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Bayh Makes Senate Run Official

In this photo taken May 1, 2016, former Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh speaks in Indianapolis.
AP Photo/Paul Sancya
In this photo taken May 1, 2016, former Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh speaks in Indianapolis.

Former Senator Evan Bayh will seek to regain his old job, making the official announcement Wednesday that he’s joining the race for Indiana’s open U.S. Senate seat. 

Bayh, who abruptly dropped out of a reelection run in 2010, says partisan bickering has ground Washington to a halt. It's the very same reason he gave for leaving the Senate six years ago. Now, the former Democratic Senator says he can no longer sit on the sidelines.

Democratic Senate candidate Baron Hill dropped out of the race Monday after trailing in both fundraising and the polls to Republican Todd Young.

The Republican Todd Young's campaign has been on the offensive since rumors surfaced of Bayh joining the race, seeking to label the Democrat as a “Washington super lobbyist” who exemplifies what’s wrong with the system. Bayh enters the race with a more than 8-to-1 financial advantage over Young. The Indiana Democratic Party’s central committee must formally pick Bayh to replace Hill on the ballot at a July 22 meeting. 

Brandon Smith was the Statehouse reporter for Indiana Public Broadcasting for more than a decade, spanning three governors and a dozen legislative sessions. He also hosted Indiana Week in Review, a weekly political and policy discussion program seen and heard across the state.
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