INDIANAPOLIS | Indiana Democrats have some healing to do as Jill Long Thompson leads them into a long-awaited November bout with Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels.
Party dissonance turned national spectacle late Tuesday as Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. and Gary Mayor Rudy Clay sparred on CNN over sluggish ballot counting that delayed a resolution for the mayors' respective presidential hopefuls, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.
But morning brought complete Lake County election returns and a renewed focus on the race for governor. Local party leaders, McDermott and Clay failed to deliver Lake County for establishment candidate Jim Schellinger, and Long Thompson rode a 10,000-vote advantage in the Democratic stronghold to the pinnacle of a divided party.
"I was surprised that Schellinger didn't win Lake County," said Clay, the county's Democratic chairman. "The focus was absolutely on the presidential race. People were not focused hardly on any other races."
Schellinger also complained of being overshadowed by Indiana's Democratic presidential primary in his concession statement, a reversal of his stance in the weeks heading up to the election. Schellinger's concession, and a follow-up message thanking supporters, made no mention of Long Thompson, who edged him by a single percentage point in the bitter primary battle.
And there was no elaborate coronation waiting for Long Thompson at state party headquarters. Indiana Democratic Party Chairman Dan Parker's lone public unification effort last week came in an e-mail urging party faithful to contribute to Long Thompson.
Cash will be crucial. Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels enters the fall contest with a $5 million head start on fundraising.
The governor has used his re-election cache to highlight his often contentious accomplishments in a series of television spots, including one that touts "Change that's working." Daniels pledged to run an "entirely positive" campaign.
"It will be divided between talking about the progress we've made -- the way in which we are now clearly surpassing other states -- but then primarily about some constructive thoughts about how we keep this going," Daniels said last week. "There's plenty to say about both."
Long Thompson, a former congresswoman from northeast Indiana, said her modest $1.4 million primary campaign belied her history as a strong fundraiser but proved she can excel in the underdog role.
"I am ready to now take this campaign to the fall -- and then win and spend eight years rebuilding Indiana's economy, bringing health care costs down, increasing our high school graduation rate and stopping the privatization madness of Gov. Daniels," she said.
Lake County Sheriff Rogelio "Roy" Dominguez, the biggest name in region politics to back Long Thompson, said Democrats already have put to rest the divisive primary.
"I don't think that Mayor McDermott and Mayor Clay were in a fight that would last beyond the primary," Dominguez said. "I don't believe that there's any healing process required. I think we will hit the ground running and get ready for the November election."
