Luke Messer

Luke Messer
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Indiana's 6th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2013
Preceded by	Mike Pence
Member of the Indiana House of Representatives from the 57th district
In office January 2003 – January 2007
Preceded by	Roland Stine
Succeeded by	Sean Eberhart
Personal details
Born	Allen Lucas Messer (1969-02-27) February 27, 1969 Evansville, Indiana, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Jennifer
Alma mater	Wabash College (BA) Vanderbilt University (JD)
Website	House website

Allen Lucas "Luke" Messer (born February 27, 1969) is an American politician who has represented Indiana's 6th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives since 2013. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Born in Evansville, Indiana, Messer is a graduate of Wabash College and Vanderbilt University Law School. After an unsuccessful run for the U.S. House in 2000, Messer served as the executive director of the Indiana Republican Party from 2001 to 2005. He was appointed to serve in the Indiana House of Representatives in 2003, after State Representative W. Roland Stine was killed in a car accident. Messer represented Indiana's 57th District from 2003 to 2007. In 2012, Messer defeated Democratic challenger Brad Bookout and was elected to a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Early life, education, and law career

Messer graduated from Greensburg Community High School in 1987.^[1]

Messer attended Wabash College where he was a member of the Phi Delta Theta Fraternity and majored in speech. He graduated in 1991.^[2] He received a law degree from Vanderbilt University Law School in 1994.^[3][4] Shortly after Messer graduated from Vanderbilt, he served as an Associate Counsel at Koch Industries from 1995 to 1996.^[5]

Early political career

Messer started his political career serving as the press secretary for Tennessee Representative Ed Bryant in 1997. He served as the legal counsel on the House Subcommittee for Government Reform for Indiana Representative's David McIntosh and Dan Burton from 1998 to 1999, and as the legal counsel to U.S. Representative Jim Duncan later in 1999.^[6] In 1998, he served as the campaign manager for Virginia Murphy Blankenbaker's unsuccessful congressional campaign.^[7] In 1999, Messer returned to Indiana and was a practicing attorney at the Barnes & Thornburg Law Firm in Indianapolis.^[8]

In 2000, Messer ran for the United States House of Representatives in Indiana's 2nd congressional district, where incumbent David M. McIntosh was retiring to run for governor. Messer received the endorsement of The Indianapolis Star.^[9] He lost the election to Mike Pence.

Indiana House of Representatives

On May 23, 2003, Messer was sworn in by the Chief Justice of the Indiana Supreme Court Randall Shepard to fill the remainder of the late W. Roland Stine's term.^[1] From 2003 to 2006, Messer represented District 57 in the Indiana House of Representatives, which contained portions of Shelby County and Bartholomew County.^[10] During the 2005-2006 legislative session, Messer served as the Assistant Majority Floor Leader.^[11] His legislation aimed at curbing high school drop-out rates received national attention after Shelbyville High School became a symbol of a national dropout crisis.^[12] He did not run for re-election as State Representative in 2006, and was succeeded by Sean Eberhart.^[13] Messer joined the law firm Ice Miller LLP as a partner in their public affairs group.^[14]

Messer served as the Indiana co-chair of John McCain's 2008 presidential campaign.^[15] In 2010, Messer ran for the House of Representatives in Indiana's 5th congressional district. He challenged Dan Burton, the incumbent representative, in the Republican primary. Burton narrowly defeated Messer in the election.^[16] Messer then became president and CEO of School Choice Indiana, a lobbying group that supported Indiana's private school voucher law.^[17]

United States House of Representatives

Elections

In May 2011, Mike Pence announced his intentions to run for Governor of Indiana. Messer subsequently declared his candidacy for the Republican nomination to represent the 6th District. His home in Shelbyville had been shifted from the 5th District to the 6th District in redistricting.^[18] On May 8, 2012, Messer defeated the grassroots effort by Columbus real estate investor Travis Hankins, winning with 71% of the vote.^[19] He faced Democrat Brad Bookout, a Delaware County councilman, in the general election.^[20][21] Messer, described as a "Libertarian-Leaning Conservative" by OnTheIssues.org,^[22] aligned his views with the views of Pence, saying: "If you like Congressman Mike Pence, we’re going to have very similar philosophy in the way we approach the job," he was also described by Bookout as "a clone" of Pence.^[23] On November 6, 2012, Messer defeated Bookout with roughly 59% of the vote.^[24] After the election, Messer was selected by his peers as Freshman Class President for the 113th Congress.^[25]

Committee assignments

• Committee on the Budget
• Committee on Education and the Workforce
  • Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Training
  • Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions
• Committee on Foreign Affairs
  • Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific
• Committee on Financial Services

Tenure

In 2013, Messer signed a pledge sponsored by conservative advocacy group Americans for Prosperity promising to vote against any global warming legislation that would raise taxes.^[26]

In November 2014, Messer was elected by his colleagues as the House Republican Policy Committee Chairman, succeeding James Lankford, who had been elected to the United States Senate. Messer defeated Tom Reed and Rob Woodall.^[27]

Personal life

Messer and his wife Jennifer, have two daughters and one son. They reside in Shelbyville, Indiana. Messer is the author of a children’s book called Hoosier Heart.^[28]

Electoral history

2006

2012

References

External links

• Congressman Luke Messer's official U.S. House webite
• Luke Messer for Congress
• Appearances on C-SPAN
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Profile at Project Vote Smart
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Legislation sponsored at The Library of Congress

Members of the U.S. House of Representatives from Indiana
1st district	Prince Call Boon Blake Boon Proffit Owen Embree Albertson Lockhart Miller Lockhart Niblack Law Niblack Fuller Heilman Kleiner Hovey Posey Parrett Taylor Hemenway Foster Boehne Sr. Lieb Denton Luhring W. Wilson Rowbottom Boehne Jr. Schulte Madden Benjamin Hall Visclosky
2nd district	Jennings Carr Ewing J. W. Davis Ewing J. W. Davis Thompson Henley Dunham English Cravens Kerr Wolfe Williams Humphreys Cobb O'Neall Bretz Hardy Miers Chaney Cullop Bland Greenwood Durgan Halleck Landgrebe Fithian Sharp McIntosh Pence Chocola Donnelly Walorski
3rd district	Test O. Smith Test Carty Carr Graham Carr J. L. White T. Smith Robinson Dunham Dunn Hughes Dunn Harrington R. Hill Hunter Holman Kerr Carr Bicknell Stockslager Howard Brown Tracewell Zenor Cox Dunbar Gardner Dunbar Crowe Pettengill Grant Crook Crumpacker Nimtz Brademas Hiler Roemer Souder Stutzman Banks (elect)
4th district	Lane Dunn T. Smith Cravens C. Smith Julian Parker Lane Cumback Foley Holman Farquhar Holman Julian Je. Wilson New Sexton New Holman Watson Holman Griffith Dixon Benham Canfield Farley Gillie Kruse Adair Roush Quayle Coats Long Souder Buyer Rokita
5th district	McCarty Rariden Kennedy Brown Wick Brown Hendricks Parker Holloway Kilgore Julian Coburn Holman Browne Matson Cooper Overstreet Faris Holliday Moss Sanders N. Johnson Gillen Griswold Harness Walsh Beamer Roush Roudebush Hillis Jontz Buyer Burton Brooks
6th district	Kinnard Herod Wick Wallace J. W. Davis Dunn Gorman Hendricks Barbour Gregg Porter Dumont Coburn Voorhees Hunter Robinson Myers Browne H. Johnson Watson Barnard Gray Comstock Elliott Larrabee Jenckes N. Johnson Harden Wampler Roudebush Bray Evans Burton Pence Messer
7th district	Hannegan A. White Howard Lane Wright McGaughey Thompson McGaughey J. G. Davis Scott J. G. Davis Voorhees Washburn Orth Manson Cason Landers Hanna Matyr Peelle English Bynum Henry Overstreet Korbly Moores Updike Ludlow Greenwood Landis Noland Bray Myers Pease Kerns J. Carson A. Carson
8th district	Pettit McDonald Mace Ja. Wilson A. White Orth Tyner Hunter Hostetler Peirce Lamb Johnston Brookshire Faris Henry Cromer Adair Vestal Boehne Jr. La Follette Mitchell Denton Merrill Denton Zion Hayes Cornwell Deckard McCloskey Hostettler Ellsworth Bucshon
9th district	Sample Cathcart Fitch Eddy Shanks Cason M. White Orth Doxey Ward Cheadle Waugh Hanly Landis Morrison Purnell Crowe E. Wilson Hogan E. Wilson Hamilton B. Hill Sodrel B. Hill Young Hollingsworth (elect)
10th district	Kennedy Rockhill Harlan Brenton Chamberlain Case Mitchell Edgerton Defrees Williams Sayler Haymond Calkins Motte T. Wood Owen Patton Hammond Hatch Crumpacker Peterson W. Wood Gray Springer Harvey Harmon Harvey Roudebush Dennis Sharp Jacobs Jr. J. Carson
11th district	Harlan Pettit Shanks McDowell Stilwell Shanks Packard Evans Cowgill Steele Martin Steele Landis Rauch Kraus Cook Hall Griswold Larrabee Ludlow Jacobs Sr. Brownson Barr Bruce Jacobs Jr. Hudnut Jacobs Jr.
12th district	Hamilton Colerick Lowry J. B. White McClellan McNagny Leighty Robinson Gilbert Gilhams Cline Fairfield Hogg Ludlow
13th district	Baker Calkins Shively Ford Shively Conn Royse Brick Barnhart Hickey Pettengill
At-large	Hendricks Jennings Packard / Orth / Williams
Territory	Parke Thomas Jennings