Indiana Republican Party gives U.S. Rep. Jim Banks Senate endorsement, RNC support

The Indiana Republican Party has officially endorsed U.S. Rep. Jim Banks for the open U.S. Senate seat in 2024, further clearing his path to the nomination.

At the GOP's annual state dinner Thursday night, chair Kyle Hupfer announced that the state party gave the Republican National Committee the official sign-off to give financial support to Banks ― believed to be the first time the party has backed a candidate for an open Senate primary.

"In layman’s terms, you can now start calling him the presumptive nominee," Hupfer said.

More: Here's who's running for the open Indiana US Senate seat in 2024

Banks was the main event at the state dinner, his name covering T-shirts, buttons and signs all over the Indiana Convention Center ballroom. He had already been the lone frontrunner and only widely known candidate in the race by a longshot, having $2.5 million in the bank. Former Gov. Mitch Daniels had briefly flirted with a run, but quickly decided against it.

"It's an incredible honor," Banks said. "I think it’s a testament to how we’ve unified the party."

Republicans across the country are keen on winning back the Senate, so it was in the interest of the RNC to take a state like Indiana "off the table" early, Hupfer said.

"It takes off the risk of a primary challenge," he said. "We pretty much sealed it up tonight."

The National Republican Senatorial Committee, a major fundraiser dedicated to securing a Republican majority in the Senate, and the fundraising powerhouse Club for Growth already had been supporting Banks' run.

Banks, Indiana's 3rd Congressional District representative since 2017 and a former state senator, gave a keynote address in which he pledged to fight the "radical left in Washington" by supporting parental involvement in education; stripping government bureaucracy of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives; and spending more money targeting Mexican drug cartels on the southern border instead of aiding Ukraine.

"This is no time for wimpy Republicans," he said. "Voters are looking for fighters."

He praised the most recent National Defense Authorization Act as the most conservative ever, having included several of his amendments prohibiting defense spending on gender reassignment surgeries and cutting down on diversity, equity and inclusion hiring in the Department of Defense.

More: IndyStar examined U.S. Rep. Jim Banks' record in Congress and the Statehouse

At the state level, Banks praised Indiana lawmakers and Gov. Eric Holcomb, who was in attendance, for expanding the school voucher program, growing the budget surplus, and being the first state in the nation to pass a new abortion ban following the overturning of Roe V. Wade.

The Indiana GOP, he said, "is stronger than it’s ever been in my lifetime."

The state GOP will also have one of its most competitive elections in a generation in the governor's race. U.S. Sen. Mike Braun, whom Banks is running to replace, is running for governor, along with Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch, businessman Eric Doden and former state Attorney General Curtis Hill.

Banks said he doesn't anticipate endorsing a particular candidate in that or any other state race.

He has, however, endorsed former President Donald Trump for the Republican presidential nomination. Trump also endorsed Banks early in his candidacy.

So far in the Democratic primary for the Senate seat, former State Rep. Marc Carmichael and City-County Councilor Keith Potts have announced campaigns. The election is on Nov. 5, 2024.

Contact IndyStar state government and politics reporter Kayla Dwyer at kdwyer@indystar.com or follow her on Twitter @kayla_dwyer17.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana Republican Party endorses U.S. Rep. Jim Banks for Senate