Indiana voters appear to love ticket-splitting when it comes to state elections, according to politics expert William Blomquist, an associate professor at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. The state has one Democratic and one Republican U.S. senator, and its congressional delegation breaks down to six Republicans and three Democrats.

The perception that the state is solidly Republican is not true, Blomquist said, rather it is solidly conservative. The state overwhelmingly votes for a Republican president, but state candidates are almost always conservative, and there are parts of the state where either Democrats or Republicans dominate.

Northwest Indiana with its steel industry and also a string of counties along Lake Michigan are the major strongholds for Democrats, according to Blomquist. Indiana is the number one steel producer, using heavy mills on the south shore of Lake Michigan and other smaller mills across the state.

The other region with a large number of Democratic voters is rural southern Indiana along the Ohio River -- voters there are typically attracted to the moderate Southern Democrats.

The Republican base has been central Indiana, Indianapolis and the suburbs and rural areas surrounding the city. But this may be changing, according to experts.

The city of Indianapolis is trending Democratic lately, while Republicans are making gains in the south, according to Blomquist.

Recent Election History

Indiana has voted for a Republican presidential candidate since 1964. Its closest races were in 1976 when Gerald Ford beat Jimmy Carter 53 percent to 46 percent in the state. Then, in 1996 Bob Dole beat Bill Clinton 47 percent to 42 percent in Indiana. President Bush lost only 9 out of 92 counties in Indiana in 2000, beating Al Gore 57 percent to 41 percent.

In state races, however, the last 16 years of Democratic governors was preceded by a 20-year run of Republican leaders in the state. Evan Bayh broke the Republican stronghold when he won the governorship in 1988 -- with his strongest support coming from southern Indiana and the northwest industrial area.

When Frank O'Bannon won the governorship in1996, he beat Stephen Goldsmith, the mayor from Indianapolis, 52 percent to 47 percent. In the following election in 2000, O'Bannon defeated Rep. David McIntosh 57 percent to 42 percent.

Though Indiana votes Republican in presidential elections because of its cultural conservatism now, Republicans and Democrats battled over the state from the Civil War to the New Deal.

State History

The state is still comprised of descendants of its original settlers -- Yankees from Ohio and New England and so-called Butternuts from Kentucky and the South, according to the Almanac of American Politics. While Yankees became Republicans and Butternuts became Democrats, a similar trend remains today.

Part of the reason that much of the state is still comprised of relatives of its original settlers is because immigrants did not typically move there during the 1840-1924 wave of immigration, with the exception of the area around Gary, Ind., which is located near Chicago.

Because of Indiana's traditional values, in the 1920s sociologists Robert and Helen Lynd chose Muncie to represent "Middletown" when they were looking for a representative American town to study.

The Lynds studied why factory workers didn't vote against factory bosses. According to the Almanac of American Politics, people voted with their cultural identity and personal values that did not change, regardless of their current economic status.

The Lynds returned to Muncie in the 1930s to study the impact of the Depression. Their interviews found a city optimistic about its future and not at all revolutionary -- a stark contrast to many parts of the nation that appeared highly unstable in the depths of the Great Depression.

Indiana sits in the center of the United States' manufacturing industry. According to the Almanac of American Politics, half of the country's manufacturing jobs are east of Indiana and the other half west, then half to the north and half to the south. With the second highest percentage of workers in manufacturing, it has historically been hit hard by nationwide recessions. Some 180,000 jobs were lost between 2000 and 2002 and after O'Bannon cut taxes during the time of economic growth, he had to raise the cigarette, gambling and sales taxes.

This year, as the two gubernatorial candidates -- incumbent Joe Kernan and Republican Mitch Daniels -- fight for the governor's mansion they both will run on the same theme -- that it's time for a change in Indiana.