Joe Kernan (politician)

Joseph Eugene Kernan III (April 8, 1946 – July 29, 2020) was an American businessman and Democratic politician who served as the 48th governor of Indiana from 2003 to 2005. He previously served as the 47th lieutenant governor of Indiana from 1997 to 2003 under Frank O'Bannon and assumed the governorship after O'Bannon's death. Kernan had also served nearly a year as a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War.

After graduating from the University of Notre Dame, Kernan joined the Navy in 1969. A naval aviator, he was shot down in North Vietnam and taken prisoner in 1972. After his release, Kernan continued on active duty through 1974. A member of the Democratic Party, Kernan served as the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, and then as the 47th lieutenant governor of Indiana from 1997 to 2003. He became governor on September 13, 2003, upon the death of Governor Frank O'Bannon. He lost an election to serve a full term as governor to former Office of Management and Budget director Mitch Daniels on November 2, 2004. Kernan returned to South Bend and retired from politics. As of , he is the most recent governor of Indiana from the Democratic Party.

Early life and education

Joe Eugene Kernan III was born in Chicago, Illinois on April 8, 1946.

Kernan's father, Joseph E. Kernan Jr. (1923–2008), was a naval aviator during World War II and would go on to have a career in government service. in 1964.

He graduated in 1968 with a degree in government from the University of Notre Dame. He was initially an infielder, later switching to catcher in his junior year. and served as a Naval Flight Officer aboard the carrier . being released in 1973. Kernan was repatriated on March 27, 1973, and continued on active duty with the Navy until December 1974. He was appointed to the position by mayor Roger Parent quickly after Parent took office on January 1, 1980. Kernan had been recommended to Parent by Peter Mullen, who held the position before Kernan. When Kernan left the post, Mayor Parent praised Kernan's work on the budget, claiming that Kernan took the job at the city's worst financial time and that, "just putting a budget together and making it work is an accomplishment, and Joe did a good job". He was succeeded in office by Michael Vance. Following his tenure as South Bend Controller, Kernan held his jobs as vice president and treasurer of MacWilliams Corp until he ran for mayor in 1987. Kernan was the longest-serving mayor of South Bend,

Kernan was regarded to be a popular mayor. In 1989, Kernan considered, but ruled out, running against Republican Dan Coats for the United States Senate in the 1990 special election for the seat that had been vacated by Dan Quayle upon becoming vice president. While Kernan was considered a strong prospective candidate among the possible Democratic contenders, commentator James Grass observed prior to Kernan making his decision not to run that, "to run a successful campaign," a Democratic nominee would likely need, "statewide name recognition, a good reputation, and the ability to raise lots of money. All the Democrats still considering a candidacy lack at least one of these qualifications."

As mayor, Kernan worked on long-term job creation efforts, made efforts to improve public safety, and strengthened the finances of the city.

Development

thumb|Kernan played a key role in attracting the College Football Hall of Fame to South Bend

At the time he was mayor, Kernan was praised for his ability to attract economic development to the community. Kernan originally pledged that city funds would not go towards the project, and that it would be funded by corporate donations. However, after the city was only able to raise under $2 million in corporate donations, the city issued municipal bonds to pay for the construction.

Among the developments of which Kernan was particularly supportive was the Blackthorn development, a multimillion-dollar golf course and office park development. In 1995, Kernan took interest in a proposal to build an arena in South Bend for a new minor league ice hockey team. However, this proposal ultimately failed to materialize.

Some of the developments that were initially regarded as successes for South Bend when Kernan was mayor ultimately fell short in the long run. For instance, the College Football Hall of Fame never met its initial attendance projections. By the late-90s, it already had begun to be criticized as a failure, due to a lack of corporate sponsorship and poor turnout even during special events. The Hall of Fame would ultimately leave South Bend for the city of Atlanta in the 2010s. The Blackthorn, particularly its golf course component, fell short of expectations as well. and Wheelbrater-Frye.

Infrastructure

thumb|right|[[South Street Station (South Bend, Indiana)|South Street Station, the result of efforts to construct an intermodal transit center which began during Kernan's tenure]]

Among the infrastructure projects that took place during Kernan's tenure as mayor was the shifting of South Bend's South Shore Line station from a facility shared with Amtrak to a new location at the city's airport, which opened in 1992. In 1993, Kernan testified before congress that this move had been partially responsible for a 73% increase in ridership from South Bend, attributing this to the fact that the previous location of the station was in an area, "isolated and very difficult and perceived to be unsafe"

Kernan and others local officials secured funding for a new intermodal transit center in Downtown South Bend, which was intended to feature both a new station for Amtrak and a new local bus transit hub for South Bend Transpo. Efforts planning this station date back to 1992. It ultimately opened in 1998, after Kernan's mayoralty had ended, as the South Street Station, but only as a bus center without an Amtrak component.

Other matters

As mayor, Kernan worked to create a better working relationship between the South Bend city government and the nearby University of Notre Dame.

right|thumb|Kernan refinanced Coveleski Stadium

In 1988, taking advantage of a decline in interest rates, Kernan refinanced Coveleski Stadium through the newly created South Bend Redevelopment Authority.

1996 election as lieutenant governor

In 1996, Kernan was elected as Indiana's lieutenant governor on the Democratic Party ticket with then-lieutenant governor Frank O'Bannon topping the ticket as the gubernatorial nominee. Kernan had been reluctant to accept O'Bannon's offer to run with him, initially desiring to instead continue to serve as mayor. Others who had been rumored to have under consideration by O'Bannon for a running mate included Tom DiGuillio, Mike Gery, Baron Hill, John Walda, and Jill Long Thompson. Pamela Carter had ruled herself out of consideration. There has been some reporting that O'Bannon may have first offered the running mate position to Long Thompson and that she had rejected.

Kernan, the mayor of a Northern Indiana city, brought geographic balance to the ticket headed by O'Bannon, a native of the Southern Indiana city of Corydon. O'Bannon had previously signaled that he was exploring choosing a running mate from Northern Indiana in order to provide that geographic benefit. O'Bannon's selection of Kernan was announced June 3, 1996 with a press release followed by press conference in South Bend and Indianapolis. in its press release, the gubernatorial campaign promoted Kernan as having had a record of success in attracting businesses to the city of South Bend.

While campaigning for lieutenant governor in 1996, Kernan continued to fulfill his duties as mayor. In part to facilitate this, Kernan operated his end of the campaign out of a separate campaign office from O'Bannon, located in South Bend. Despite starting the general election as underdogs, O'Bannon and Kernan's ticket to defeat overcame their underdog position to defeat the Republican ticket of Stephen Goldsmith and George Witwer.

Upon being elected lieutenant governor, Kernan involved himself in guiding the selection of his mayoral successor.

Lieutenant Governor of Indiana

From January 1997, until assuming the governorship in September 2003, Kernan served as lieutenant governor of Indiana. As lieutenant governor, Kernan built a reputation as a skilled orator. Kernan was regarded to be a popular lieutenant governor.

First term

Kernan was sworn in as lieutenant governor in January 1997, with the oath of office being administered to him by his own father. As lieutenant governor, Kernan was also the president of the Indiana Senate, the director of the state's Department of Commerce, and the state's commissioner of agriculture.

In 1998, Kernan headed the Insurance Industry Working Group, a group aiming to boost the economic fortunes of the state's insurance industry. It presented recommendations for farmland preservation and additional land use issues to O'Bannon and members of the Indiana General Assembly, and Laos provided information and advice to communities dealing with problems regarding these issues. The plan was entitled the 21st Century Tax Plan. In December 2002, O'Bannon and Kernan proposed a broad job-creation plan entitled "Energize Indiana".

In 2002, a rift arose between Kernan and Governor O'Bannon over O'Bannon's selection of Peter Manous as chairman of the Democratic Party of Indiana.

Acting governor

On September 10, 2003, Kernan began serving as acting governor. O'Bannon had been hospitalized after suffering a stroke two days earlier. This was the first time that Indiana had ever implemented their state constitution's clause for handing over the authority of governor in the instance that the governor is unable to perform their duty due to disability. Per the cause, the speaker of the Indiana House of Representatives, B. Patrick Bauer, and the president pro tempore of the Indiana Senate, Robert D. Garton, made a request on September 10, 2003, to Indiana Supreme Court Chief justice Randall Shepard asking for the court to issue a ruling on O'Bannon's ability to perform his duties. Prior to making the request, the speaker and president pro tempore both had consulted with O'Bannon's counsel, his medical treatment team, and his family. After just over an hour of private discussion, the court ruled that same day that O'Bannon was currently unable to perform his gubernatorial duties and that Kernan would become acting governor.

Governor of Indiana

Governor O'Bannon died September 13, 2003. After O'Bannon's death, Kernan assumed the governorship. He had already assumed the powers of acting governors several days prior, after the Supreme Court found O'Bannon to be unable to fulfill the duties of his office.

Appointments and personnel

After assuming the governorship, Kernan appointed Kathy Davis to serve as his lieutenant governor. She was the first female lieutenant governor in Indiana's history.

Economic matters

Kernan assumed office amid an economic downturn in the state, with state revenue decreasing and unemployment rising. Under this program, they created a working group to review how the state of Indiana deals with purchasing goods and services, and to provide recommendations to adjustments. It would also create pilot programs for early learning opportunities for at-risk children. In October 2004 he unveiled plans to expand the state's community college system from having ten campuses to having 23 in time for the fall of 2005, which would mean that every state resident would live within a 30-mile radius of a community college's campus. Kernan also pursued upgrades to U.S. Route 31. The Indiana Department of Transportation estimated that Kernan's proposed projects for U.S. Route 31 would cost more than $1 billion.

On March 17, 2004, Kernan signed House Bill 1349, which provided protections for gun owners whose firearms were stolen from being sued for injuries or deaths resulting from misuse of those stolen firearms.

In 2004, Kernan became the first governor of Indiana in 48 years to spare the life of an inmate on death row, when, just days before his scheduled execution, Kernan commuted the sentence of Darnell Williams to life in prison without parole. Kernan was unopposed in the Democratic primary and in the general election faced Republican Mitch Daniels.

In their bid for a first full term as governor and lieutenant governor, Kernan and Davis outlined their vision for what he would seek to accomplish in their prospective continued tenure in the state's top two offices in a plan entitled "Action Indiana".

One of the things Kernan criticized his opponent, Daniels, for was Daniels' decision in 2000, as a member of the board of the Indianapolis Power & Light Company, to vote to sell the utility company to an out-of-state company. Kernan characterized it as "terribly bad judgement".

Kernan pledged to pursue upgrades to U.S. Route 31 calling it, "one of my top priorities since I first took office as lieutenant governor in 1997, and...still among them today." He declared that there had progress in the pursuit of improvements, and that the plans had been made in a "fiscally responsible manner" Kernan also voiced opposition to the prospect making the thoroughfare a toll road, declaring, "I will not make Hoosiers – or the people who are driving through on business or pleasure – pay a toll to travel this roadway." Daniels criticized Kernan's proposals, characterizing them as fiscally irresponsible, claiming, "The gap between the cost and the available funds in the Indiana Department of Transportation's budget is more than $3 billion in the next six years. For a state that is broke by every measure, the governor's promise list is impossible."

Kernan and Davis were ultimately defeated by the Republican ticket of Mitch Daniels and Becky Skillman. 53% to 45% At the time, the election was the most expensive gubernatorial election in the state's history, in regards to campaign spending. He served on the Indiana University South Bend Chancellor's advisory board, and was a member of the Chancellor's 100 of Indiana University.

South Bend Silver Hawks

In 2005, Kernan became president and managing investor of the South Bend Silver Hawks baseball club, after convincing approximately 50 others to invest in the team. This kept the team in South Bend, amid rumors that they were eying a move out of the city.

Kernan's tenure with the South Bend Silver Hawks team ended in 2011. The team has subsequently been the renamed the South Bend Cubs.

Later political involvement

Co-chair of the Indiana Commission on Local Government Reform

In July 2007, Kernan and Indiana Chief Justice Randall T. Shepard, a Republican, were appointed by Daniels to co-chair the bipartisan Indiana Commission on Local Government Reform. The commission published its report in December 2007. It recommended making broad changes to the structure of local government in the state. The report recommended having county argument mimic state government by having a single executive act that acts the chief executive officer and a legislative body which deals with fiscal and policy matters. The report also recommended saving costs bay eliminating township governments and having other levels of government assume services currently provided by townships. It also recommended having a unified county library system within each of the state's 92 counties. It also recommended decreasing the expenses of elections by moving municipal elections from off-years to even-numbered years. The state acted on a recommendation to eliminate township assessors, merging their responsibilities with county assessors. A state law was passed allowing townships to vote on whether to retain or abolish their assessors. In October 2008, Kernan and Shepherd co-authored an op-ed urging voters to vote to abolish assessor positions in their townships in the November elections.

National politics

In 2008, Kernan and his wife Maggie were Indiana co-chairs of Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign and actively campaigned for Clinton leading up to the state's May primary. Ahead of the state's April primaries, Kernan also endorsed Jim Schellinger's gubernatorial campaign. Like Kernan, Schellinger originally hailed from South Bend. In his endorsement, Kernan stated that he had personally known Schellinger for years prior and considered him a friend and a great prospective governor. Breaking with her husband, Maggie Kernan endorsed Schellinger's primary election opponent, Jill Long Thompson. During the 2016 United States presidential election, Kernan appeared in a Priorities USA Action-funded television advertisement criticizing Republican nominee Donald Trump as "unfit to be president." In the ad, he also referred to comments Trump had made deriding John McCain's military service, in which, like Kernan, he was a prisoner of war in the Vietnam war, as, "disgraceful". The ad was run in nine swing states.

South Bend politics

Kernan endorsed Pete Buttigieg during the 2011 South Bend mayoral election. In 2015, Kernan served as campaign manager and treasurer for Kareemah Fowler's campaign for South Bend City Clerk. Fowler had a landslide victory in capturing Democratic nomination in a competitive primary, defeating veteran Common Council member Derek Dieter, Kernan endorsed Tim Corbett in his unsuccessful bid for the Democratic nomination in the 2018 St. Joseph County Sheriff election.

In 2014, Kernan and several other city leaders, including his mayoral successor Steve Luecke, former South Bend fire chief Luther Taylor, and the CEO of the South Bend Regional Chamber of Commerce Jeff Rea (a Republican) all held a joint press conference in which complained about visible infighting within the South Bend Common Council. Kernan also criticized lewd social media posts by then-5th district council member Henry Davis Jr. as an embarrassment to the city.

Kernan was awarded an honorary doctorate by his alma mater the University of Notre Dame in 1998, when he served as the university's commencement speaker. Six years later, the University of Notre Dame Alumni Association presented Kernan with the Rev. Edward Frederick Sorin, C.S.C., Award, regarded to be one of the university's highest honors. That same year, Kernan received an honorary doctorate of Humane Letters from Indiana University.

Kernan married Maggie McCullough in April 1974. The couple did not have any children. He died from complications of the disease later that month, on July 29, at the age of 74.

Political positions

Kernan stated that he was "personally opposed" to abortion, but was strongly pro-choice.

As governor, Kernan was not opposed to providing special subsidies for large employers to move jobs to the state. He responded to criticisms of this feeding into a race to the bottom by declaring, "I understand the argument that taking jobs away from Boston and putting them here is nationally a zero-sum game. But Indiana, like virtually every other state, is not going to unilaterally disarm".

In 2017, along with Republican former Ohio Governor Bob Taft, Kernan co-authored an op-ed arguing in favor of abolishing the death penalty for mentally ill criminals.