By Bill Moreau
The Indiana Citizen
June 30, 2026
Is it just me, or has June 2026 been an especially nasty month in Indiana? Nothing says “Hoosier Hospitality” quite like deriding Muslims and LGBTQ families.
The latest evidence of our Lt. Governor’s inclination to promote division rather than unity broke in late May and bled into early June, beginning with an appearance on something called FlashPoint in which he said he “hates Islam” and considers it “a demonic death cult.” If, like me, you had never heard of this platform, read our Sydney Byerly’s excellent deep dive into how it fits into Christian nationalism’s well-funded proselytization machine. Also, if you haven’t seen LG Beckwith’s FlashPoint appearance, we have posted it in its entirety here, so you can judge for yourself whether the subsequent backlash was warranted. Recall, too, that when his appearance was recorded, it was a mere three days after the May 18th massacre of three Muslim men at their San Diego mosque.
Gov. Braun’s reaction? An unambiguous repudiation and a trip to the woodshed? Nope, almost an avuncular “the lad needs to choose his words more carefully; he didn’t mean it to come out as it did.” LG Beckwith’s reaction to his superior’s reaction? “Heck yeah, I meant it, because I truly believe it!” Oh, there I go again, thinking that a Governor and Lt. Governor should have no rhetorical or policy daylight between them, forgetting that LG Beckwith early on clearly articulated he’s nobody’s subordinate, certainly not to the Governor who would have preferred someone else as his No. 2. Gov. Braun’s milquetoast response amounted to a version of the maxim “silence constitutes acquiescence.”
Kudos to the Hoosier Muslim, Jewish and interfaith leaders who quickly issued a strong statement decrying the Lt. Governor’s invective. LG Beckwith’s reaction to their criticism was to call them “misguided” about what their own faith teaches. As a Catholic, I’ve been disappointed that I’ve never seen any of my faith’s leaders publicly push back on LG Beckwith since he established himself as the “Chief Religion Officer” of Indiana. Of course, Gov. Braun is a practicing Catholic, so is it fair to attribute his tolerance as demonstrating how all Hoosier Catholics should react? No, it would be silly to conclude Gov. Braun speaks for the Catholic church, which begs a question we’ll explore further through a future look into the churches and groups that are standing up to LG Beckwith and those that are not, and why.
The Indiana Muslim Advocacy Network quickly organized a Statehouse gathering under the banner “Faith Over Fear” which drew a good crowd literally outside Room 206, the Governor’s office. For conservative talk show host Rob Kendall—who knows LG Beckwith very, very well—the rally played right into Beckwith’s hands by providing the attention he craves.
Under that theory, of course, Beckwith and his fellow purveyors of hate would be unrebutted, adding to Gov. Braun’s “silence constitutes acceptance” rolls.
The reaction among the state GOP leadership to LG Beckwith’s Islamophobic tirade? Mostly crickets, except for State Sens. Greg Walker—a lame duck following his defeat in the recent primary–and Spencer Deery—locked in a recount over this three-vote primary victory—and State Treasurer Daniel Elliott. Senator Deery and Treasurer Elliott are both members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, believers who know something about religious persecution and how they are viewed by many Christian nationalists.
I’ve never met Daniel Elliott, but Republicans I deeply respect, respect him. His speech at the Faith Over Fear rally (a) was a choice he could have easily foregone, (b) explicitly drew on his LDS faith, and (c) is one of the most powerful defenses of the foundational American principle of religious tolerance you will ever hear. He courageously chose to speak—in this environment, the one created and fueled by the MAGA/Christian nationalist adherents within his own party—and stuck his neck out; conversely, his absence wouldn’t have been noted. (There’s a separate question of why—in this 250th birthday year—it takes courage to speak up for religious tolerance, but the answer is too obvious: you’ll piss off the Christian nationalists.)
Further evidence of Treasurer Elliott finding his voice can be found in this recording of a spirited June 24 interview with Rob Kendall in which they unpack what happened at the June 19-20 GOP convention that dumped Diego Morales as their candidate for Secretary of State and Elliott’s principled faceoff with LG Beckwith over religious freedom.
Today ends Indiana’s first-ever “Nuclear Family Month,” so declared by Gov. Braun in his June 1 Executive Order. In this case, Gov. Braun wasn’t the least bit equivocal about why he chose June: it’s because “Pride Month” has been celebrated in June for 56 years. I’ll let the Executive Order speak for itself but remember there are 11 other months in the year that might have been chosen, unless your goal was to proclaim boldly that families led by LGBTQ people aren’t real families.
Here are two versions of the EO. The one on the left is the official version. The one on the right was posted by LG Beckwith. Who knew that the rainbow had been expropriated by LGBTQ people, requiring state government to reassert ownership?
Hoosier Democrats gathered in Indianapolis on June 6 to nominate their candidates for Secretary of State, Treasurer and Comptroller (Auditor, for us old-timers). They nominated Coumba Kebe for Treasurer and Jessica Bailey for Comptroller by acclamation, meaning they had no opposition. State Party Chair Karen Tallian had the unenviable task of recruiting candidates for those important offices, proof of how Hoosier Democrats view their chances for picking up those offices in November. The two Democrats who actively pursued the Secretary of State nomination, Beau Bayh and Blythe Potter, are clearly more optimistic about the political climate, so they’d been doggedly campaigning for delegates’ votes for months. Bayh won the voting delegates 61%-39%, a 22-point margin that would be correctly characterized as a landslide victory in any ordinary election. Potter, to her credit, immediately endorsed him. With no U.S. Senate race this year, the Secretary of State election is at the top of the ballot, so it’s the marquee race. A fact certainly not lost on Hoosier Republicans.
If you’re looking for proof of the adage “history doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes,” it’s the 2026 Secretary of State race. In 1986, the Hoosier GOP leadership very explicitly sought to derail the political track of the first-time Democratic candidate, Evan Bayh. They recruited Robert Bowen, a sitting Marshall County judge, and the son of popular former Governor “Doc” Bowen. Despite Sen. Dan Quayle’s 341,000-vote margin at the top of the ballot in his re-election bid, Evan Bayh won by 128,000 votes, presaging his crossover appeal across four subsequent statewide elections.
In 2026, the lesson of 1986 hasn’t been forgotten by the Indiana GOP faithful, especially the man who is unquestionably their leader, U.S. Sen. Jim Banks. Sen. Banks was only seven in 1986, but he came of age just as Indiana Republicans began their comeback in 2004, led, ironically, by Mitch Daniels. It’s ironic because the Indiana GOP within which Sen. Banks has flourished was rebuilt by Mitch Daniels and his able team. Today, the two guys aren’t speaking, the product of a snarky exchange in 2023, when the Republican candidate to fill Mike Braun’s Senate seat was in play. Sen. Banks will strengthen his control of the Indiana GOP due to Mitch Daniels’ standup decision to accept the interim Purdue presidency–thereby permitting him to revive his self-imposed exile from partisan politics–and Gov. Braun’s complete abdication of the party leadership role expected of an incumbent governor.
Sen. Banks clearly concluded that a Bayh v. Morales race had to be averted at any cost. As the convention filing deadline approached, the closet was apparently bare of any potential candidates with equally famous last names, so Sen. Banks recruited a candidate with unquestionable loyalty, a member of his staff, Max Engling. At their June 20 convention in Fort Wayne, on the second ballot, delegates nominated Engling with 53% of the votes. Knox County Clerk David Shelton was #2 with 39%. Diego Morales received an ignominious 8%. (With six months left on his term, let’s watch how Secretary Morales performs as a lame duck.)
Looks like the No. 1 priority of the Engling campaign—and, due to a convention floor amendment to their party’s platform, the official policy of the Indiana GOP–is closing the May primary elections to only those who have declared a party in advance. For Beau Bayh, his support for citizen-led ballot initiatives seems a top policy priority. In a state that ranks consistently at the bottom for voter registration, civic literacy and turnout, it will be interesting to see which candidate for Secretary of State takes most seriously the role of “Chief Elections Officer.” It might be Greg Ballard.
Today is the deadline for Greg Ballard to submit almost 37,000 signatures of valid, registered voters to the county clerks so his name can appear on the November ballot as the candidate of the nascent “Lincoln Party.” (He chose not to file as an “Independent.”) All indications are that he will do so, which is no mean feat. Even if he doesn’t finish first in November, he’ll lay the legal predicate for future candidates to run under the Lincoln Party banner. His candidacy is also likely to improve turnout.
This year is one of those mid-terms that rolls around every 12 years: there’s no U.S. Senate race, so the Secretary of State is at the top of our ballot. Such years are historically awful for turnout, e.g, 2014 (30%) and 2002 (39%). Fingers crossed, if low-propensity Hoosier voters sense there’s a very competitive race for Secretary of State, it might overcome their “my vote doesn’t matter” excuse.
Which is why we’re spending so much time and energy on Indiana’s school board races
I won’t repeat my pep talk from last month—but if you’re a glutton for punishment, you can click here—except to remind you, dear loyal supporter, that the upcoming school board races are ones where every vote truly, truly matters. We’re partnering with Chalkbeat Indiana to ensure we provide Hoosier voters detailed information about school board candidates, with the goal of ensuring we learn their agendas. I hope you can join us for Chalkbeat’s July 8th program, “Big changes are coming to Indiana schools this election. What’s at stake?”
I was at the National Mall on July 4, 1976. The scars from Vietnam and Watergate festered. President Nixon had been driven from office and pardoned by President Ford. The presidential campaign between President Ford and Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter was about to kick into high gear. I am certain there were people around me who absolutely detested each other, but the environment was convivial, more like an oversized state fair, with a rolling series of concerts, culminating in spectacular fireworks. I distinctly remember being struck by the number of families with children. Reports from the day note the large law enforcement presence, but it was invisible to me.
The idea that my attendance might be interpreted as support for President Ford never crossed my mind.
But 50 years later, I won’t be there Saturday. Even if I could, I wouldn’t go. It’s not because I love my country less. Actually, the opposite is true. I didn’t consider going because I don’t want my presence to add to the headcount and be spun by the President as support for him and his policies. He probably doesn’t want me there, come to think of it, so we’re even, right?
My Saturday schedule will include reading this, watching this, listening to this and trying to stay awake for the fireworks.
And I’ll wake up Sunday an even more grateful American.
The views and opinions expressed are those of the author only and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Indiana Citizen or any other affiliated organization.
The Indiana Citizen is a nonpartisan, nonprofit platform dedicated to increasing the number of informed and engaged Hoosier citizens. We are operated by the Indiana Citizen Education Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) public charity. For questions about this commentary, contact Bill Moreau at bill.moreau@indianacitizen.org
