Stutzman will run for Senate

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - Indiana State Senator Marlin Stutzman has confirmed to NewsChannel 15 that he will run for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Evan Bayh in 2010.

Stutzman, 32, is a Republican from Howe in Lagrange County. He's in his first year in the Indiana Senate after serving for several years in the Indiana House.

Stutzman tells NewsChannel 15 he filed the paperwork with the federal government to form an exploratory committee earlier this week, the first official step for a candidate seeking federal office.

"After a lot of thought and discussions with my wife and family, we've decided to put our hat in the ring," said Stutzman.

Stutzman is also the co-owner of a grain farm. He is known as a conservative in the state legislature.

Limiting the growth of the federal government will be a major campaign theme for Stutzman, who says he's worried about saddling his young kids with 11 trillion dollars in debt.

"The federal government is just large. It's growing rapidly, especially under the current administration. And that's very disturbing to me," he said.

With unemployment sky-high in his part of the state, he's also concerned about the economy. He says cap and trade energy legislation being proposed on Capitol Hill would only make unemployment worse.

"That legislation in particular is a direct attack on Indiana. About 96 percent of our energy comes from the coal industry. We are heavily dependent on coal and that would target that industry," said Stutzman.

Stutzman admits he's a long shot; that even if he wins the primary Bayh would be much better funded in the general election. But Stutzman thinks it's important to have a vibrant discussion about the country's future and says that with hard work, he can win.

"Serving in the state Senate, very fortunate, [I] have been able to help with policy that controls spending, controls government, less taxes, and it's those same principles that would guide us through this campaign. And if we're going to commit ourselves to running, we're committing ourselves to winning as well," he said.

Stutzman points out that you don't have to go that far back to find an example of a long shot winning an Indiana Senate race. In 1980, Dan Quayle knocked off Evan Bayh's father, Senator Birch Bayh.