This story was originally published by the Indiana Capital Chronicle.
By Mackenzi Klemann and Casey Smith
Indiana Capital Chronicle
June 1, 2026
As Indiana Democrats prepare to gather for the party’s convention Saturday, delegates will decide whether a familiar political name or a progressive challenger is best positioned to flip one of Indiana’s most contested statewide offices.
The two-candidate race pits Beau Bayh — the son of former Gov. and U.S. Sen. Evan Bayh and grandson of former U.S. Sen. Birch Bayh, who is campaigning as an attorney and former Marine Corps infantry officer — against Blythe Potter, an esthetician and veteran of the Iraq War who founded a spa in Bargersville.
Whoever emerges from the Indianapolis convention will advance to November’s general election, where Democrats hope to capitalize on growing Republican turmoil surrounding the office currently held by embattled Republican Secretary of State Diego Morales.
That GOP race has grown increasingly turbulent in recent weeks after several prominent Indiana Republicans — including U.S. Sen. Jim Banks and Attorney General Todd Rokita — withdrew support for Morales amid mounting scrutiny over his spending, hiring decisions and office management.
GOP delegates will choose their nominee June 20 at the Indiana Republican convention in Fort Wayne from a four-person field that includes Morales, Banks staffer Max Engling, Knox County Clerk David Shelton and conservative activist Jamie Reitenour.
Indiana Democratic Party spokesperson Sam Barloga said the party has allotted 2,561 delegates statewide for this weekend’s convention and expects attendance to come close to that number.
More than 1,800 delegates attended the party’s last convention in 2024.
In 2022, Democrat Destiny Wells secured the secretary of state nomination without opposition before ultimately losing to Morales in the general election.
Democrats on Wednesday also announced uncontested convention nominees for two other statewide offices: Porter County Clerk Jessica Bailey for comptroller and Noblesville public health executive Coumba Kebe for treasurer.
Delegates interviewed by the Indiana Capital Chronicle said they are weighing electability, experience and the future of the Democratic Party as they prepare to cast their votes Saturday.
On Bayh’s side are delegates who see a candidate capable of winning statewide office for the first time in nearly a decade — aided by his experience, reputation, name recognition and ability to raise support in what is an increasingly expensive election.
Meanwhile, Potter is generating support from grassroots organizers, progressives and first-time delegates who became politically active through “No Kings” protests where they met Potter, and who wish to see the party chart a new electoral strategy.
“Beau is incredibly intelligent,” said Nick Iaccarino, a delegate from Vanderburgh County. “I think his integrity is beyond reproach.”
Democrats are in an “uphill battle” to win statewide office no matter which candidate they select, he said.
Name recognition and fundraising are essential, and Iaccarino doubts Potter can raise the support needed to overcome those odds.
“You’re talking seven figures just for people to even recognize a name,” he said. “You can say what you will about the establishment. The reality is the name Bayh is synonymous with Indiana politics, and that in and of itself is going to offer him a leg up that (Potter) simply cannot replicate, not without spending millions and millions of dollars.”
Michael Oles, a delegate from Hendricks County and member of the Indiana Progressive Democrats, sees in Potter an opportunity for the party to take a progressive populist strategy to excite Democrats and win over apathetic Hoosiers who don’t typically vote.
“I’ve seen the establishment fail and fail and fail,” Oles said. “Beau seems like a great guy. If he was acting more like his grandfather than his dad, I’d be more excited.”
“Beau had a chance to reset what it means to be an Indiana Democrat, and I think he hasn’t done it,” he said.
Voters are unlikely to care about the controversy with Morales come November anyway, and will cast their votes instead based on their perception of the Republican Party and President Donald Trump’s handling of the economy, Oles said.
“I am really done with the establishment politicians,” said Kelly Jones, a first-time delegate from White County. She added, “We need some change, and to be honest, we need some women to get some work done, because the men aren’t doing it.”
Patty Avery fondly recalls the Bayh legacy from her youth. The Vanderburgh County delegate said the younger Bayh has the charisma to energize Democrats in a promising year, but doubts name recognition alone will be enough to win.
“There are voters who are going to be walking in this fall who were two years old when Evan (Bayh) stepped away,” she said. “They don’t know Bayh from anybody, so he’s going to be introducing a whole new generation of voters to what a Bayh means to Indiana.”
Bayh said his secretary of state campaign has centered on restoring public trust in an office he argues has been defined by “corruption and insider dealing.”
“The corruption and insider dealing and incompetence and nepotism of Diego Morales did not start yesterday,” Bayh said in an interview with the Capital Chronicle. “This has been years in the making.”
He said the controversy surrounding Morales underscores broader frustrations with Indiana’s political system.
“This is a bunch of insiders, some in D.C., some here in Indianapolis, substituting Diego Morales at the last minute, not because he’s incompetent, not because he’s corrupt, which he is, but because he’s going to lose,” Bayh said. “It’s exactly why people are fed up with politics.”
If elected, Bayh said his first action would be to launch an independent audit of the secretary of state’s office to review spending and operations.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re a Democrat or a Republican or an independent,” he said. “We can all get on board with rooting out corruption and wasteful spending and insider dealing in our government.”
The Democratic hopeful has also campaigned on expanding voter participation in Indiana, which routinely ranks near the bottom nationally in voter turnout.
Bayh’s proposals include protecting early voting access, extending polling hours and ending straight-ticket voting.
“I think it’s the secretary of state’s responsibility to increase participation among eligible voters,” he said.
At the same time, Bayh emphasized support for election security measures, including voter ID requirements.
“We have to be very strong on election security,” he said. “If I’m successful in this race, there will be zero tolerance for illegal voting, and every case of illegal voting that is uncovered will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”
Bayh supports some election security measures already in place in Indiana but raised concerns about portions of the proposed federal Safeguard American Voter Eligibility, or SAVE Act, including those requiring documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote.
“I’m in favor of voter ID. I think it makes common sense. It’s a good way to protect our elections,” he said.
“But there are some elements of the SAVE Act that I think may be overly restrictive,” he added, noting that women who have changed their last names could face registration hurdles if their identification documents do not match. “I don’t agree with every part of it.”
Bayh said his campaign has focused heavily on delegate outreach ahead of Saturday’s convention, including direct communication through calls, texts and mail.
“We’ve directly communicated with every delegate at this point,” he said.
As of late May, Bayh said the campaign has traveled to around 75 counties since launching seven months ago, and plans to reach all 92 counties before the November election.
He’s also sought to frame himself as a pragmatic, nonpartisan candidate despite criticism from some Democratic activists that he’s too moderate for the moment.
“There’s nothing partisan about election security, or increasing voter participation, or helping business owners, or rooting out securities fraud,” Bayh said. “This office really should be impartially run.”
The younger Bayh said his family’s public service helped shape his own interest in elected office, pointing to the impact his father and grandfather had on Indiana and national policy.
“You’re able to see your dad or your mom or your grandma or your grandpa have a real positive impact on their state or their country,” he said. “It does influence you to try and do something similarly impactful with your own life.”
“Beyond all of the policy, this campaign is about instilling that type of leadership spirit back into our state government,” Bayh continued. “People are craving that.”
A relative newcomer to politics, Potter is garnering support from first-time delegates who became politically active in the Trump era.
Potter said her weekly delegate calls often veer off topic to politics.
Her grassroots campaign is aided by her presence at “No Kings” protests, where Potter met and encouraged protesters to become delegates.
“She’s going to change how things are done,” said Twila Johnson, a first-time delegate from Johnson County who drives Potter around the state, adding, “We’re not winning, so we’ve got to change it up.”
A native Hoosier, Potter served in the U.S. Army and Military Police Corps during the Iraq War, where she deployed as part of the security detail for General George Casey.
She returned to Indiana and later earned her master’s in business administration, starting a spa in Bargersville.
After two unsuccessful bids for Bargersville Town Council and Johnson County Council, Potter became a precinct committee member.
The re-election of President Donald Trump inspired her to seek the Democratic nomination for secretary of state — and she’s counting on the backlash to his presidency to win.
Potter and her husband, Michael, will both cast votes for the nominee as delegates from Johnson County.
The question of electability comes up often, to which Potter replies: “We’re in the ‘No Kings’ era, and (Bayh is) being labeled a dynasty.”
Potter’s platform is similar to Bayh’s agenda: Protect early voting access, conduct an independent audit, modernize online platforms, end no-bid contracts and last-minute voter purges, and work with the legislature to expand early voting hours.
To improve voter turnout, Potter wants to send voters free, nonpartisan information on candidates, polling locations and election deadlines.
“I want to lower the barriers for voting for as many people as possible,” she said.
Potter shares Bayh’s reservations about the SAVE Act: “Our current ID laws are perfectly sufficient,” she said.
Both candidates want to use their platform to promote the establishment of citizen-led ballot initiatives in Indiana, so Hoosiers can vote directly on issues — a change that would require legislative action to amend the state constitution.
“Want to get rid of school vouchers? Put it on the ballot,” Potter said. “Women’s reproductive rights? Put it on the ballot. That way we’re not blaming Democrats, we’re not blaming Republicans. Indiana voters get to decide what that looks like.”
The Bayh campaign continues to outraise Potter — a potential liability for both candidates, as pro-Potter delegates criticize Bayh for accepting donations from Republican-aligned donors.
Bayh ended the first quarter with $1.9 million in the bank, while Potter reported a remaining balance of $66,600 on April 14, according to campaign finance records.
A delegate and Vanderburgh County Democratic Chair Cheryl Schultz said the party shouldn’t apply purity tests to donors.
“If a Republican wants to support a Democrat, that’s great. That shows that they’re interested in the candidate,” she said.
“The mere fact that his father and grandfather were successful in politics should not disqualify (Bayh),” said Keith Gambill, a fellow delegate from Vanderburgh County. “Sadly, with Citizens United, you cannot win a race on 25 cents. People have to be able to go out there and raise the money.”
Raised in a Republican household, Potter said she’s heard the “lesser of two evils” argument her whole life.
“Democrats are considered as bad as Republicans,” she said, “because the assumption is they are doing what their donors tell them to do. They are only responsive to donors and party leadership.”
Potter’s skepticism of major donors led her to publicly respond after she accepted donations from Lewis Bakeries heiress Kathleen Pettijohn — $210,000 to date, according to campaign finance records.
Supporters like Oles foresee fundraising as a challenge should she win the nomination, but remain committed to progressive populism as the alternative Indiana Democrats need to win.
“How do we raise money and stay true to our values — not take take money that ties us to polluters and charter schools and to warmongers and even MAGA?” Oles said. “Beau doesn’t seem to have that problem. He has a much clearer conscience than we do when it comes to, how do you raise money and win a race like this.”
“Progressive populism is the way out of this in Indiana,” he said, “not corporate moderate Democrats who lost race after race. But hopefully, when we win in November, we’ll figure out the coalition and it’s all good.”
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