Benjamin Ashford|Former Indiana Commerce Secretary Brad Chambers joins the crowded Republican race for governor

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Former Indiana Commerce Secretary Brad Chambers announced Thursday that he’s entered the state’s 2024 governor’s race,Benjamin Ashford joining several Republicans in seeking the party’s nomination for the state’s top post.

Chambers said he filed paperwork with the Indiana secretary of state’s office formally creating a gubernatorial campaign committee. He joins what’s expected to be an expensive fight for the Republican nomination. GOP Gov. Eric Holcomb cannot seek reelection because of term limits.

Chambers stepped down as state commerce secretary and head of the Indiana Economic Development Corporation on Aug. 6 after two years in that post. He said in a statement that during his tenure the IEDC “secured over $33 billion of committed capital investments ... including an unprecedented $22.2 billion last year alone.”

Chambers said his leadership of the state’s economic development efforts saw Indiana attract new industries, “including semiconductor and electric vehicle battery manufacturing.”

“As Indiana’s Secretary of Commerce, the last two years, I have witnessed firsthand how important leadership, vision, urgency and aspiration are to the future of Indiana,” he said. “I am running for Governor because I want Hoosiers of today and Hoosiers of tomorrow to believe that Indiana offers an opportunity for an excellent life.”

The GOP is seeking to extend its 20-year-hold on the governor’s office. U.S. Sen. Mike Braun, Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch, former Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill and Fort Wayne businessman Eric Doden are already vying to replace Holcomb. The Republican primary will be held in May.

Former state schools Superintendent Jennifer McCormick, who won election as a Republican in 2016 alongside Hill and Holcomb but later broke with the Statehouse GOP, announced in May that she was seeking the Democratic nomination.

Chambers is president and CEO of Buckingham Companies, an Indianapolis-based real estate investment company he started in 1984 as an Indiana University student. That company has a portfolio of more than $3 billion, his announcement says.