. An avid supporter of public schools, she almost immediately ran into political conflict with her party and turned to the Democratic Party after leaving office.

In our profile of McCormick’s life and political position, we address this development and the natural skepticism that results from it.

U.S. Senator Mike Braun compared himself To a Hoosier version of Donald Trump as he leveraged his business background and defeated two incumbent congressmen and an incumbent to get elected to the Senate.

In his race for governor, whether that background and support for Trump is an advantage or a disadvantage depends on who you ask, as we explore in our profile of Braun from the primary season.

In the 2020 gubernatorial election, Donald Rainwater rode the wave of anti-government anger during the COVID-19 pandemic and delivered a record performance for a statewide Libertarian candidate. But this time the conditions are different — the incumbent who is theoretically to blame is leaving office, and the Republican nominee has already captured some of those feelings. In this profile we examine what this means for Rainwater, which is racing again this year.

Contact IndyStar government and politics reporter Brittany Carloni at brittany.carloni@indystar.com or 317-779-4468. Follow her on Twitter/X@CarloniBrittany.

Contact IndyStar state government and politics reporter Kayla Dwyer at kdwyer@indystar.com or follow her on Twitter @kayla_dwyer17.