While one former CEO was garnering headlines and ire from Washington, D.C., this week for his decision to run for U.S. Senate in West Virginia, another CEO from the world of distribution nabbed a quiet primary win Tuesday for another Senate seat just two states over.
Mike Braun, president and CEO at Meyer Distributing in Jasper, Ind., defeated U.S. House of Representatives members Rep. Luke Messer and Rep. Todd Rokita Tuesday to win the Indiana Republican primary for U.S. Senate.
Braun first entered politics in 2014, winning a spot in the Indiana House of Representatives. He resigned from that post last year to run for the Senate, stating, “Hoosiers are ready for leaders who can break the stranglehold career politicians have on the federal government.”
Before entering politics, Braun spent three decades building Meyer Distributing from a humble truck body manufacturer and parts distributor into one of the nation’s largest automotive aftermarket accessory businesses. The company now has 67 locations in 38 states and serves customers in all 50 states.
The Associated Press called Braun’s upset win Tuesday at 8:48 p.m. with Braun garnering 41 percent of the vote and Messer and Rokita receiving about 29.5 percent each. Braun will now face incumbent Democrate Joe Donnelly in November’s general election.
“When it comes to Luke Messer and Todd Rokita, it was a difficult decision for me, because we were all good conservatives and sometimes it gets a little difficult to differentiate the process of doing it, it gets intense, it gets harsh, but I hope they will join me just like I would with them,” Braun said after Tuesday’s primary. “Our common goal all along was to retire Joe Donnelly.”
