INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana Republican Gov.-elect Eric Holcomb has developed an uncanny knack for defying the odds.
Two years ago, Holcomb was a longtime Hoosier State political operative who had never won an election to public office despite one attempt in 2000 to run for an Indiana House seat, which he lost. He followed that up with a GOP primary run that was gaining no traction for the 2016 open U.S. Senate seat.
Holcomb became Gov. Mike Pence’s lieutenant governor in March. (AP Photo)
In March, his fortunes took a dramatic turn when he became Gov. Mike Pence’s lieutenant governor when Sue Ellspermann announced she would resign.
Pence tapped Holcomb — who was a top aide to former U.S. Rep. John Hostettler, retiring Sen. Dan Coates and former Gov. Mitch Daniels — as both men geared up for what was expected to be a bruising rematch with former Hoosier State Democratic House Speaker John Gregg in November.
Some 120 days later, Pence abruptly dropped his re-election bid when Donald Trump chose him as his running mate, a move that left Holcomb no longer on the ballot and up against three qualified and proven elected officials vying for the Republican Central Committee’s support to secure the Indiana gubernatorial nomination.
Two ballots later, Holcomb, 48, won and had just 100 days to raise an incredible amount of cash, put together a sound statewide campaign and convince voters he had the right stuff to be the 51st governor of Indiana.
“To say that this has been an interesting year would be an understatement,” he said. “People kept saying I didn’t have the money or the infrastructure or the ability to connect with voters to pull this off.
“I just put my head down and proved them wrong,” he said.
Polls showed him losing to Gregg anywhere by 6 to 12 percentage points going into Election Day. By election night, Holcomb found himself with a comfortable 6 point victory over Gregg, 3 more points than Pence had when he defeated him in 2012.
Gregg was stunned election night, admitting in his concession speech to supporters, “Bear with me, this was not the speech I had planned on giving.”
The winner of one of the most hotly contested gubernatorial races in the country found himself sitting in the front row of the Carrier Corp.’s auditorium and about to embark on an overseas trip to the U.K. when the Washington Examiner caught up with the unlikely rising star.
By election night, Holcomb found himself with a comfortable 6 point victory over Gregg. (AP Photo)
“Today just sort of screamed a new day in America, didn’t it?” he said after the event that paired him with both Pence and Trump, who praised the incoming governor in his speech for how proud he was of him for his “very convincing win.”
WASHINGTON EXAMINER: What prompted you to take this trip overseas before your inauguration as the 51st governor of Indiana?
HOLCOMB: I didn’t want the invitation by British business leaders operating in Indiana to sit in the in basket all session long. I saw that we had a couple of weeks prior to the Jan. 9 inauguration to get over there and since I won’t be doing any overseas travel during the legislative session, we put together a good trip to check in on some partners we have relationships with, some that we have fostered over the years.
The U.K. is our number one trading partner, and there are many British businesses operating in Indiana that employ over 30,000 Hoosiers, so anything that I can do to keep the pedal to the metal to keep that relationship going and send the message that we are not going to wait for me to be sworn in as governor for that to happen.
It is a very timely trip and I wanted to make sure we were sending them a message that there is going to be a seamless transition and that we will continue to reach out to our world partners. Even as there is a change in administration, our mission is to continue moving forward full steam ahead.
EXAMINER: You just spent some time with Gov. Mike Pence and President-elect Trump here in Indianapolis at the Carrier plant. What is your relationship like with the incoming president?
HOLCOMB: Well the relationship is developing, but I would say yes we have a good connection in the works. I talked to him on election night, I called Vice President-elect Pence and when we were done speaking he handed the phone to President-elect Trump and connected us. We had a good conversation about the results of the day for both of us.
We certainly feel we have a very good partner in Washington, D.C., at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue now and I know they feel as though they have a good partner here in Indiana.
Holcomb spent some time with Gov. Mike Pence and President-elect Trump in Indianapolis at the Carrier plant. (AP Photo)
Today at Carrier just screamed it’s a new day in America, when you think about all of the regulations that have been layered on job creators over the last eight years it racks up to billions and billions and billions of dollars.
So, I think elections have consequences obviously, and in this case very good consequences that have led to partners coming back to the table and negotiating relationships that benefit our workers.
We are a state that is a jobs magnet, a low tax state, a low regulation state, we keep our books in balance and we are a place for boosting confidence for people who are wanting to grow their businesses and provide opportunities for Hoosiers to go to work.
This [event] kind of underscores that Indiana has not failed in the past eight years despite Washington’s adverse influences and I think this is just the beginning. I am just so pleased and proud of not just today but what can be done in the future.
EXAMINER: What are some of your legislative goals once you are sworn into office next month?
HOLCOMB: We are a state that likes racing as you well know, and just like racing we like winning, in many of the categories we find ourselves in the hold position, but I am not planning on resting or putting it in cruise control, we are going to put our foot on the gas to maintain our fiscal integrity.
That begins with passing a balanced budget and protecting our AAA credit rating and keeping a healthy number in reserves. We will do that first and foremost, secondly need to make sure that we continue to take advantage of our location in terms of our infrastructure program. We have the ability to get the things we grow or make to 80 percent of nation’s population within 24 hours. So, anything we can do to maintain and improve that type of service puts us at an advantage over our competitors around the country.
So it is key that we make sure that we don’t leave town during this legislative process until we get a long-term, data-driven, truly sustainable infrastructure program in place.
That again will give a real confidence to people who want to grow their businesses and create and contribute some real opportunity here in the state.
Third, we need to make sure that we are doing everything that we can to improve our work force and make sure that they are ready for the 21st century demands in the labor market. That is something that starts at a very early age in pre-K so that we make sure that when you graduate from high school you are on a path to have success within your reach. Whether that means you go directly into a career right after high school, or technical school or college, we need to start preparing people at a young age, but we also have to have retraining available to those who need it as the economy diversifies and changes.
We need to make sure that our workforce is nimble enough to build those jobs of the future.
Holcomb vowed to deal head on with the drug epidemic sweeping across the nation. (AP Photo)
And fourth, I am 110 percent committed to making sure that as Indiana becomes a strong economic model that we deal head on with this drug epidemic that is sweeping across the nation. Whether it is meth, or opioid or heroin we have got to get at it and get a handle on this drug disease on all fronts.
I will be laser-focused on making a significant improvement in that area. If we do those four things there will be a real separation between us and those that we compete against not just around the country, but around the world.
EXAMINER: OK, let’s take a look at you outside of politics. What are some things that people would be surprised to know about you?
HOLCOMB: Well, I definitely laugh at myself more than I laugh at others. I am definitely that guy who asks blunt, awkward questions that everyone at the table is thinking but is too polite to ask.
I am definitely a meat and potatoes guy when it comes to food, my favorite color is blue and I love to walk my dog, he gets me, he gets my humor, well at least I think he does.
My favorite activity is basketball. I used to play, now I mostly watch. I was a tall, lanky point guard in high school and my best game ever was the one where I almost got an assist. Almost.
I love to go to sporting events. I really love the teamwork aspect of any organized sports, but I have had one pretty bad sports experience, which came when I was in the Navy and stationed in Lisbon, Portugal. I worked in a little NATO headquarters and was on a radio show on the base. My radio name was “Hoosier Daddy” and my partner’s name was “Iron Head Coleman.” And Iron Head Coleman was in the Army. He was from Pittsburgh and this was during the years when the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Indianapolis Colts and I had a “Terrible Towel” waved in front of my face for four straight hours.
I will never, ever, get that image out of my mind.
