Former 5th District Candidate Announces Secretary of State Run

INDIANAPOLIS — A former Republican candidate for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives announced Wednesday he’s running for Secretary of State.

Max Engling lives in Hamilton County and is a senior advisor to Indiana Republican Senator Jim Banks.

“Max Engling is a key member of my team and will make a great Secretary of State,” Banks said in a release. “Max is a strong conservative who will keep our elections safe and secure, support Indiana small businesses and farmers, and he will win in November. He has my full and total support!”

Engling ran in the Republican primary for Indiana’s 5th Congressional District in 2024.

Multiple people have entered the race for Secretary of State, including incumbent Secretary of State Diego Morales. When asked about his motivation for jumping into the race at the deadline, Engling focused on protecting Indiana’s conservative political landscape. He’s worried that some progressive policies are starting to get traction here in Indiana.

“Not only do I believe that Indiana is the best state in the country, but as I travel around the state, I’m hearing from Republicans, I’m hearing from delegates, I’m hearing from Hoosiers that are saying ‘Listen, Republicans built this state through their values’,” Engling said in a Thursday interview with 93 WIBC’s Tony Katz.

With three weeks remaining until the Republican convention, Engling is launching a push to contact delegates directly. He frames the race as a battle to prevent Indiana from sliding down the same fiscal and politcal path as neighboring Midwestern states.

“The number one challenge is losing our state to the far left,” Engling told Katz. “I believe that I am the best candidate to win in November to ensure that Beau Bayh does not take the state of Indiana in directions that we do not want to go. I am that candidate.”

Engling also gave his take on Bayh, a Democrat running for Secretary of State and son of former Indiana Governor and U.S. Senator Evan Bayh.

“He is clearly running a campaign that wants to take us to our neighbors to the north,” he said. “You see the folks in Michigan, you look to our west in Illinois, they have serious challenges. When the far left takes over, it does not go well for them. You wind up as a dying state.”

Indiana Republican Representative Victoria Spartz urged her colleagues to support Engling as the next nominee for Secretary of State.

“Max Engling has my complete and total endorsement to be our next Indiana Secretary of State,” Spartz said in a release.