Brandt Hershman is an American politician and a former Republican state senator for

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

. He served from 2000 to 2018. He is married to Lisa Hershman.

Early life and education

Hershman grew up on a farm in

Jasper County, Indiana Jasper County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2010, the population was 33,478. The county seat is Rensselaer. Jasper County is included in the Chicago-Naperville- Elgin, IL-IN- WI Metropolitan Statistical Area. Hist ...

. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

Career

After graduating from college, Hershman took a job working in the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

. In 1991, a family friend,

Steve Buyer Stephen Earle Buyer ( ; born November 26, 1958) is an American former politician who served as the U.S. representative for , and previously the , serving from 1993 until 2011. On July 25, 2022, Buyer was arrested and charged with insider trading ...

, asked for help in his run for Congress. After winning in 1992, he became the district operations director for Buyer.

Indiana Senate

Hershman was first elected to the Indiana Senate in 2000 and was re-elected in 2004, 2008, 2012 and 2016. He served as the Majority Floor Leader and represented Senate District 7, which includes parts of

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, Tippecanoe,

Jasper Jasper, an aggregate of microgranular quartz and/or cryptocrystalline chalcedony and other mineral phases,Kostov, R. I. 2010. Review on the mineralogical systematics of jasper and related rocks. – Archaeometry Workshop, 7, 3, 209-213PDF/ref> ...

Clinton Clinton is an English toponymic surname, indicating one's ancestors came from English places called Glympton or Glinton.Hanks, P. & Hodges, F. ''A Dictionary of Surnames''. Oxford University Press, 1988 Clinton has frequently been used as a given ...

, Carroll and Boone counties. In 2007, Hershman authored the bill to ban

same-sex marriage in Indiana Same-sex marriage in Indiana has been legally recognized since October 6, 2014. The state had previously restricted marriage to different-sex couples by statute in 1986. By legislation passed in 1997, it denied recognition to same-sex relationshi ...

. Hershman was named Senate majority floor leader in 2012 after Connie Lawson resigned to become secretary of state. He also served as chairman of the Senate Tax and Fiscal Policy Committee. He co-authored the Major Moves transportation bill and has won numerous awards for his work with telecommunication deregulation and small business in Indiana. On February 17, 2010, Hershman filed paperwork to run for

Indiana's 4th congressional district Indiana's 4th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Indiana. From 2003 to 2013 the district was based primarily in the central part of the state, and consisted of all of Boone, Clinton, Hendricks, Morgan, ...

. He finished second after

Todd Rokita Theodore Edward Rokita (born February 9, 1970) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the 44th and current Attorney General of Indiana. He served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from from 2011 to 2019. A memb ...

in the 2010 primary election. On December 22, 2017, Hershman announced that he would resign from the Senate on January 2, 2018. He was succeeded by

Rodric Bray Rodric D. "Rod" Bray (born 1969) is an American politician from Indiana. A member of the Republican Party, Bray has been a member of the Indiana State Senate since 2012, representing the 37th state Senate district, which comprises all of Morgan ...

as Senate majority floor leader. In 2018, it was reported that Hershman was being considered for a position in the

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...

. He later accepted a job with

Barnes & Thornburg Barnes & Thornburg LLP is a U.S. law firm and lobbying group with 20 offices located in the United States. It is currently the largest law firm in the state of Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is th ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

References

External links

State Senator Brandt Hershman
official Indiana State Legislature site.
Brandt Hershman at Ballotpedia
profile * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hershman, Brandt 21st-century American politicians Republican Party Indiana state senators Living people Year of birth missing (living people)