Mike Braun Bio
Michael Kent Braun (born March 24, 1954) is an American businessman and politician who has served as the 52nd governor of Indiana since 2025. A Republican, he previously represented Indiana in the United States Senate from 2019 to 2025 and served in the Indiana House of Representatives for the 63rd district from 2014 to 2017. Born and raised in Jasper, Indiana, Braun built a career in business before entering politics, leading Meyer Distributing, a truck-body and parts manufacturing company. Originally registered as a Democrat, he switched to the Republican Party in 2012 and has since campaigned as a business-oriented conservative focused on limited government and free-market solutions.
Early Life and Background
Michael Kent Braun was born in Jasper, Indiana, on March 24, 1954, and grew up in the same small southern Indiana community where his family had deep roots. He graduated from Jasper High School before attending Wabash College, an all-male liberal arts institution, where he joined Phi Delta Theta and graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in economics. He later earned a Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School, an academic credential that helped shape his later approach to public policy.
After completing his education, Braun returned to Indiana and joined his wife’s family business manufacturing truck bodies for farmers. He helped grow the company from a small operation of 15 employees to a workforce of more than 300, building hands-on experience in operations, finance, and management. In 1986, Braun and Daryl Rauscher acquired Meyer Body Inc., and Braun fully acquired the company in 1995, renaming it Meyer Distributing in 1999. He continues to serve as its president and chief executive officer.
Path to US Politics
Before entering elected office, Braun served on the Jasper School Board from 2004 to 2014, an experience that introduced him to local governance and public-service issues. Although he had long considered himself a conservative, he was originally registered as a Democrat and voted in Democratic primaries because his home county of Dubois County historically favored Democratic candidates in down-ballot races.
In 2012, Braun switched his registration to the Republican Party, citing his conservative principles and a desire to participate in the broader Republican primary process. He entered the Indiana House of Representatives in 2014, representing the 63rd district, and quickly built a reputation as a business-minded lawmaker. In November 2017, he resigned from the state House to focus on a run for the United States Senate.
Mike Braun Career
Early Career (2014–2018)
In 2014, Mike Braun won election to the Indiana House of Representatives, representing the 63rd district, and served there until his resignation in late 2017. During his time in the state legislature, he supported measures such as the Indiana Religious Freedom Restoration Act and opposed amendments that would have added anti-discrimination protections based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
In 2018, Braun entered the race for the United States Senate, positioning himself as an outsider with a strong business background. He won the Republican primary by defeating U.S. representatives Todd Rokita and Luke Messer with about 41 percent of the vote. In the November general election, he defeated Democratic incumbent Joe Donnelly with 51 percent of the vote to Donnelly’s 45 percent, while Libertarian candidate Lucy Brenton received less than 4 percent.
U.S. Senate Career (2019–2025)
Mike Braun was sworn in as the junior United States senator from Indiana on January 3, 2019, by Vice President Mike Pence. During his first term, he was named to four Senate committees and quickly aligned himself with many of President Donald Trump’s policy priorities. According to FiveThirtyEight, Braun voted with Trump’s position 90.9 percent of the time during his first two years in office.
Braun became one of Trump’s most prominent defenders during the first impeachment trial related to the Trump–Ukraine scandal, appearing frequently in media to argue the president’s case and ultimately voting to acquit him. He also supported Trump’s trade and tariff policies, voted to confirm Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court in October 2020, and joined 10 other Republican senators in pledging to object to the counting of electoral votes from several states after the 2020 presidential election. After the storming of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, Braun reversed his position and voted to certify the election results.
Throughout his Senate tenure, Braun pursued a conservative policy agenda that included opposition to the Affordable Care Act, opposition to abortion, support for building a border wall, and efforts to roll back COVID-19 vaccine mandates for private businesses. He also chaired the bipartisan Climate Solutions Caucus and sponsored the Growing Climate Solutions Act, reflecting his self-described conservationist views. In January 2024, he voted against a Senate resolution to apply human-rights provisions of the Foreign Assistance Act to U.S. military aid to Israel.
Governor of Indiana Era (2025–Present)
Rather than seek reelection to the Senate, Mike Braun launched a campaign for governor of Indiana in 2022, taking advantage of term limits that prevented incumbent Republican Eric Holcomb from running again. He filed official papers with the Indiana Secretary of State on November 30, 2022, won the Republican primary on May 7, 2024, and selected state representative Julie McGuire as his initial running mate before Micah Beckwith was nominated as lieutenant governor at the Republican state convention.
On November 5, 2024, Braun won Indiana’s gubernatorial election by the largest margin for an open governor’s seat since 1980, defeating Democrat Jennifer McCormick and Libertarian Donald Rainwater. He campaigned on a platform of “Freedom and Opportunity,” promising to address rising property taxes, expand access to affordable health care, and implement universal school choice. He was sworn in as the 52nd governor of Indiana on January 13, 2025, by Indiana Supreme Court Chief Justice Loretta Rush.
Early in his governorship, Braun pushed to reshape the Indiana University Board of Trustees by removing alumni-elected members and replacing them with his own appointees, a move that drew criticism from those who viewed it as an effort to expand political control over the university. In October 2025, he backed a legislative effort to redraw Indiana’s congressional districts, an initiative favored by President Trump that passed the Indiana House but failed in the Indiana State Senate.
Notable Events and Milestones
Among the most notable moments of Mike Braun’s political career was his 2018 Senate victory over incumbent Joe Donnelly, his role as a leading defender of President Trump during the first impeachment trial, and his 2024 gubernatorial win by the largest open-seat margin in Indiana since 1980. His brief objection to certifying the 2020 presidential election results, followed by a reversal after the January 6 attack on the Capitol, also became a defining national moment.
Mike Braun Family
Family Background and Personal Life
Mike Braun married Maureen Burger in 1976, and the couple has four children. He is a practicing Catholic. His late brother, Steve Braun, was also a politician in Indiana, continuing the family’s involvement in public service.
Braun has spent most of his life in Jasper, Indiana, the small community where he was born and raised. His long tenure there, combined with his school-board service and family business, has shaped his image as a rooted Hoosier figure who transitioned from local involvement to statewide and national office.