Mike Pence’s fights on social issues have damaged his position among key Republicans constituencies, Trump flirts with unpopular Pence Some home state Republicans would be glad to see the Indiana governor abandon his re-election bid for a VP slot.

In his single term as governor of Indiana, Mike Pence has slashed taxes, enacted conservative health care reforms, tightened abortion restrictions and boasted deep support among the lucrative political network of Charles and David Koch.

Even so, there are plenty of Republicans in his home state who would be glad to see him abandon his re-election campaign to serve as Donald Trump’s running mate.


A firestorm around a 2015 law known as the Religious Freedom Restoration Act placed the state center stage in the culture wars, leading to intense backlash from the business community. The Indiana Chamber of Commerce called the law “a tremendous hit” to Indiana’s “national identity as a welcoming and hospitable state,” and Pence delivered a memorably bad performance on ABC’s “This Week,” in which he declined to answer whether or not it should be legal to discriminate against gays and lesbians.

He was also embarrassed by — and forced to abandon — a plan to create a state-run news service, an idea that drew national ridicule. All of it took place against the backdrop of rumblings that Pence had ambitions of his own for the Oval Office.

“Gov. Pence got hurt, obviously, with the Religious Freedom Restoration Act fight,” said Indiana Senate President Pro Tempore David Long, a Republican and Pence supporter, referring to the controversial law that critics contended would have allowed discrimination against LGBT people. “The fact is there was some damage done there to him.”

But Pence’s willingness to fight those culture wars may be exactly what makes him an attractive candidate to Trump, who lacks social conservative bona fides. He also spent more than a decade in Congress, rising to a leadership role.

“What people are criticizing Pence for in Indiana is actually something that makes him valuable to the Trump ticket,” said Andrew Downs, director of the Mike Downs Center for Indiana Politics. “His stance on things like the Religious Freedom Restoration Act in Indiana, as well as his stance on civil rights legislation in Indiana, those are things people are criticizing but they actually are things that help solidify social conservatives within the Republican Party.”

But Pence is in the midst of a re-election campaign in which he is trying to distance himself from hard-line social stances that could help Trump make inroads with a key Republican constituency.

Pence is “not talking about” social issues, his deputy campaign manager Marc Lotter said as the governor prepared to visit the Bartholomew County Fair on Monday.

“He has never been focused on social issues,” Lotter said. “They’re not part of his message now. They’ve not been part of his legislative agenda during his time in office.”

Pence has instead focused on touting his economic record, following the lead of his popular GOP predecessor Mitch Daniels, who famously said national Republicans should call a “truce” on social issues.

He’s facing a tough rematch against Democrat John Gregg, a former state legislator who lost to Pence by three percentage points in 2012, even as Mitt Romney won the state by 10 points.

Pence’s job approval rating is underwater at 40 percent, according to a May poll, and even among Republicans only six-in-10 supported his re-election.

“It’s a tight race,” said Christine Matthews, a Republican pollster who has conducted extensive polling in Indiana, but is not affiliated with the Pence campaign. “It’s not because Gregg’s popular. Thirty percent of the people don’t even know who he is.”

Pence’s fights on social issues have damaged his position among key Republicans constituencies, from business leaders to college-educated women in vote-rich Marion County.

“There was a sense that he was pursuing these divisive conservative issues in a way that Mitch Daniels never did,” said Matthews, who conducted polling for both of Daniels’ gubernatorial campaigns.

That’s left some Republicans salivating at the prospect of Pence’s departure and the prospect of Daniels taking his place atop the ticket. Daniels, who currently serves as the president of Purdue University, has not ruled out making a run. The decision must be made soon: July 15 is the deadline by which Pence must withdraw from the gubernatorial race to avoid appearing on the ballot.

But Pence brings a number of strengths to the GOP ticket. He can point to a conservative economic record — he cut the corporate income tax rate, the individual income tax rate and eliminated the estate tax in Indiana — and would give Trump some needed cover on social issues. Many social conservatives who flocked to Ted Cruz, and remain wary of Trump’s past support for gay marriage and abortion rights, would find Pence an attractive addition to the ticket.

“He’s a social conservative, clearly, and faith is very important to him and he would do well with that community and bring some of those folks back to the fold,” said Michael McDaniel, a former chairman of the state GOP. “I think he brings a lot to the table on the national ticket.”

Trump has expressed interest in a vice president who knows how to navigate Congress. Pence would certainly fit that description, having served in the House from 2001 to 2013 and for a term as chair of the Republican Conference. Pence’s firm stance against the acceptance of Syrian refugees in Indiana aligns well with Trump’s hard line against immigration from the Middle East.

“Nationally he has always had a strong reputation,” said Long, the state senator. “He was a leader in the conservative movement in Washington, he has very close ties with many members of Congress, still. He’s highly respected by them.”

For Pence, the role of Trump’s running would put him one step closer to what some see as his ultimate goal.

“Mike Pence clearly would like to be in the White House,” said Downs. “Everybody knows he would like to be in the White House, and one way to get there is by being the VP.”