Newswise — Amid reports that Donald Trump has selected Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as his presidential running mate, expert faculty from the University of Indianapolis are available for commentary and analysis.
Dr. Edward Frantz, professor of history(317) 460-0272
Frantz is a political and presidential historian and the author of The Door of Hope: Republican Presidents and the First Southern Strategy, 1877–1933. He says Indiana politicians have often provided geographic or ideological balance for presidential tickets.
“This is a role Hoosiers have played since the Civil War,” he said, citing Dan Quayle as a more recent example. Pence’s solid conservative credentials should help Trump track with the rightward shift of the GOP, he said.
“For a very unconventional candidate like Trump, this is a very conventional vice presidential choice,” Frantz said. “It reinforces the image of the Republican Party as the party of white male privilege – in the era of Black Lives Matter.”
Dr. Laura Albright, assistant professor of political science(740) 645-2187
Albright also can address the pros and cons of having Pence on the ticket, as well as the resulting political turmoil in Indiana if Pence drops out of the ongoing and very competitive gubernatorial race. Top local Republicans are already vying to replace him in the campaign against Democratic challenger John Gregg, creating a ripple effect throughout the state’s political scene. Another surprise for Hoosier voters has been this week’s entry of former governor and senator Evan Bayh into a key Senate race.
“Often you have the ‘October surprise’ right before the general election,” she said. “In Indiana we're coining a ‘July surprise,’ the fact that in between our primaries – which were pretty crazy in themselves – and before the national conventions, you’d think this would be a lull, but in fact, everything’s going on in the Hoosier state right now.”
For further assistance, contact Scott Hall, UIndy public information, at (317) 371-5240.
RSS