INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana’s top two candidates for governor shared the stage during the FOX59/CBS4 debate Wednesday night where they addressed multiple hot-button topics for voters ahead of the upcoming election.
U.S. Senator Mike Braun (R-Ind.), the Republican candidate for governor, and Jennifer McCormick, Indiana’s former state superintendent for public instruction and the Democratic candidate for governor, shared their views on the most pressing issues facing Hoosiers as the November general election approaches.
Below is a breakdown of the views and opinions McCormick and Braun shared on various topics ranging from Indiana’s abortion law to the ever-present question concerning marijuana legalization.
Wage increases
The first set of questions focused on efforts to increase wages for Hoosiers and how to position Indiana as a state to attract external talent and workers.
Questions surrounding the economy have become a hot topic in the last year as the country has battled through record inflation totals.
This has come as Indiana workers have only seen a 5% increase in their typical wages, with the average per capita income being $60,000 in 2023, according to reports from FOX59/CBS4 Investigative Reporter Steve Brown.
The reports also indicated that, in February 2024, Hoosiers’ median annual pay was an even $57,000.
The state’s minimum wage is currently set at $7.25 per hour and has not changed since 2009.
According to data released by the ADP Research Institute, the pay increase for workers living in Indiana lagged behind previous year-to-year growth totals. The data showed that Hoosiers who remained at their job over the last 12 months saw a wage increase of 4.8%, which was less compared to previous years which included a 7.1% and 7.4% growth.
Braun discussed the importance of providing competitive benefits and wages to employees throughout the state.
Braun said he was open to raising the minimum wage but indicated he would likely prioritize economic development initiatives that would “fertilize the field of entrepreneurs.”
McCormick discussed her common sense economic plan that focused on reducing the costs of utilities and healthcare while making Indiana more marketable as a location to create a business.
McCormick said she would consider raising the state’s minimum wage if elected as the next governor of Indiana.
Abortion law
One of the primary topics brought forward during Wednesday’s debate was the continued discourse surrounding Indiana’s abortion law.
Indiana became one of the first states to implement stricter abortion bans after Roe v. Wade was overturned in June 2022, resulting in the removal of federal abortion protections.
Indiana’s abortion law only offered a few exceptions for those seeking an abortion in state lines; in certain cases of rape or incest, if the mother’s life was in danger, or for fetal anomalies.
The state’s abortion ban formally came into effect in August of last year.
The Our Choice Coalition, an Indiana-based non-partisan political action committee, recently conducted a poll that found most Hoosiers believe the state’s near-total abortion ban is too restrictive.
Braun shared his thoughts when asked if he would support any additional exceptions being added to the abortion law.
“We are a right-to-life state and that sanctity of life gets weighed against the counterpoint. When our legislature took it on, they talked to their constituents, to Hoosiers and it has withstood the courts weighing in,” Braun said. “It is a bill that sanctifies life. we are a state that does that with reasonable exceptions. I think the people have spoke, the legislature listen and we have a bill that works for Hoosiers.”
McCormick has previously voiced her support for overturning Indiana’s abortion ban. She shared her thoughts on how she would attempt to do this considering the statehouse’s Republican supermajority.
“I don’t know how any elected official can say it is working because we have women already dying in Indiana. We have stories being told every day and are being reported on,” McCormick said. “I am the only person on this stage who has been pregnant, I am the only person on this stage who has given birth and I am the only person on this stage who is a mom and I understand firsthand the complexities associated with pregnancy. I trust healthcare providers, I believe in the standards set by Roe. It is time we return to that.”
McCormick said her campaign would look at every step available to explore overturning the law by working with the general assembly.
Teacher salaries
Before Wednesday’s debate, both campaigns suggested raising teacher wages as part of a wider effort to address learning gaps and enhance education quality throughout the state.
McCormick’s education plan has proposed a minimum base salary of $60,000 for teachers in Indiana to expand access to pre-K education and childcare.
“We need a well-trained and educated workforce and a highly skilled and healthy consumer as well. The education piece is a passion for me but we have to start with childcare, universal pre-K and post-high school,” McCormick said. “We need to pay teachers the way their non-educator peers are being paid or we are never going to attract them. There are 3300 educator openings and we will never fill them. It completely impacts our communities, our state.”
While Braun has previously endorsed providing raises to Indiana teachers, he had never provided any specific numbers. He was asked again about this during Wednesday’s debate.
“If you look at what we invest in a classroom: building, utilities, maintenance, upkeep, including teacher pay, it’s about $245,000 per classroom,” Braun said. “That means over time we have lost sight of what is most important. If you’re putting that much into buildings and maintenance and upkeep and you’re not getting the most important thing right, which is teacher pay and benefits. To me, $60,000 is too modest. It has to be competitive with some of the best wages we pay in the state.”
AI-edited campaign ads
Braun discussed the growing influence of AI after his campaign released an ad featuring a digitally manipulated image.
The ad was originally distributed to local stations without any disclaimer stating that images were manipulated.
The campaign later corrected the error to remain in compliance with the state’s new law.
“Well, that was amplifying a point and the only misstep there was that you didn’t disclaim it. That is a recent law that passed in Indiana. When I saw that, I immediately corrected it. No campaign is going to be perfect but you do need to get at the underlying substance. That ad was to point out that my opponent is embracing some of the liberal policies. I don’t know that Hoosiers are quite ready for that.”
McCormick was asked during Wednesday’s debate if her campaign had filed a lawsuit in response to the advertisement. She said the Braun campaign has not apologized to her since the digitally altered advertisement aired.
“First of all, it is very disheartening to see something that is misleading Hoosiers. We deserve better than that from our elected officials. I have never mentioned stoves and he knows that. It didn’t get taken down immediately. The same week I am called the Jezebel spirit by the ticket. When I was an elementary principal, I learned what you do is you admit when you get something wrong and you apologize.”
McCormick’s change of political party
Many viewer questions focused on McCormick’s changing political affiliations as she is now running as a Democrat.
McCormick previously told FOX59/CBS4 that she switched parties after the 2016 election, describing a lack of transparency and accountability within the Republican party at the federal level.
“Honestly, as an educator, I taught kids for 20 years that character mattered,” she said at the time. “And I was watching what was happening at the federal level with our former president, I was watching the reaction to that at the state level and I really did not want any part of that.”
She took the opportunity to expand on this during Wednesday’s debate.
“I am proud to be Democrat and having said that, my campaign has been bipartisan. We have a lot of Republicans that are supporting us, a lot of independents who are supporting us. The message they’re telling us is we can get behind your values, we do not want extremism.”
Legalizing marijuana
Both candidates then turned their attention to the question of marijuana being legalized in the Hoosier state.
McCormick released her “common sense” cannabis plan on Sept. 11, calling for the legalization of cannabis for medical use before transitioning to recreational purposes for all eligible adults.
The plan calls for the creation of the Indiana Cannabis Commission, which would be responsible for overseeing all regulatory facets of the legal cannabis industry to ensure it is adhering to safety standards.
The plan also focuses on the growing issue related to hemp-derived THC products that are currently unregulated, including Delta 8, that can be purchased at gas stations and smoke shops around Indiana.
“80% of Hoosiers, I hear you. It is time. We are on an island of our own. Every state around us has legalized and is taking advantage of this,” McCormick said. “Hoosiers are using, whether medical or recreational, it is here. We rolled out our common sense cannabis plan that starts with a well-regulated industry with a commission. We would certainly bring law enforcement to the table.”
Braun has previously said he was potentially “open” to legalizing medicinal marijuana in Indiana.
Braun said the topic has become even trickier due to marijuana being able to be laced with fentanyl and other potentially deadly drugs.
“The fact is we are surrounded by four states… it’s going to hit all of us, I’m going to listen to law enforcement — they have to put up with the brunt of it,” Braun said at the time. “Medical marijuana, I think, is where the case is best made that maybe something needs to change, but I’ll take my cue from law enforcement there as well.”
As the general election approaches, Braun was asked to clarify his position on the subject.
Braun said he would prioritize listening to law enforcement since they will “bear the brunt of it.”
Brain reiterated his previous position that he is open to marijuana being legalized for medicinal purposes.
With every neighboring state, including most recently Ohio, making some moves to legalize marijuana, Indiana finds itself on the outside looking in when it comes to the debate.
This is despite repeated studies showing that an overwhelming majority of Hoosiers would support legislation legalizing marijuana.
Running mates
The questions then turned to Micah Beckwith, Braun’s running mate, and Terry Goodin, McCormick’s running mate, and the roles each would play in their respective administrations.
According to previous reports, Beckwith took an unusual route of transitioning from being a local pastor to the lieutenant governor candidacy. Beckwith surpassed State Rep. Julie McGuire, who was endorsed by former President Trump, to be selected by Republican delegates to be selected as Braun’s running mate.
Beckwith has prioritized various topics during his campaign including inflation and the purported radicalization of children in schools.
Braun emphasized that Beckwith has been mostly in line with his values while highlighting the work he can get done with a supermajority in the Indiana Statehouse.
McCormick responded to questions about her running mate Terry Goodin’s previous statements and votes on topics such as abortion and gay marriage. Goodin has been criticized for voting in 2011 in favor of a ban on gay marriage in Indiana.
Goodin, who served for 20 years in the Indiana House of Representatives, was selected in mid-July during the 2024 Indiana Democratic Party Convention.
After being announced as McCormick’s running mate, Goodin said he was “wrong and misguided” and “dehumanized” many Hoosiers.
McCormick discussed her thoughts on this ahead of the Nov. 5 election.
“My LG is not a problem. The entire party is behind him. He has got bipartisan support. He knows a lot of Republicans, he is well-received,” McCormick said. “I picked him because of his character, because he is competent and his commitment to service.”
