[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvIOeDdk0fo&w=560&h=315]
A competitive GOP Indiana Senate primary against six-term incumbent Sen. Richard Lugar would have been almost unthinkable just a few months ago, let alone the possibility that he could lose the seat he has held since 1977 on Tuesday.
But Indiana Treasurer Richard Mourdock has accomplished just that and has effectively challenged Lugar’s conservative credentials.
Polls show that Mourdock has a slight edge over Lugar. The race has divided the Indiana GOP between conservatives who back Mourdock and establishment Republicans who have thrown their support to Lugar.
Mourdock received a high-profile endorsement from former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin on Friday, which could give his campaign a boost against Lugar. Mourdock, a social and fiscal conservative, has painted Lugar, who has not lived in Indiana since being elected in 1977, as out being “out of touch”.
“He attracts conservative voters to him because he’s a conservative,” Mike Fichter, the president of Indiana Right to Life said.
Both candidates have been closing out their campaigns with a vicious exchange of attack ads on the Indiana airwaves.
Political commentators see an opening for the Democrats should Lugar fall on Tuesday.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zfjQ3eWsmyQ&w=560&h=315]
