The wife of an Indiana state senator has taken her oath of office as his temporary replacement while he's on military deployment to Afghanistan.
Republican Amanda Banks of Columbia City was sworn in Tuesday to represent northeastern Indiana's Senate District 17. She will serve until her husband, Jim Banks, returns.
She was elected by a committee to temporarily fill the Senate seat. Banks said voters who elected her husband wont notice a difference in her political agenda.
"I think its going to be very similar. We share the same conservative values. I can't imagine there's not anything we'll disagree on, but it will be very small if it is."
Jim Banks was unopposed for re-election last month and was sworn in for his new term via Skype from Afghanistan, where he's a Navy Reserve supply corps officer. He's expected to return to Indiana in May.
Amanda Banks is a radio host and a former policy analyst for the conservative group Focus on the Family.
