INDIANAPOLIS — We are less than two months away from the most competitive primary election Indiana has seen in decades.
Six Republicans are vying to be the GOP candidate in November, and two Democrats and one Libertarian are on the May ballot.
You've probably seen some of the ads that have been released by candidates, but the current governor is speaking out for the first time about the race.
Gov. Eric Holcomb shared what he believes the other candidates should be talking about.
He posted to social media, "As the state's chief executive, you won't be able to rely on slogans or empty campaign promises to yield positive results. Instead, your vision, and where you want to lead the state must be accompanied by detailed plans that you will implement."
Holcomb then listed issues, including growing the economy, education, public health and workforce training.
"The answers to these questions are what I'm looking for in a candidate," Holcomb said.
Due to term limits, Holcomb is not able to run for a third consecutive term.
"He didn't necessarily have to jump into the conversation, though some people wondered, 'what does the Governor think of six Republican gubernatorial candidates interested in taking his position?' said Laura Wilson, political science professor at the University of Indianapolis. "He clearly wanted the candidates to think beyond campaign terms and slogans, and really focus on particular policy areas."
Wilson believes candidates tend to focus on national issues because voters do the same.
"At this point in time, our politics is very nationalized. So for many voters who don't necessarily know what's going on, specifically in Indiana, and may not be wanting to get into the weeds what each candidate might do as the chief executive of the state," Wilson said. "They probably do want to know 'What would this governor do? How do they feel about immigration? Where do they stand on these other issues?'"
She also believes that once the field is whittled down after the primary, the remaining candidates will focus more on local and state issues.
Holcomb has not endorsed a candidate as of March 25.
13News' partners at the Capital Chronicle just published the first in a four-part Q&A series with the candidates on state-focused issues.