Buttigieg should run in IN-02.
I'm a fan of Pete, but I'm also skeptical that he is able to win IN-02. Where would he find the votes to defeat Walorski outside of South Bend? The regional demographics seem to be shifting away from the Democrats in IN-02 outside of the greater South Bend area.
That being said! If Buttigeg wants to earn his "rising star" badge, he'd better win this race - a relatively moderate (if incumbent-favoring... FWIW Donnelly managed to hold on to this seat in the awful 2010 wave) WWC district should be pickup material.
Great catch. Yes, it went from R+2 to R+7. And has drifted to R+12 since. It would be a tall order for Pete.
She was running as a non-incumbent, but Walorski barely won it in 2012.
Voters may have been familiar with her after her run against Donnelly in '10. Since being elected, she's faced - frankly - a couple of poor candidates and blown them out of the water. I guess long story short, Walorski isn't unbeatable, but Pete would have to run a near-perfect campaign in a near-wave situation in order to make this competitive.
Agreed on all fronts. Pete would be the best bet, but I hesitate to think he'd win, although it would be close for sure. But then again, the district is very working class, which is a demographic that has shifted towards Republicans lately. It's one group who could certainly swing back in a Pro-Dem environment.
Don't forget the outside money he'd be able to raise based off of his newfound profile in Democratic circles.
