From JournalGazette.net:

At best, the majority of delegates simply believed Greg Zoeller was the more qualified of the two candidates. After all, he has served as No. 2 in the office of Attorney General Steve Carter, who isn’t seeking re-election. Daniels’ choice, Jon Costas, is an attorney who is mayor of Valparaiso.

Or it could be that Zoeller ran a better campaign, meeting more delegates face-to-face and delivering more compelling arguments for his candidacy.

It didn’t hurt that Marion County Prosecutor Carl Brizzi – no lightweight in GOP politics and himself on the short list of possible AG candidates – gave a strong nominating speech for Zoeller.

But at least some delegates believed Daniels was a little too interested in having his own person in the elected office, and some were upset at what they viewed as overly aggressive maneuvering to give Costas the nomination. In a video presentation supporting Zoeller, Carter referred to “strong-arm tactics.”

And Daniels’ claim that the Republicans needed a northern Indiana candidate on the ticket clearly didn’t move the delegates. Both Zoeller and Tony Bennett, the party’s nominee for superintendent of public instruction, are from southern Indiana.

Not surprisingly, Democrats portrayed the vote as a major loss for Daniels.

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