Three Republicans aim to be party nominee for Indiana Senate seat

JEFFERSONVILLE, IN (WAVE) - With the Indiana primaries just weeks away, those political ads are heating up - and the Indiana Senate seat is quickly becoming a hotly contested race.

Three Republicans, Mike Braun, Todd Rokita and Luke Messer, are vying for the chance to take on incumbent Democrat Joe Donnelly in November.

TV and radio political ads are picking up pace as the May 8 primary is now less than three weeks away.

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Mike Braun is touting himself as the political outsider, hoping to help President Trump "drain the swamp." A conservative businessman from Jasper, Indiana, Braun is the CEO and founder of Meyer Logistics and Meyer Distributing. He served in the state House for three years, resigning to run for the Senate.

Congressman Luke Messer served in the Indiana legislature before moving to his position with the U.S. House of Representatives in 2013, serving from Delaware down to Jefferson County, Indiana. His campaign stresses Messer's work to eliminate incentives for illegal immigr ants.

Congressman Todd Rokita served as the Indiana Secretary of State from 2003 to 2010 before moving to Congress.  His campaign touts his record of pushing education reform and rolling back regulations that hurt small businesses and agriculture.

All three candidates are aligning themselves as the Pro-Trump candidate for Hoosiers.

 >> WAVE 3 News will be offering special "Snap the Vote" coverage of this race.... you can follow it by adding WAVE 3 News on Snapchat.

The Indiana Primary will be held May 8. The three candidates for the Republican bid are currently set to debate April 30.

We asked each of the candidates to provide a brief statement about why voters in Indiana should vote for them.

Congressman Todd Rokita 

Todd Rokita is running to defeat the failed policies of the 'Washington elite' so all Hoosiers have the freedom and opportunity to build better lives for themselves and their families, his campaign said. Todd is Indiana's former Secretary of State, where he implemented Indiana's photo ID law to stop voter fraud and he fought to reform the redistricting process to term-limit career politicians.

In Congress, Todd has been an ally for President Trump, and has worked to crack down on illegal immigration, end sanctuary cities, enact term limits and make English the official language of Indiana. Todd Rokita is A-rated by the NRA and is 100 percent pro-life. Todd and his wife Kathy are raising their two young boys, Teddy and Ryan, in Indiana.

For more information about Todd Rokita, visit his website here: https://toddrokita.com/

Congressman Luke Messer

Luke Messer is running to fix the broken Senate and pass President Trump's agenda, according to his campaign. His 3-step Senate reform plan includes ending the filibuster, applying term limits and speeding up the Presidential confirmation process. Luke Messer has the highest rating in support of the Trump-Pence agenda than anyone in the Senate race.

For more information about Luke Messer, visit his website here: https://www.lukemesser.com/

Mike Braun

Campaign staff did not respond to the request by the time this story was posted.

For more information about Mike Braun, visit his campaign website here: https://www.mikebraunforindiana.com/

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