In-state elections: Indiana Senate, House could face changes

INDIANAPOLIS - The general public might pay little attention to legislative primary elections on Tuesday, but the state parties and the four legislative caucuses did.\nResults in some races help them decide where to distribute money and other resources in the fall. That's especially important in the House, where Democrats have a slim 51-49 advantage in a chamber that's been narrowly divided for years. Republicans rule the Senate 33-17.\nAlthough incumbents rarely lose in primaries, the last two saw surprising upsets of two of Indiana's longest-serving lawmakers — Senate Finance Chairman Larry Borst in 2004 and Senate President Pro Tem Robert Garton in 2006.\nLong-term lawmakers such as Sen. Teresa Lubbers, R-Indianapolis, and Senate Tax Chairman Luke Kenley, R-Noblesville, left nothing to chance this year. Both faced their first primary contests since they joined the Senate in 1992, and their challengers were running on discontent over high property tax bills.\n"I've been going door-to-door at least four nights a week since the first of April," said Kenley, who was being challenged by Ken Geesaman of Noblesville. "I've had a vacation from that for a while, but it kind of gets you up there listening to people."\nLubbers also has been campaigning hard in her race against retired federal employee Ken Morgan, who said he was running on anger over skyrocketing property tax bills that hit many people in parts of Marion County that are in Senate District 30.\nThe district has one of 14 contested Senate primaries this year, when 25 seats are on the ballot. It's the highest number of contested primaries in the Republican-ruled chamber in at least a decade and could reflect discontent over taxes and other issues and the fact there are five open seats.\nAll 100 House seats were on the ballot, with 32 contested primaries. That's one fewer than 2006, even though there were nine open seats.\nThis year's open seats guaranteed there will be at least 14 fresh faces in the Legislature, but plenty of incumbents will return after the November election. In the House alone, 34 incumbents — 19 Democrats and 15 Republicans — had no primary opponent, nor did the other party have someone on the ballot for those seats.\nOnly 20 incumbents faced party opposition in the House, while seven of 20 Senate incumbents running faced primary contests.