Now that State Budget Committee Chairman Luke Kenley has reached an agreement on tuition increases with Indiana and Purdue Universities, some are beginning to question whether Kenley's actions were a means of positioning himself as a front-runner in 2012's gubernatorial race. Political analyst Brian Howey said Kenley's tuition battle did have a populist ring to it and the Noblesville Republican has shown interest in the governorship before.
"Luke has run for governor in the past," Howey said. "In '03 he kind of had a campaign going then Mitch Daniels came back to the state and everybody fell by the wayside fairly quickly."
However, Howey said there has not been much talk about a possible Kenley run. He says more likely Republican candidates include 6th District Congressman Mike Pence, Lieutenant Governor Becky Skillman, Indiana Republican House Leader Brian Bosma, and Senate President Pro Tem David Long.