The 2022 United States Senate election in Indiana was held on November 8, 2022, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the state of Indiana. Incumbent Senator Todd Young won a second term.[1]
Young announced on March 2, 2021, that he would be running for a second term.[2] He was first elected to the Senate in 2016 with 52.1% of the vote, succeeding retiring fellow Republican Dan Coats. Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. ran for the Democratic nomination. Both ran unopposed and won their respective primaries on May 3, 2022. This was the first election since 1986 for Indiana's Class 3 U.S. Senate seat where neither Dan Coats nor Evan Bayh were on the ballot.
On February 18, 2022, the Indiana Election Commission removed Democratic candidates Haneefah Khaaliq and Valerie McCray, as well as Republican candidate Danny Niederberger, from the primary ballot.[10] On February 4, 2022, McDermott campaign adviser Kevin Smith said the campaign would look closely at whether Khaaliq and McCray met the ballot requirements, and that avoiding a primary challenge could benefit McDermott as he entered this year with about $50,000 in campaign cash.[11] Khaaliq then conducted an investigation[12] and discovered that the individual who filed the challenge against both her and McCray was Scott Yahne, an attorney who was a close friend and ally of McDermott.[13]
As a result of the findings, Khaaliq filed a lawsuit against the Indiana Election Commission[14] and announced her decision to proceed as a write-in candidate in the 2022 general election. Khaaliq was the first African American to run for the U.S. Senate in a general election in Indiana's history.[14]
Incumbent Senator Todd Young sought re-election in 2022. In 2016, Young was initially perceived as the underdog when Former Senator Evan Bayh was chosen to replace Representative Baron Hill.[22][23] Bayh, an Indiana political giant, was considered the frontrunner until he faced criticism for many of his post-senatorial activities, allowing Young to gain momentum and secure a decisive victory.[24]
In March 2021, Young announced he would seek a second term.[25]
Young's main opponent in the election was Thomas McDermott Jr., the longtime mayor of Hammond, Indiana.[26] McDermott ran as a moderate, criticizing Young for his ties to the Republican establishment and emphasizing his pro-choice stance in light of the Dobbs v. Jackson Supreme Court decision.[27] Young, on the other hand, focused on issues like inflation and border security, directing most of his attacks at President Joe Biden rather than McDermott.[28][29] While early polls indicated a close race,[30] a poll conducted around Election Day showed Young with a comfortable lead.[31]
On October 16, three weeks before the election, the only debate was held which featured Young, McDermontt, and Libertarian Nominee James Sceniak. The Debate centered on a number of issues, including The Economy, Immigration/Border security, and Climate change, among others. Young, mainly focused on Immigration, while avoiding attacking his opponents, McDermott attacked Young relentlessly throughout the debate, even stating “When Senator Young supports spending, it is good inflation, but when he doesn't support it, that is bad inflation. The chips act is a spending bill. Todd Young helped to add to our nation inflation problem”.[32]
Young went on to win the election easily, outperforming his 2016 performance by 11 points and receiving nearly 59% of the vote to McDermott's 38%.[33]
↑ Wiederkehr, Ryan Best, Aaron Bycoffe, Ritchie King, Dhrumil Mehta and Anna (June 28, 2018). "Indiana: U.S. Senate: 2022 Polls". FiveThirtyEight. Archived from the original on September 15, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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