Elections & Politics

Former U.S. Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) is probably best known for his foreign policy efforts, but he was also a strong supporter for climate action. Lugar passed away at the age of 87 on Sunday. 

Long-time Indiana Senator Richard Lugar is being remembered as a giant in Indiana politics. The Republican died Sunday at the age of 87.

Lugar served two terms as mayor of Indianapolis before joining the senate in 1977. He served until 2013.

Along with Democratic Senator Sam Nunn he led the effort to help the former Soviet states dismantle their weapons of mass destruction and nuclear arsenals.

Lugars’s longtime colleague and friend former Indiana Democratic Congressman Lee Hamilton says Lugar was known for his commitment to bipartisanship.

President Donald Trump spoke at the National Rifle Association’s annual meeting in Indianapolis Friday. He touted what he calls his accomplishments protecting Second Amendment rights.

Despite some opposition from the head of the Tippecanoe County Election Board, voters will receive pamphlets this year reminding them of rules for voting.

The League of Women Voters of Greater Lafayette asked to hand out literature to those standing in line for this year’s primary – advice officials refer to as “queue tips.”

Legislation to allow Indiana pharmacists to refuse to provide abortion-inducing drugs is a step away from the governor’s desk.

A new study shows hate crimes laws often aren’t utilized. House lawmakers change a school bus safety bill. And a Senate panel advances a bill to loosen restrictions on adoption advertising.

Here’s what you might have missed this week at the Statehouse.

Hate Crimes Research

Former Indiana Senator Birch Bayh, who authored two amendments to the U.S. Constitution, has died.

Bayh was the author of the landmark Title IX legislation, which leveled the playing field for women in sports and created penalties for gender-based discrimination in education.

Bayh was the Senate sponsor of the never-passed Equal Rights Amendment, but did succeed in adding the 25th and 26th Amendments to the Constitution, which created succession procedures in the event of presidential incapacitation and lowered the voting age to 18.