Vice President Pence
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Michael Richard Pence (born June 7, 1959) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 48th
vice president of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest ranking office in the Executive branch of the United States government, executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks f ...
from 2017 to 2021 under President
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 50th
governor of Indiana The governor of Indiana is the head of government of the U.S. state of Indiana. The governor is elected to a four-year term and is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day management of the functions of many agencies of the Indiana state gover ...
from 2013 to 2017, and as a member of the
U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...
from
Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...
, from 2001 to 2013. Born in
Columbus, Indiana Columbus () is a city in and the county seat of Bartholomew County, Indiana, United States. The population was 50,474 at the 2020 census. The city is known for its architectural significance, having commissioned noted works of modern architect ...
, Pence graduated from
Hanover College Hanover College is a private college in Hanover, Indiana, United States, affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). Founded in 1827 by Reverend John Finley Crowe, it is Indiana's oldest private college. The Hanover athletic teams participat ...
and Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law. He lost two House bids in 1988 and 1990 and was a conservative radio and television talk show host from 1994 to 1999. Elected to the House in 2000, Pence represented Indiana's from 2001 to 2003 and from 2003 to 2013. He chaired the
Republican Study Committee The Republican Study Committee (RSC) is a congressional caucus of conservative members of the Republican Party in the United States House of Representatives. In November 2024, Representative August Pfluger was elected as the chair of the RSC, ...
from 2005 to 2007 and
House Republican Conference The House Republican Conference is the party caucus for Republicans in the United States House of Representatives. It hosts meetings, and is the primary forum for communicating the party's message to members. The conference produces a daily pu ...
from 2009 to 2011. He was elected governor of Indiana in 2012. As governor, Pence enacted Indiana's largest tax cut and pushed for more funding for private education initiatives. He signed multiple anti-abortion bills, including one banning abortions based on the fetus’s race, gender, or disability and requiring funerary services for terminated fetuses, including miscarriages; a federal judge later ruled this law unconstitutional. After Pence signed the
Religious Freedom Restoration Act The Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, Pub. L. No. 103-141, 107 Stat. 1488 (November 16, 1993), codified at through (also known as RFRA, pronounced "rifra"), is a 1993 United States federal law that "ensures that interests in religio ...
, he encountered resistance from moderate members of his party, the business community, and LGBT advocates. Facing backlash, Pence approved changes to ban discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and other factors. Pence became Donald Trump’s
running mate A running mate is a person running together with another person on a joint ticket during an election. The term is most often used in reference to the person in the subordinate position (such as the vice presidential candidate running with a pre ...
in
2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
and served as vice president from 2017 to 2021. Pence chaired the
National Space Council The National Space Council is a body within the Executive Office of the President of the United States created in 1989 during the George H. W. Bush administration, disbanded in 1993, and reestablished in June 2017 by the Donald Trump administrati ...
and the
White House Coronavirus Task Force The White House Coronavirus Task Force was the United States Department of State task force during the Trump administration. The goal of the Task Force was to coordinate and oversee the administration's efforts to monitor, prevent, contain, and ...
. Pence and Trump lost their bid for re-election in the 2020 presidential election to
Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
and
Kamala Harris Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 49th vice president of the United States from 2021 to 2025 under President Joe Biden. She is the first female, first African American, and ...
, although Trump refused to concede, made false or unproven allegations of election fraud, and filed numerous unsuccessful lawsuits in multiple states. Despite Trump's urging to overturn the election results and the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, Pence oversaw the certification of Biden and Harris as the winners of the election. Pence later distanced himself from Trump, endorsing candidates in primary elections in opposition to those supported by Trump and criticizing Trump's conduct on the day of the Capitol attack. In June 2023, Pence launched a 2024 presidential bid but withdrew by October. He declined to endorse Trump in 2024. On May 4, 2025, Mike Pence was awarded the JFK Profile in Courage Award for his conduct on January 6.


Early life and education

Pence was born on June 7, 1959, in Columbus, Indiana, one of six children of Ann Jane "Nancy" Cawley and Edward Joseph Pence Jr., who ran a group of gas stations. His father served in the U.S. Army during the
Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...
and received the
Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...
in 1953, which Pence displays in his office along with its commendation letter and a reception photograph. His father was of German and Irish descent, and his mother is of Irish ancestry. His paternal grandfather, Edward Joseph Pence Sr., worked in the
Chicago stockyards The Union Stock Yard & Transit Co., or The Yards, was the meatpacking district in Chicago for more than a century, starting in 1865. The district was formed by a group of railroad companies that acquired marshland and turned it into a vast cen ...
. He was named after his maternal grandfather, Richard Michael Cawley, who emigrated from Dooncastle, Ireland, to the United States through
Ellis Island Ellis Island is an island in New York Harbor, within the U.S. states of New Jersey and New York (state), New York. Owned by the U.S. government, Ellis Island was once the busiest immigrant inspection and processing station in the United State ...
and who became a
bus driver A bus driver, bus operator, or bus captain is a person who drives buses for a living. Description Bus drivers must have a special license above and beyond a regular driver's licence. Bus drivers typically drive their vehicles between bus st ...
in Chicago, Illinois. His maternal grandmother's parents were from
Doonbeg Doonbeg () is a village in west County Clare, Ireland on the Atlantic coast. The surrounding natural environment has supported its development as a tourist resort. The area was officially classified as part of the West Clare Gaeltacht, an Irish- ...
, County Clare, Ireland. Pence graduated from
Columbus North High School Columbus North High School (CNHS) is one of the public high schools located in Columbus, Indiana, United States. It is part of the Bartholomew Consolidated School Corporation (BCSC). Columbus North High School was previously known as Columbus H ...
in 1977. He earned a
Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...
in history from
Hanover College Hanover College is a private college in Hanover, Indiana, United States, affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). Founded in 1827 by Reverend John Finley Crowe, it is Indiana's oldest private college. The Hanover athletic teams participat ...
in 1981, and a
Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...
from the Robert H. McKinney School of Law at
Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) was a public university from 1969 to 2024 in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It was a collaboration between Indiana University and Purdue University system, Purdue University, of ...
in 1986. While at Hanover, he joined the
Phi Gamma Delta Phi Gamma Delta (), commonly known as Phi Gam and sometimes written as FIJI, is a North American social fraternity with 139 active chapters and 13 colonies across the United States and Canada. It was founded at Jefferson College, Pennsylvania ...
fraternity, becoming the chapter president. After graduating from Hanover, he was an admissions counselor at the college from 1981 to 1983. In his childhood and early adulthood, Pence was a
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
and a
Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...
, as was the rest of his family. He volunteered for the Bartholomew County Democratic Party in 1976 and voted for
Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...
in the 1980 presidential election, and has said he was originally inspired to get involved in politics by people such as
John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...
and
Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, civil and political rights, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights move ...
While in college, Pence left the Catholic Church and became an evangelical,
born-again Christian To be born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelical Christianity, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is d ...
, to the disappointment of his mother. His political views also started shifting to the right during this time, something which Pence attributes to the "common-sense conservatism of
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
" with which he began to identify.


Early career and congressional campaigns

After graduating from law school in 1986, Pence was an attorney in private practice. In 1988, he ran for Congress against Democratic incumbent Philip Sharp, but lost. He ran against Sharp again in 1990, quitting his job in order to work full-time in the campaign, but once again was unsuccessful. During the race, Pence used "political donations to pay the mortgage on his house, his personal credit card bill, groceries, golf tournament fees and car payments for his wife". While the spending was not illegal at the time, it reportedly undermined his campaign. During the 1990 campaign, Pence ran a television advertisement in which an actor, dressed in a robe and headdress and speaking in a thick Middle Eastern accent, thanked his opponent, Sharp, for doing nothing to wean the United States off imported oil as chairman of a House subcommittee on energy and power. In response to criticism, Pence's campaign responded that the advertisement was not about Arabs; rather, it concerned Sharp's lack of leadership. In 1991, Pence wrote an essay published in the ''Indiana Policy Review'' in which he apologized for running negative ads against Sharp. Pence vowed to refrain from using insulting speech or running ads that belittle his adversaries. Also taking place in 1991, he became the president of the Indiana Policy Review Foundation, a self-described
free-market In economics, a free market is an economic system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of government or any ot ...
think tank A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governme ...
and a member of the
State Policy Network The State Policy Network (SPN) is a nonprofit organization that serves as a network for conservative and libertarian think tanks focusing on state-level policy in the United States. The network serves as a public policy clearinghouse and advi ...
, a position he held until 1993. Shortly after his first congressional campaign in 1988, radio station WRCR-FM in Rushville, Indiana, hired Pence to host a weekly half-hour radio show, ''Washington Update with Mike Pence''. In 1992, Pence began hosting a daily talk show on WRCR, ''The Mike Pence Show'', in addition to a Saturday show on
WNDE WNDE (1260 AM) is a commercial radio station in Indianapolis, Indiana. It is owned by iHeartMedia with the broadcast license held by iHM Licenses, LLC. WNDE broadcasts a sports radio format, with some afternoon talk programs, including '' T ...
in Indianapolis. Pence called himself "
Rush Limbaugh Rush Hudson Limbaugh III ( ; January 12, 1951 – February 17, 2021) was an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative political commentator who was the host of ''The Rush Limbaugh Show'', which first aired in 1984 and was nati ...
on decaf" since he considered himself politically conservative while not as bombastic as Limbaugh. Beginning on April 11, 1994, Network Indiana syndicated ''The Mike Pence Show'' statewide. The program reached as many as 18 radio stations in Indiana, including WIBC in Indianapolis. From 1995, Pence also hosted a weekend public affairs TV show likewise titled ''The Mike Pence Show'' on Indianapolis TV station WNDY. Pence ended his radio and television shows in 1999 to focus on his
2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...
campaign for Congress, which he eventually won.


U.S. House of Representatives (2001–2013)

Running for the U.S. House of Representatives again in 2000, he won the seat in after six-year incumbent
David M. McIntosh David Martin McIntosh (born June 8, 1958) is an American attorney and Republican Party (United States), Republican Party politician who served as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for Indiana's 2nd congressional dis ...
opted to run for governor of Indiana. The 2nd district (renumbered the 6th in 2002) comprised all or portions of 19 counties in eastern Indiana. As a new congressman, Pence adopted the slogan he had used on the radio, describing himself as "a Christian, a conservative and a Republican, in that order". In 2016, House speaker
Paul Ryan Paul Davis Ryan (born January 29, 1970) is an American politician who served as the List of Speakers of the United States House of Representatives, 54th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 2015 to 2019. A member of the ...
described Pence as a "principled conservative". While in Congress, Pence belonged to the
Tea Party Caucus The Tea Party Caucus (TPC) was a congressional caucus of the Republican Party in the United States House of Representatives, consisting of its most conservative members. It was founded in July 2010 by Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann i ...
. In his first year in office, Pence opposed President
George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
's
No Child Left Behind Act The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) was a 2002 United States Act of Congress promoted by the presidential administration of George W. Bush. It reauthorized the Elementary and Secondary Education Act and included Title I provisio ...
in 2001, as well as President Bush's Medicare prescription drug expansion in 2003. Pence was re-elected four more times by comfortable margins. In the
2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...
,
2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...
, and
2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
House elections, he defeated Democrat Barry Welsh. Pence began to climb the party leadership structure and from 2005 to 2007 was chairman of the
Republican Study Committee The Republican Study Committee (RSC) is a congressional caucus of conservative members of the Republican Party in the United States House of Representatives. In November 2024, Representative August Pfluger was elected as the chair of the RSC, ...
, a group of
conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
House Republicans. In November 2006, Pence announced his candidacy for leader of the Republican Party ( minority leader) in the
United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
. Pence's release announcing his run for minority leader focused on a "return to the values" of the
Newt Gingrich Newton Leroy Gingrich (; né McPherson; born June 17, 1943) is an American politician and author who served as the List of speakers of the United States House of Representatives, 50th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1 ...
-headed 1994
Republican Revolution The "Republican Revolution", "Revolution of '94", or "Gingrich Revolution" are political slogans that refer to the Republican Party's (GOP) success in the 1994 U.S. midterm elections, which resulted in a net gain of 54 seats in the House o ...
. However, he lost the bid to Representative
John Boehner John Andrew Boehner ( ; born , 1949) is an American politician who served as the 53rd speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 2011 to 2015. A member of the Republican Party, he served 13 terms as the U.S. representative ...
of
Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...
by a vote of 168 for Boehner, 27 for Pence, and one for Representative
Joe Barton Joseph Linus Barton (born September 15, 1949) is an American politician. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he represented in the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives from 1985 t ...
of Texas. In January 2009, Pence was elected as the
Republican Conference chairman The Senate Republican Conference is the formal organization of the Republican senators in the United States Senate. Over the last century, the mission of the conference has expanded and been shaped as a means of informing the media of the opin ...
, the third-highest-ranking Republican leadership position at the time behind Minority Leader
John Boehner John Andrew Boehner ( ; born , 1949) is an American politician who served as the 53rd speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 2011 to 2015. A member of the Republican Party, he served 13 terms as the U.S. representative ...
and Republican whip
Eric Cantor Eric Ivan Cantor (born June 6, 1963) is an American lawyer and former politician who represented Virginia's 7th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 2001 to 2014. A Republican, Cantor served as House Mino ...
. He ran unopposed and was elected unanimously. He was the first representative from Indiana to hold a House leadership position since 1981. During Pence's twelve years in the House, he introduced 90 bills and resolutions; none became law. His committee assignments in the House were the following: *
107th Congress The 107th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from January ...
(2001–2003):
Agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...
,
Judiciary The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...
,
Small Business Small businesses are types of corporations, partnerships, or sole proprietorships which have a small number of employees and/or less annual revenue than a regular-sized business or corporation. Businesses are defined as "small" in terms of being ...
*
108th Congress The 108th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives from January 3, 2003, to January 3, 2005, durin ...
(2003–2005): Agriculture,
International Relations International relations (IR, and also referred to as international studies, international politics, or international affairs) is an academic discipline. In a broader sense, the study of IR, in addition to multilateral relations, concerns al ...
, Judiciary *
109th Congress The 109th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives, from January 3, 2005, to January 3, 2007, du ...
(2005–2007): Agriculture, International Relations, Judiciary *
110th Congress The 110th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, between January 3, 2007, and January 3, 2009, during the last two years of the Presidency of George W. Bush. It was composed of ...
(2007–2009): Foreign Affairs, Judiciary, Select Committee to Investigate the Voting Irregularities of August 2, 2007 (Ranking Member) *
111th Congress The 111th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government from January 3, 2009, until January 3, 2011. It began during the last weeks of the George W. Bush administration, with t ...
(2009–2011): Foreign Affairs *
112th Congress The 112th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, from January 3, 2011, until January 3, 2013. It convened in Washington, D.C., on January 3, 2011, and ended on January 3, 2013, 17 ...
(2011–2013): Foreign Affairs, Judiciary In 2008, ''
Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentleman ...
'' magazine listed Pence as one of the ten best members of Congress, writing that Pence's "unalloyed traditional conservatism has repeatedly pitted him against his party elders". Pence was mentioned as a possible Republican candidate for president in
2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...
and
2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
. In September 2010, he was the top choice for president in a straw poll conducted by the Values Voter Summit. That same year, he was encouraged to run against incumbent Democratic senator
Evan Bayh Birch Evans "Evan" Bayh III ( ; born December 26, 1955) is an American politician who served as the List of governors of Indiana, 46th governor of Indiana from 1989 to 1997 and as a United States Senate, United States senator representing Indi ...
, but opted not to enter the race, even after Bayh unexpectedly announced that he would retire.


2012 Indiana gubernatorial election

In May 2011, Pence announced that he would be seeking the Republican nomination for
governor of Indiana The governor of Indiana is the head of government of the U.S. state of Indiana. The governor is elected to a four-year term and is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day management of the functions of many agencies of the Indiana state gover ...
in 2012. Incumbent Republican governor
Mitch Daniels Mitchell Elias Daniels Jr. (born April 7, 1949) is an American Academic administration, academic administrator, businessman, author, and retired politician who served as the 49th governor of Indiana from 2005 to 2013. A Republican Party (United ...
was term-limited. Pence ran on a platform that touted the successes of his predecessor and promised to continue educational reform and business deregulation of Daniels. The Democratic nominee was former Indiana speaker of the House John R. Gregg. Despite strong name recognition and a popular outgoing governor of the same party, Pence found himself in a heated race, eventually pulling out a close win with just under 50 percent of the vote, and less than 3% ahead of Gregg, with Libertarian nominee
Rupert Boneham Rupert Frederick Boneham ( ; born January 27, 1964) is an American mentor for troubled teens who became known to reality television audiences in 2003 as a contestant on '' Survivor: Pearl Islands''. He later appeared on the '' All Stars'', '' Hero ...
receiving most of the remaining votes. It was the closest race in 50 years.


Governor of Indiana (2013–2017)

Pence was sworn in as the 50th governor of Indiana on January 14, 2013.


Fiscal and economic policy

Pence "inherited a $2billion budget reserve from his predecessor, Mitch Daniels, and the state... added to that reserve under his watch, though not before requiring state agencies, including public universities, to reduce funding in years in which revenue fell below projections". The state finished fiscal year 2014 with a reserve of $2billion; budget cuts ordered by Pence for the $14billion annual state budget include $24million cut from colleges and universities; $27million cut from the Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA); and $12million cut from the Department of Correction. During Pence's term as governor, the unemployment rate reflected the national average. Indiana's job growth lagged slightly behind the national trend. In 2014, Indiana's economy was among the slowest-growing in the United States, with 0.4 percent GDP growth, compared to the national average of 2.2 percent; this was attributed in part to a sluggish manufacturing sector. Carrier Corp. and United Technologies Electronic Controls (UTEC) announced in 2016 that they would be closing two facilities in Indiana, sending 2,100 jobs to Mexico; the Trump campaign criticized the moves and Pence expressed "deep disappointment". Pence was unsuccessful in his efforts to persuade the companies to stay in the state, although the companies agreed to reimburse local and state governments for certain tax incentives they had received. The Indiana Economic Development Corporation led by Pence had approved $24million in incentives to ten companies who sent jobs abroad. $8.7million had been paid out by August 2016. In 2013, Pence signed a law blocking local governments in Indiana from requiring businesses to offer higher wages or benefits beyond those required by federal law. In 2015, Pence also signed the repeal of an Indiana law that required construction companies working on publicly funded projects to pay a
prevailing wage In United States government contracting, a prevailing wage is defined as the hourly wage, usual benefits and overtime, paid to the majority of workers, laborers, and mechanics within a particular area. This is usually the union wage. Prevailing ...
. Indiana had enacted right-to-work legislation under Pence's predecessor, Republican governor Mitch Daniels. Under Pence, the state successfully defended this legislation against a
labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...
challenge. In 2013, Pence also announced the formation of the Indiana Biosciences Research Institute, a life sciences research facility supported with $25million in startup funds from the state. Pence made tax reform, namely a ten percent income-tax rate cut, a priority for 2013. While he did not get the ten percent cut he advocated, Pence did accomplish his goal of cutting state taxes. Legislators cut the income tax by five percent and also killed the inheritance tax. Speaker of the House Brian Bosma said the legislative package was the "largest tax cut in our state's history, about $1.1billion dollars". By signing Senate Bill 1, the state corporate income tax would be dropped from 6.5 percent to 4.9 percent by 2021, which would be the second-lowest corporate income tax in the nation. The law also permitted Indiana counties to eliminate the business personal property tax on new equipment and let them exempt small businesses with less than $20,000 worth of equipment from paying personal property taxes. On June 12, 2013, the Indiana Legislature overrode Pence's veto of a bill to retroactively authorize a local tax. Lawmakers overrode his veto by a 68–23 vote in the
House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...
and a 34–12 one in the
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
. Republican legislators overwhelmingly voted against Pence, while most Democrats supported his veto. The Jackson–Pulaski tax fix, one of three bills vetoed by Pence during the session, addressed a 15-year-old county income tax that had been imposed to fund the construction of jail facilities with the stipulation that the tax be lowered by one percent after the first several years. The reduction had not been implemented and thus county residents had been paying an additional one percent tax that they were legally not required to pay. The bill, which was passed by a huge majority of legislators and subsequently vetoed by Pence, allowed money to be kept and not returned to the taxpayers as would have otherwise been necessary. As governor, Pence pressed for a balanced budget amendment to the state's constitution. He initially proposed the initiative in his State of the State address in January 2015. The legislation passed the state Senate. Indiana has had AAA
credit rating A credit rating is an evaluation of the credit risk of a prospective debtor (an individual, a business, company or a government). It is the practice of predicting or forecasting the ability of a supposed debtor to pay back the debt or default. The ...
s with the three major credit-rating agencies since 2010, before Pence took office; these ratings were maintained throughout Pence's tenure. In 2014, Pence supported the Indiana Gateway project, a $71.4million
passenger A passenger is a person who travels in a vehicle, but does not bear any responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination or otherwise operate the vehicle, and is not a steward. The vehicles may be bicycles, ...
and
freight rail Rail freight transport is the use of railways and trains to transport cargo as opposed to human passengers. A freight train, cargo train, or goods train is a group of freight cars (US) or goods wagons (International Union of Railways) hauled ...
improvement initiative paid for by the
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) (), nicknamed the Recovery Act, was a Stimulus (economics), stimulus package enacted by the 111th U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama in February 2009. Developed ...
(the federal stimulus package), which Pence had voted against while a congressman. In October 2015, Pence "announced plans to pay off a $250million federal loan" to cover unemployment insurance payments which had spiked during
the recession ''The Recession'' is the fifth studio album by American rapper Young Jeezy. It was released on September 2, 2008, by Corporate Thugz Entertainment and Def Jam Recordings. The album was supported by five singles: " Put On" featuring Kanye West, ...
. In March 2016, Pence signed legislation to fund a $230million two-year road-funding package.


Education policy

During his tenure as governor, Pence supported significant increases in education funding to pre-schools, voucher programs, and
charter school A charter school is a school that receives government funding but operates independently of the established state school system in which it is located. It is independent in the sense that it operates according to the basic principle of autono ...
s, but frequently clashed with supporters of traditional public schools. In 2014, a little over one year after taking office, Pence helped establish a $10-million state preschool
pilot program A pilot experiment, pilot study, pilot test or pilot project is a small-scale preliminary study conducted to evaluate feasibility, duration, cost, adverse events, and improve upon the study design prior to performance of a full-scale research ...
in Indiana and testified personally before the state Senate Education Committee in favor of the program to convince fellow Republicans (several of whom opposed the proposal) to approve the plan. Although the plan was initially defeated, Pence successfully managed to revive it, "getting Indiana off the list of just 10 states that spent no direct funds to help poor children attend preschool". Demand for enrollment in the program "far outstripped" capacity, and Pence at first refused to apply for up to $80million in federal
Health and Human Services The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is a cabinet-level executive branch department of the US federal government created to protect the health of the US people and providing essential human services. Its motto is "Im ...
Preschool Development Grant program funding, arguing that "Indiana must develop our own pre-K program without federal intrusion". After coming under sustained criticism for this position, Pence reversed course and sought to apply for the funds. In 2015, Pence secured significant increases in charter-school funding from the legislation, although he did not get everything he had proposed. Legislation signed into law by Pence in 2013 greatly increased the number of students in Indiana who qualify for school vouchers, making it one of the largest voucher programs in the United States. The annual cost of the program was estimated to be $53million for the 2015–2016 school year. Pence opposed the
Common Core State Standards Initiative The Common Core State Standards Initiative, also known as simply Common Core, was an American, multi-state educational initiative begun in 2010 with the goal of increasing consistency across state standards, or what K–12 students throughout th ...
, calling for the repeal of the standards in his 2014
State of the State address State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...
. The Indiana General Assembly then passed a bill to repeal the standards, becoming the first state to do so. In a televised interview appearance with
Chris Matthews Christopher John Matthews (born December 17, 1945) is an American political commentator, retired talk show host, and author. Matthews hosted his weeknight hour-long talk show, ''Hardball with Chris Matthews'', on America's Talking and later on M ...
, Pence advocated for putting
creationism Creationism is the faith, religious belief that nature, and aspects such as the universe, Earth, life, and humans, originated with supernatural acts of Creation myth, divine creation, and is often Pseudoscience, pseudoscientific.#Gunn 2004, Gun ...
on a par with science in public schools, accepting creationist beliefs as factual, and thus teaching the controversy over evolution and natural selection, and regarding the
age of the Earth The age of Earth is estimated to be 4.54 ± 0.05 billion years. This age may represent the age of Earth's accretion (astrophysics), accretion, or Internal structure of Earth, core formation, or of the material from which Earth formed. This dating ...
, and letting students decide for themselves what to believe. Despite successful advocacy for more funding for pre-schools, voucher programs, and charter schools, Pence has frequently clashed with teachers unions and supporters of public schooling. In one of his first acts as governor, Pence removed control of the Educational Employment Relations Board, which was in charge of handling conflicts between unions and
school boards A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution. The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional area, ...
, from
Glenda Ritz Glenda Neubauer Ritz (born 1954) is an American educator and politician who formerly served as the former Superintendent of Public Instruction for Indiana. She was elected in 2012, defeating incumbent Superintendent Tony Bennett. She was the fir ...
, a Democrat who was the
Indiana superintendent of public instruction The superintendent of public instruction was an elected officer in the state government of Indiana. The official was an elected member of the executive branch of government and worked with the state Board of Education as head of the Indiana Depa ...
(a separately elected position in the state). Pence created a new "Center for Education and Career Innovation" (CECI) to coordinate efforts between schools and the private sector; Ritz opposed the center, viewing it as a "power grab" and encroachment on her own duties. Pence eventually disestablished the center in order to help defuse the conflict. In May 2015, Pence signed a bill stripping Ritz of much of her authority over
standardized testing A standardized test is a test that is administered and scored in a consistent or standard manner. Standardized tests are designed in such a way that the questions and interpretations are consistent and are administered and scored in a predetermine ...
and other education issues, and reconstituting the State Board of Education dominated by Pence appointees. The bill also allowed the board to appoint a chairman other than the Superintendent of Public Instruction starting in 2017, and added the State Board of Education (controlled by Pence) as a "state educational authority" along with the Department of Education (controlled by Ritz) for purposes of accessing sensitive student data. Pence and Ritz also clashed over non-binding federal guidelines that advised Indiana public schools must treat transgender students in a way that corresponds to their
gender identity Gender identity is the personal sense of one's own gender. Gender identity can correlate with a person's assigned sex or can differ from it. In most individuals, the various biological determinants of sex are congruent and consistent with the in ...
, even if their education files indicate a different gender.


Energy and environment

During Pence's term in office, the Republican-controlled
Indiana General Assembly The Indiana General Assembly is the state legislature, or legislative branch, of the U.S. state of Indiana. It is a bicameral legislature that consists of a lower house, the Indiana House of Representatives, and an upper house, the Indiana Sena ...
"repeatedly tried to roll back
renewable energy Renewable energy (also called green energy) is energy made from renewable resource, renewable natural resources that are replenished on a human lifetime, human timescale. The most widely used renewable energy types are solar energy, wind pow ...
standards and successfully ended Indiana's energy efficiency efforts". Pence has been an outspoken supporter of the
coal industry Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other Chemical element, elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal i ...
, declaring in his 2015
State of the State address State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...
that "Indiana is a pro-coal state," expressing support for an "all-of-the-above energy strategy", and stating: "we must continue to oppose the overreaching schemes of the EPA until we bring their war on coal to an end." In 2015, Pence sent a letter to President Obama denouncing the EPA's
Clean Power Plan The Clean Power Plan was an Presidency of Barack Obama, Obama administration policy aimed at combating climate change that was first proposed by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in June 201 ...
(which would regulate carbon emissions from existing power plants) and stating that Indiana would refuse to comply with the plan. Indiana joined other states in a lawsuit seeking to invalidate the plan. In 2016, Pence said that even if legal challenges failed, Indiana would continue to defy the rule and would not come up with its own plan to reduce emissions.


Gun policy

In 2014, over the opposition of Indiana school organizations, Pence signed a bill which allows firearms to be kept in vehicles on school property. In 2015, following a shooting in Chattanooga, Pence recruited the
National Rifle Association The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent Gun politics in the United States, gun rights ...
to train the
Indiana National Guard The Indiana National Guard (INNG) is a component of the United States Armed Forces, the United States National Guard and the Military Department of Indiana (MDI). It consists of the Indiana Army National Guard, the Indiana Air National Guard, a ...
on concealed carry. Some National Guard officials from other states questioned why a civilian organization would be involved in a military issue. In May 2015, Pence signed into law Senate Bill 98, which limited lawsuits against gun and ammunition manufacturers and sellers and retroactively terminated the City of Gary's still-pending 1999 lawsuit against gun manufacturers and retailers that allegedly made illegal sales of
handgun A handgun is a firearm designed to be usable with only one hand. It is distinguished from a long gun, long barreled gun (i.e., carbine, rifle, shotgun, submachine gun, or machine gun) which typically is intended to be held by both hands and br ...
s. The bill was supported by Republicans such as state senator Jim Tomes, who hoped the measure would attract more gun-related businesses, but opposed by Gary mayor and former
Indiana attorney general The Indiana Attorney General is the chief legal officer of the U.S. state, State of Indiana in the United States. Attorneys General are chosen by a statewide general election to serve for a four-year term. The forty-fourth and Attorney General is ...
Karen Freeman-Wilson Karen Marie Freeman-Wilson (born October 24, 1960) is an American attorney, former judge, and politician who served as Indiana Attorney General from 2000 to 2001, as well as mayor of Gary, Indiana from 2012 to 2019. She has been President and CE ...
, who viewed the measure as "an unprecedented violation of the
separation of powers The separation of powers principle functionally differentiates several types of state (polity), state power (usually Legislature#Legislation, law-making, adjudication, and Executive (government)#Function, execution) and requires these operat ...
between the legislative and judicial branches of state government". In 2016, Pence signed Senate Bill 109 into law, legalizing the captive hunting of farm-raised deer.


Public health

In 2009, parts of East Chicago were discovered to have toxic
lead Lead () is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a Heavy metal (elements), heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale, soft and Ductility, malleabl ...
and arsenic contamination, and were designated a
Superfund Superfund is a United States federal environmental remediation program established by the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA). The program is administered by the United States Environmental Pro ...
site. Governor Pence declined to declare the Superfund site a state emergency; his successor Governor
Eric Holcomb Eric Joseph Holcomb ( ; born May 2, 1968) is an American politician who served as the 51st governor of Indiana, from 2017 to 2025. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served from 2016 to 2017 as the 51st Lieuten ...
issued Executive Order 17–13, declaring a disaster emergency in East Chicago. The site of several former
lead smelting Plants for the production of lead are generally referred to as lead smelters. Primary lead production begins with sintering. Concentrated lead ore is fed into a sintering machine with iron, silica, limestone fluxes, coke, soda ash, pyrite, zinc ...
plants was first identified as a health concern by the EPA in 1997. Beginning in December 2014, there was an
HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of '' Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the im ...
outbreak in Southern Indiana. In 2011, Planned Parenthood (PP) operated five rural clinics in Indiana. They tested for HIV and offered prevention, intervention and counseling to improve public health outcomes. The PP clinic in Scott County performed no abortions. The Republican-controlled legislature and Pence defunded Planned Parenthood. Scott County has been without an HIV testing center since 2013. Pence had long been a vocal opponent of needle exchange programs, which allow drug users to trade in used syringes for sterile ones in order to stop the spread of diseases, despite solid scientific evidence that such programs prevent the spread of AIDS,
Hepatitis B Hepatitis B is an infectious disease caused by the '' hepatitis B virus'' (HBV) that affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. It can cause both acute and chronic infection. Many people have no symptoms during an initial infection. ...
(HBV), and
Hepatitis C Hepatitis C is an infectious disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV) that primarily affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. During the initial infection period, people often have mild or no symptoms. Early symptoms can include ...
(HCV), and do not increase drug abuse. In March 2015, well after the outbreak began, Pence finally allowed at least five counties to open needle exchanges, but did not move to lift the state ban on funding for needle exchanges. Critics say Pence's compromise had been ineffective because counties had no way to pay for needle exchanges themselves. Anesthesiologist Jerome Adams, then the Pence-appointed Indiana state health commissioner and later
surgeon general of the United States The surgeon general of the United States is the operational head of the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (PHSCC) and thus the leading spokesperson on matters of public health in the federal government of the United States. T ...
during the
Trump administration Presidency of Donald Trump may refer to: * First presidency of Donald Trump, the United States presidential administration from 2017 to 2021 * Second presidency of Donald Trump, the United States presidential administration since 2025 See also * ...
, defended Pence, arguing that publicly funded needle exchange programs are controversial in many conservative communities. During his time as Indiana State Health Commissioner, Adams—along with Governor Pence—delayed Indiana's efforts to deal with the largest
HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of '' Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the im ...
outbreak related to injection drug use in the history of the United States by stalling adoption of a
needle exchange program A needle and syringe programme (NSP), also known as needle exchange program (NEP), is a social service that allows injection drug users (IDUs) to obtain clean and unused hypodermic needles and associated paraphernalia at little or no cost. It i ...
. Adams said, "There are people who have real moral and ethical concerns about passing out needles to people with substance abuse problems. To be honest, I shared that sentiment." When President Trump appointed Pence in 2020 to head the country's response to coronavirus, he touted his ostensible experience with quelling an epidemic of HIV in Indiana, in which Pence deliberately delayed his state government's response to the disease despite the recommendations of the
Centers for Disease Control The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and is headquartered in Atlanta, ...
that needle exchange was an efficacious approach to reining in the spread of diseases. Pence had told lawmakers he would veto any bill they might pass that provided for such exchanges. In 2015, Pence and the
Obama administration Barack Obama's tenure as the 44th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2009, and ended on January 20, 2017. Obama, a Democrat from Illinois, took office following his victory over Republican nomine ...
agreed to expand
Medicaid Medicaid is a government program in the United States that provides health insurance for adults and children with limited income and resources. The program is partially funded and primarily managed by U.S. state, state governments, which also h ...
in Indiana, in accordance with the
Affordable Care Act The Affordable Care Act (ACA), formally known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and informally as Obamacare, is a landmark U.S. federal statute enacted by the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by Presid ...
. As part of the expansion, called the Healthy Indiana Plan 2.0, Pence negotiated modifications to the program for Indiana that included co-payments by participants. The co-payments are linked to healthy behaviors on the part of the participants so that, for example, a participant who quit smoking would receive a lower co-payment. Participants can lose benefits for failing to make the payments. The required contribution would be about 2% of income. Critics say those who already struggle to buy food and housing will have even more difficulty paying their 2%. One critic expressed concern that lower-income people may stay out of the program or avoid pursuing health care. A service provider said the program "wins the award for bureaucratic complexity and red tape". In early 2017, Indiana submitted its application to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to renew Healthy Indiana, to show that the program was meeting its targets, as required for renewal. National Public Radio/Side Effects Public Media said the application used "misleading and inaccurate information".


Religion and LGBT rights

On March 26, 2015, Pence signed Indiana Senate Bill 101, also known as the Indiana "religious objections" bill or Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), into law. The move was praised by
religious conservatives Conservatism is a Philosophy of culture, cultural, Social philosophy, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, Convention (norm), customs, and Value (ethics and social science ...
, but criticized by people and groups who felt the law was carefully worded in a way that would permit discrimination against
LGBT LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, asexual, aromantic, agender, and other individuals. The gro ...
persons. Such organizations as the
National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...
(NCAA), the gamer convention
Gen Con Gen Con is the largest tabletop game convention in North America by both attendance and number of events. It features traditional pen-and-paper, board, and card games, including role-playing games, miniatures wargames, live action role-playing ...
, and the
Disciples of Christ The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination in the United States and Canada. The denomination started with the Restoration Movement during the Second Great Awakening, first existing during the 19th ...
spoke out against the law. Apple CEO
Tim Cook Timothy Donald Cook (born November 1, 1960) is an American business executive who is the current chief executive officer of Apple Inc. Cook had previously been the company's chief operating officer under its co-founder Steve Jobs. Cook joined ...
and
Salesforce Salesforce, Inc. is an American cloud-based software company headquartered in San Francisco, California. It provides applications focused on sales, customer service, marketing automation, e-commerce, analytics, artificial intelligence, and ap ...
CEO
Marc Benioff Marc Russell Benioff (born September 25, 1964) is an American internet entrepreneur and philanthropist. Benioff is best known as the co-founder, chairman and CEO of the software company Salesforce, as well as being the owner of ''Time (magazine ...
condemned the law, with the latter's company saying it would halt its plans to expand in the state.
Angie's List Angi (formerly Angie's List) is an American home services website owned by Angi Inc., a publicly traded subsidiary of IAC. Founded in 1995 by Angie Hicks and William S. Oesterle, it allows users to search for contractors to provide paid ho ...
announced that they would cancel a $40million expansion of their Indianapolis-based headquarters over concerns with the law. The expansion would have moved 1,000 jobs into the state. Thousands protested against the policy. Five Republican state representatives voted against the bill, and
Greg Ballard Gregory Alan Ballard (born November 20, 1954) is an American politician, author, and businessman who served as the 48th mayor of Indianapolis, Indiana. He is a retired Lieutenant Colonel from the United States Marine Corps. On November 6, 200 ...
, the Republican mayor of Indianapolis, criticized it as sending the "wrong signal" about the state. Pence defended the law, saying it was not about discrimination. In an appearance on the
ABC News ABC News most commonly refers to: * ABC News (Australia), a national news service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation * ABC News (United States), a news-gathering and broadcasting division of the American Broadcasting Company ABC News may a ...
program ''
This Week with George Stephanopoulos ''This Week'', originally titled as ''This Week with David Brinkley'' and billed as ''This Week with George Stephanopoulos'' since 2012, is an American Sunday morning political affairs program airing on ABC. It premiered on November 15, 1981, ...
'', he said, "We're not going to change the law", while refusing to answer whether examples of discrimination against LGBT people would be legal under the law. Pence denied the law permitted discrimination and wrote in a March 31, 2015, ''
Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...
'' op-ed, "If I saw a restaurant owner refuse to serve a gay couple, I wouldn't eat there anymore. As governor of Indiana, if I were presented a bill that legalized discrimination against any person or group, I would veto it." In the wake of the backlash against the RFRA, on April 2, 2015, Pence signed legislation revising the law to protect against potential discrimination. Pence received heavy criticism from liberals at the time of signing the religious freedom law, who labeled him as anti-gay. In 2018, emails released to the
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...
showed that conservatives had similarly opposed his support of the subsequent changes to the law.


Abortion

In March 2016, as Indiana governor, Pence signed into law H.B. 1337, a bill that both banned certain
abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...
procedures and placed new restrictions on abortion providers. The bill banned abortion if the reason for the procedure given by the woman was the
fetus A fetus or foetus (; : fetuses, foetuses, rarely feti or foeti) is the unborn offspring of a viviparous animal that develops from an embryo. Following the embryonic development, embryonic stage, the fetal stage of development takes place. Pren ...
's race or gender or a fetal abnormality. In addition, the bill required that all fetal remains from abortions or miscarriages at any stage of pregnancy be buried or cremated, which according to the
Guttmacher Institute The Guttmacher Institute is a research and policy NGO that aims to improve sexual health and expand reproductive rights worldwide. The organization was started in 1968 as part of Planned Parenthood; it became independent from Planned Parenthood ...
was not required in any other state. The law was described as "exceptional for its breadth"; if implemented, it would have made Indiana "the first state to have a blanket ban on abortions based solely on race, sex or suspected disabilities, including evidence of Down syndrome". Days after the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision in '' Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt'', a federal court issued a
preliminary injunction An injunction is an equitable remedy in the form of a special court order compelling a party to do or refrain from doing certain acts. It was developed by the English courts of equity but its origins go back to Roman law and the equitable reme ...
blocking the bill from taking effect, with U.S. district judge Tanya Walton Pratt determining that the bill was likely to be unconstitutional and that the State of Indiana would be unlikely to prevail at trial. The abortion bill was subsequently ruled unconstitutional in April 2018 by the
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (in case citations, 7th Cir.) is the U.S. United States federal court, federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the United States district court, courts in the following United Stat ...
.


Media and the press

In June 2013, Pence was criticized for deleting comments of others posted on his official government Facebook page; he apologized. On January 26, 2015, it was widely reported that Pence had planned to launch a state-run, taxpayer-funded news service for Indiana. The service, called "JustIN", was to be overseen by a former reporter for ''
The Indianapolis Star } ''The Indianapolis Star'' (also known as ''IndyStar'') is a morning daily newspaper that began publishing on June 6, 1903, in Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It has been the only major daily paper in the city since 1999, whe ...
'', and would feature breaking news, stories written by press secretaries, and light features. At the time, it was reported that the two employees who would run the news service would be paid a combined $100,000 yearly salary. The target audience was small newspapers which had limited staff, but the site would also serve to communicate directly with the public. The publisher of the ''Commercial Review'' of
Portland, Indiana Portland is a city in and the county seat of Jay County, Indiana, United States. The population was 6,320 at the 2020 census, History Portland was platted in 1837. It was named after Portland, Maine. The Jay County Courthouse, Portland Com ...
, said, "I think it's a ludicrous idea... the notion of elected officials presenting material that will inevitably have a pro-administration point of view is antithetical to the idea of an independent press." There was speculation that the news service would publish pro-administration stories that would make Pence look good in the event of a presidential run. According to the
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...
, the idea "of stories prewritten for the media set off a wave of criticism from journalists around the country, who likened the Indiana endeavor to state-run media in Russia and China. Headlines like 'Pravda in the Plains' accompanied calls for Pence to scrap the idea." David A. Graham of ''
The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 185 ...
'' regarded the announcement of JustIN as evidence of a disturbing changing trend in how the public gets news. After a week or so of controversy about the idea, Pence scrapped the idea saying, "However well-intentioned, after thorough review of the preliminary planning and careful consideration of the concerns expressed, I am writing you to inform you that I have made a decision to terminate development of the JustIN website immediately."


Syrian refugee crisis

As governor, Pence attempted unsuccessfully to prevent Syrian refugees from being resettled in Indiana. In February 2016, a federal judge ruled that Pence's order to cut off federal funds for a local non-profit refugee resettlement agency was unconstitutional; Pence unsuccessfully appealed. In December 2015, Pence said that "calls to ban Muslims from entering the U.S. are offensive and unconstitutional".


Public-records requests and use of private email

Pence "repeatedly stonewalled public records requests as governor, often withholding documents or delaying their release if not denying them outright". As governor, Pence routinely used a personal AOL email account to conduct official business, according to public records. In 2016, hackers compromised the account and used it to send fraudulent emails in an attempt to obtain money from Pence's contacts. While Pence's use of a private email account for state business is not prohibited by Indiana law, some of the emails discussed sensitive matters and homeland security issues. In March 2017, after Pence had become vice president, the State of Indiana released 29 emails to media outlets that had made public records requests, but withheld an undisclosed number of other emails, saying they were
deliberative Deliberative may refer to: *Deliberative agent *Deliberative assembly *Deliberative Council of Princes and Ministers *Deliberative democracy *Deliberative mood *Deliberative opinion poll *Deliberative planning *Deliberative process privilege *Deli ...
or advisory and thus exempt from public disclosure. Cybersecurity experts and
government transparency Open government is the governing doctrine which maintains that citizens have the right to access the documents and proceedings of the government to allow for effective public oversight. In its broadest construction, it opposes reason of state a ...
advocates were surprised by Pence's use of a personal email account to conduct public business, given Pence's past attacks on
Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...
's use of a private email server while U.S. secretary of state. In 2017, Indiana hired a private law firm for $100,000 to handle a backlog of public-records requests for Pence's personal AOL account email correspondence.


Re-election campaign and withdrawal

Pence ran for a second term as governor and was unopposed in the Republican primary on May 3, 2016. He was to face Democrat John R. Gregg in a rematch of the 2012 race. However, Pence filed paperwork ending his campaign on July 15, 2016, as Trump announced his selection of Pence as his vice presidential running mate. Lieutenant Governor
Eric Holcomb Eric Joseph Holcomb ( ; born May 2, 1968) is an American politician who served as the 51st governor of Indiana, from 2017 to 2025. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served from 2016 to 2017 as the 51st Lieuten ...
was nominated in Pence's place, and selected
Suzanne Crouch Suzanne Crouch (born February 27, 1952) is an American politician who served as the 52nd lieutenant governor of Indiana, from 2017 to 2025. She previously served as the 56th state auditor of Indiana from 2014 to 2017. In 2024 she ran for governor ...
as his running mate. Holcomb went on to defeat Gregg in the general election.


2016 vice presidential campaign

Shortly before the 2016 Indiana Republican presidential primary, Pence endorsed Texas U.S. Senator
Ted Cruz Rafael Edward Cruz (; born December 22, 1970) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States senator from Texas since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Cruz was the solicitor general of Texas from 2003 ...
, who would lose the primary to Trump. Pence then endorsed Trump after the latter became the party's presumptive nominee for president of the United States. Donald Trump considered naming Pence as his vice presidential running mate along with other finalists including New Jersey governor
Chris Christie Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician and former United States Attorney, federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. A member of the Republican Party (United States) ...
and former House speaker
Newt Gingrich Newton Leroy Gingrich (; né McPherson; born June 17, 1943) is an American politician and author who served as the List of speakers of the United States House of Representatives, 50th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1 ...
. Pence had stronger connections at the time to the politically influential big donors, the Kochs, than Trump did. It was widely reported on July 14 that Pence planned to end his (Indiana gubernatorial) re-election campaign and accept the Republican vice presidential nomination instead. The following day, Trump officially announced on Twitter that Pence would be his running mate. Immediately after the announcement, Pence said he was "very supportive of Donald Trump's call to temporarily suspend immigration from countries where terrorist influence and impact represents a threat to the United States". Pence said he was "absolutely" in sync with Trump's Mexican wall proposal, saying Mexico was "absolutely" going to pay for it. According to a
FiveThirtyEight ''FiveThirtyEight'', also rendered as ''538'', was an American website that focused on opinion poll analysis, politics, economics, and sports blogging in the United States. The website, which took its name from the number of electors in the U ...
rating of candidates' ideology, Pence was the most conservative vice-presidential candidate in the last 40 years. Pence called
Dick Cheney Richard Bruce Cheney ( ; born January 30, 1941) is an American former politician and businessman who served as the 46th vice president of the United States from 2001 to 2009 under President George W. Bush. He has been called vice presidency o ...
his role model for vice president. During Pence's preparations for the vice presidential debate in October 2016, Wisconsin governor Scott Walker played the role of Democratic vice presidential nominee
Tim Kaine Timothy Michael Kaine ( ; born February 26, 1958) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States senator from Virginia since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party (United States ...
. In Kaine's own debate prep, lawyer Robert Barnett was selected to play Pence. Following the debate, experts concluded Pence won against Kaine, with a
CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...
poll showing 48 percent of viewers thought Pence won and 42 percent believing Kaine won. Pence's "cooler" temperament was seen as an advantage compared to Kaine, who was perceived as more hotheaded. On October 7, 2016, lewd comments made by Donald Trump in 2005 surfaced and gained heavy media attention. That day, Pence said to reporters, "I do not condone his remarks and cannot defend them", but he made clear that he was standing by Trump. In response to the reports, Paul Ryan "uninvited" Trump from what would have been a joint campaign event. The Trump campaign attempted to substitute Pence for Trump at the event, but according to ''The New York Times'', Pence called Trump on October8 and told him that he (Pence) would not appear at the event, and that Trump would need to handle the next 48 hours on his own, as Pence did not think he would be an effective surrogate for Trump. According to
Bob Woodward Robert Upshur Woodward (born March 26, 1943) is an American investigative journalist. He started working for ''The Washington Post'' as a reporter in 1971 and now holds the honorific title of associate editor though the Post no longer employs ...
's 2018 book '' Fear: Trump in the White House'', in the midst of the scandal, then-
Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is the primary committee of the Republican Party of the United States. Its members are chosen by the state delegations at the national convention every four years. It is responsible for developing and pr ...
chairman
Reince Priebus Reinhold Richard "Reince" Priebus ( ; born March 18, 1972) is an American politician, attorney, and naval officer who served as chairman of the Republican National Committee from 2011 to 2017 and as White House chief of staff during the first s ...
told Trump he should drop out of the race for the good of the party, and that Pence had agreed to replace Trump on the top of the ticket as the Republican presidential nominee, with former Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice Condoleezza "Condi" Rice ( ; born November 14, 1954) is an American diplomat and political scientist serving since 2020 as the 8th director of Stanford University's Hoover Institution. A member of the Republican Party, she previously served ...
agreeing to be Pence's running mate. On October 10, 2016, Pence appeared on CNN and said, in response to rumors that he was leaving the ticket, that it was "absolutely false to suggest that at any point in time we considered dropping off this ticket" and that it is the "greatest honor of my life" to be nominated as Trump's running mate. On November 8, 2016, Pence was elected vice president of the United States as Trump's running mate.


Vice presidency (2017–2021)

Soon after the election, he was appointed chairman of President-elect Trump's transition team. During the transition phase of the
Trump administration Presidency of Donald Trump may refer to: * First presidency of Donald Trump, the United States presidential administration from 2017 to 2021 * Second presidency of Donald Trump, the United States presidential administration since 2025 See also * ...
, Pence was reported as holding a large degree of influence in the administration due to his roles as a mediator between Trump and congressional Republicans, for reassuring conservatives about Trump's conservative credentials, and his influence in determining Donald Trump's cabinet. On January 20, 2017, at noon, Pence became the 48th
vice president of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest ranking office in the Executive branch of the United States government, executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks f ...
, sworn into the office by justice
Clarence Thomas Clarence Thomas (born June 23, 1948) is an American lawyer and jurist who has served since 1991 as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. President George H. W. Bush nominated him to succeed Thurgood Marshall. Afte ...
.


Tenure

On the first day in office (January 20), Pence performed various ceremonial duties, including swearing in
Jim Mattis James Norman Mattis (born September 8, 1950) is an American military officer who served as the 26th United States secretary of defense from 2017 to 2019. A retired United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps four-star General (United States), gene ...
as
United States secretary of defense The United States secretary of defense (acronym: SecDef) is the head of the United States Department of Defense (DoD), the United States federal executive departments, executive department of the United States Armed Forces, U.S. Armed Forces, a ...
and John Kelly as
secretary of homeland security The United States secretary of homeland security is the head of the United States Department of Homeland Security, the federal department tasked with ensuring public safety in the United States. The secretary is a member of the Cabinet of the U ...
. He also administered the oath of office to the White House senior staff on January 22, 2017. Pence also sat in on calls made by President Trump to foreign heads of government and state such as Russian president
Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...
and
Australian prime minister The prime minister of Australia is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Australia. The prime minister is the chair of the Cabinet of Australia and thus the head of the federal executive government. Under the principles of responsibl ...
Malcolm Turnbull Malcolm Bligh Turnbull (born 24 October 1954) is an Australian former politician and businessman who served as the 29th prime minister of Australia from 2015 to 2018. He held office as Liberal Party of Australia, leader of the Liberal Party an ...
. In January, Pence appointed Josh Pitcock as his chief of staff, whom he had known from his
gubernatorial A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...
and
congressional A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ad ...
days. The following month, Jarrod Agen was tapped as deputy assistant to the president and director of communications to the vice president; his previous job being chief of staff for
governor of Michigan The governor of Michigan is the head of government of the U.S. state of Michigan. The current governor is Gretchen Whitmer, a member of the Democratic Party, who was inaugurated on January 1, 2019, as the state's 49th governor. She was re-ele ...
Rick Snyder Richard Dale Snyder (born August 19, 1958) is an American business executive, venture capitalist, attorney, accountant, and politician who served as the 48th governor of Michigan from 2011 to 2019. Snyder, who was born in Battle Creek, Michigan, ...
through the time of the
Flint water crisis The Flint water crisis was a public health crisis from 2014 to 2019 which involved the drinking water for the city of Flint, Michigan, being contaminated with lead and possibly ''Legionella'' bacteria. In April 2014, during a financial crisis, ...
. In July, Pitcock stepped down as chief of staff, and was succeeded in the position by Nick Ayers, another longtime Pence advisor. On February 5, 2017, Pence warned
Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...
"not to test the resolve" of the new
Trump administration Presidency of Donald Trump may refer to: * First presidency of Donald Trump, the United States presidential administration from 2017 to 2021 * Second presidency of Donald Trump, the United States presidential administration since 2025 See also * ...
following their ballistic missile tests. On February 7, 2017, Pence, in his dual constitutional role as president of the
United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...
made the first ever tie-breaking vote to confirm a Cabinet member. He cast the deciding vote to break a fifty-fifty tie to confirm
Betsy DeVos Elisabeth Dee DeVos ( ; ' Prince; born January 8, 1958) is an American politician, philanthropist, and former government official who served as the 11th United States Secretary of Education, United States secretary of education from 2017 to 2021 ...
as the
secretary of education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...
. Pence cast his second tie-breaking vote on March 30, voting to advance a bill to defund
Planned Parenthood The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is an American nonprofit organization
. In 2018, Pence broke a tie to confirm Jonathan A. Kobes for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. This was the first-ever tie-breaking vote to confirm a judicial nominee in U.S. history. In total, Pence cast 13 tie-breaking votes, the seventh-most in history and more than the previous four predecessors combined. (By comparison, his successor,
Kamala Harris Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 49th vice president of the United States from 2021 to 2025 under President Joe Biden. She is the first female, first African American, and ...
, cast a total of 33 tie-breaking votes, the most by any senate president, and more than the previous six predecessors combined.) In April, Pence made a tour of the Asia-Pacific region. In
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
, he met acting president
Hwang Kyo-ahn Hwang Kyo-ahn (; born 15 April 1957) is a South Korean politician and prosecutor who served as the acting president of South Korea from 2016 to 2017 and as the prime minister of South Korea from 2015 to 2017. Hwang served as minister of justi ...
and condemned
North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...
's latest missile launch. In Japan, Pence met Prime Minister
Shinzō Abe Shinzo Abe (21 September 1954 – 8 July 2022) was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party ( LDP) from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 to 2020. He was the longest-serving pri ...
and pledged to work with Japan, South Korea, and China "to achieve a peaceable resolution and the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula," adding "The era of strategic patience is over and while all options are on the table." Pence subsequently traveled to
Jakarta Jakarta (; , Betawi language, Betawi: ''Jakartè''), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (; ''DKI Jakarta'') and formerly known as Batavia, Dutch East Indies, Batavia until 1949, is the capital and largest city of Indonesia and ...
,
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...
, where he met with president
Joko Widodo Joko Widodo (; born 21 June 1961), often known mononymously as Jokowi, is an Indonesian politician, engineer, and businessman who served as the seventh president of Indonesia from 2014 to 2024. Previously a member of the Indonesian Democratic ...
, toured the largest mosque in the region (the Istiqlal Mosque), and praised moderate Islam. Pence ended his trip with stops in
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
, Australia (where, after meeting with Malcolm Turnbull, he said the U.S. "intends to honor" a U.S.–Australia refugee resettlement agreement),
Oahu Oahu (, , sometimes written Oahu) is the third-largest and most populated island of the Hawaiian Islands and of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital, Honolulu, is on Oahu's southeast coast. The island of Oahu and the uninhabited Northwe ...
, Hawaii, and
American Samoa American Samoa is an Territories of the United States, unincorporated and unorganized territory of the United States located in the Polynesia region of the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Ocean. Centered on , it is southeast of the island count ...
. On May 21, 2017, Pence delivered the commencement address at the
University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...
. Traditionally, the president delivers the address at Notre Dame in his inaugural year, but in 2017 Pence was invited instead when Trump decided to speak at
Liberty University Liberty University (LU), known simply as Liberty, is a Private university, private Evangelicalism in the United States, evangelical Christian university in Lynchburg, Virginia, United States. It is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Conservativ ...
. On June 30, 2017, Pence was appointed chair of the
National Space Council The National Space Council is a body within the Executive Office of the President of the United States created in 1989 during the George H. W. Bush administration, disbanded in 1993, and reestablished in June 2017 by the Donald Trump administrati ...
after Trump signed an executive order reestablishing the council. As chair, Pence held eight meetings from 2017 to 2020. On October 8, 2017, Pence walked out of a game between the
NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...
's
Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...
and
San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...
after members of the 49ers knelt during the national anthem. Shortly afterwards, Pence commented via
Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
, "President Trump and I will not dignify any event that disrespects our soldiers, our Flag, or our
national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European ...
," adding, "While everyone is entitled to their own opinion, I don't think it's too much to ask NFL players to respect the flag and our national anthem." Pence was widely criticized by various people for what was considered a publicity stunt. Democratic representative
Adam Schiff Adam Bennett Schiff (born June 22, 1960) is an American lawyer, author, and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator from California, a seat he has held since 2024. A m ...
(CA-28) questioned how much taxpayer's money was used to fund Pence's actions, and CNN later estimated that the total cost of his eight hours of travel on Air Force Two to attend the game was about $242,500, not including ground transportation and security. San Francisco 49ers, 49ers safety Eric Reid (American football), Eric Reid (the second NFL player after Colin Kaepernick to participate in the protests) told reporters it was predictable that Pence would walk out, knowing that most of the team were protesting. Reid also expressed doubt over the regularity Pence is in terms of attending Colts matches, and referenced a photograph of the vice president and his wife in Colts uniform that had been tweeted before the match, although the official photograph (right) proved otherwise. The photograph in question was first published in 2014. Sportswriter Peter King (sportswriter), Peter King wrote that the furor surrounding Pence had overshadowed Peyton Manning, who was being honored by the Colts, saying, "Pence trumped a day that belonged to the greatest football hero the state of Indiana has ever seen, and he did it for political purposes... he stole Manning's last great day as a Colt. [He] will have to live with himself for that." The following year, Pence reacted positively on Twitter, after NFL owners unanimously decided to approve a new policy requiring all players to stand (or, given the option to stay in the locker room) during the national anthem, despite not consulting the National Football League Players Association, NFL Players Association. On February 1, 2018, it was announced that Pence would lead the presidential delegation to the 2018 Winter Olympics, alongside his wife. Much of Pence's time at Pyeongchang County, Pyeongchang was affected by the ongoing 2017–18 North Korea crisis, North Korean crisis. Prior to the 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony, opening ceremony, on February 9, Pence skipped on a dinner held by South Korean president Moon Jae-in, as he would have shared a table with North Korea's ceremonial head of state Kim Yong-nam. Instead, he met with four North Korean defectors in Pyeongtaek, alongside his special guest, Fred Warmbier (the father of Otto Warmbier, who was arrested in North Korea for attempted theft, and sentenced to 15 years' imprisonment, before returning to the U.S. in a comatose state). At the ceremony, the Pences were seated in front of the North Korean delegates, and when North and South Korean athletes entered during the Parade of Athletes, they chose to stay seated, which prompted critics to accuse Pence of hypocrisy in regard to the NFL protests. Pence was supposed to meet with the North Koreans on February 10, but they pulled out at the last day. Over the next few months, the North Koreans started communicating more with their neighbors, as Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un secretly met with Chinese paramount leader Xi Jinping in March and then Moon Jae-in in an historic April 2018 inter-Korean summit, inter-Korean summit in April, and around the same time, a 2018 North Korea–United States summit, meeting between Trump and Kim was also proposed. On May 10, Pence accompanied Trump to Andrews Air Force Base as three American citizens were released by North Korea, and in an early morning interview with ABC News (United States), ABC's Jonathan Karl, he said seeing the men back on American soil "was really one of the greatest joys of my life". Talks broke down later that month following comments made by Pence and Trump, comparing the situation to events in Libya Death of Muammar Gaddafi, seven years previous, despite their voluntary disarmament of nuclear weapons in 2003. North Korean vice foreign minister Choe Son-hui called Pence's remarks "ignorant and stupid". On May 24, Trump abruptly called off the summit with Pence in attendance, only for him to change his mind a day later, later announcing that it would still be scheduled to 2018 North Korea–United States Singapore Summit, take place on June 12 in Singapore. In October 2018, Pence gave a speech regarding China at the Hudson Institute, accusing China of predatory economic practices, military aggression, and trying to undermine President Trump. He said China "wants a different American president" and accused the country of meddling in U.S. elections. He said China was building "an unparalleled surveillance state" to suppress minorities, and accused it of engaging in "debt-trap diplomacy". In regards to Taiwan, he said "while our administration will continue to respect our One China Policy … Taiwan’s embrace of democracy shows a better path for all the Chinese people". ''The New York Times'' wrote the speech, with a tone much more hawkish than what U.S. officials previously used regarding China, was similar to a declaration of a Second Cold War, new Cold War. In September 2019, Pence attended official meetings with Taoiseach, Irish prime minister Leo Varadkar in Dublin, Dublin, Ireland but stayed at President Trump's resort in Doonbeg, away. Pence's schedule included four hours spent in transit in one day, and two flights on Air Force Two before the end of the next day. Costs for the limousine service alone totaled $599,000 according to State Department receipts, compared to President Obama's three-day trip to Dublin with the same limousine company totaling $114,000. In February 2020, Pence defended debt- and deficit-spending as a measure to stimulate economic growth.


Political action committee

In May 2017, Pence filed Federal Election Commission paperwork to form ''Great America Committee'', a political action committee (PAC) that would be headed by his former campaign staffers Nick Ayers and Marty Obst. Pence is the only vice president to have started his own PAC while still in office. Pence denied a ''New York Times'' article's allegations that he would run for president in 2020, calling them "laughable and absurd", and said the article was "disgraceful and offensive".


Pence and the Trump impeachment inquiry

Pence was a key player in the Trump–Ukraine scandal and the Trump impeachment inquiry. Pence had at least two phone conversations and an in-person meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky, President of Ukraine. Pence met with Zelensky in Poland on September 1, 2019, during an unexpected delay in U.S. military aid to Ukraine. Pence later told the press that he did not mention Joe Biden 2020 presidential campaign, 2020 presidential candidate and former vice president
Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
to Zelensky, but raised issues regarding Corruption in Ukraine, Ukrainian corruption. After the inquiry was opened, Pence publicly stated his support of Trump's call for foreign investigation into Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden, Hunter, saying, "I think the American people have a right to know if the vice president of the United States or his family profited from his position." On October 3, Pence stated, "My predecessor had a son who was paid $50,000 a month to be on a Ukrainian board at the time that Vice President Biden was leading the Obama administration's efforts in Ukraine, I think [that] is worth looking into."


Death of Soleimani

Pence defended Trump's decision in January 2020 to Assassination of Qasem Soleimani, assassinate the Iranian major general in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Qasem Soleimani, promoting conspiracy theories that supposedly linked the al-Qaeda attacks on the United States to Iran. In a series of Twitter#Tweets, tweets, the vice president termed Soleimani "an evil man who was responsible for killing thousands of Americans". Pence insisted Soleimani had "assisted in the clandestine travel to Afghanistan of 10 of the 12 terrorists who carried out the September 11 terrorist attacks", which critics said was his confusing the number of 9/11 hijackers (actually 19) and insinuating (without evidence) that the general was involved. Many experts responded that Pence's claims were unsubstantiated. Pence's spokeswoman Katie Waldman said that the dozen terrorists Pence referred to were those who had traveled through Afghanistan, ten of whom "were assisted by Soleimani".


COVID-19 pandemic

On February 26, 2020, President Trump named Pence as the leader of the
White House Coronavirus Task Force The White House Coronavirus Task Force was the United States Department of State task force during the Trump administration. The goal of the Task Force was to coordinate and oversee the administration's efforts to monitor, prevent, contain, and ...
to combat the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. Various public health officials and members of Congress had suggested the selection of a "Coronavirus Czar", though Trump said that would not be the title's name. As the leader of the task force, Pence coordinated efforts with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, United States Department of Homeland Security, Department of Homeland Security, and White House Office. In April 2020, Pence exempted himself from the Mayo Clinic's policy of wearing a Face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, face mask in the hospital during a visit. Pence defended his action, saying he needed to look staff "in the eye". The next day, the vice president's opponents criticized him for promoting "completely irresponsible public health messaging". Later, Pence acknowledged he should have worn a mask during the hospital visit, and did so two days later when visiting a ventilator production facility. In late June 2020, as coronavirus cases were spiking, Pence gave an optimistic press briefing where he made several misleading and false claims about the state of the coronavirus pandemic. He misleadingly argued that surges in cases were the result of increased testing, telling reporters that increases in new cases were "a reflection of a great success in expanding testing across the country". However, health experts noted that case growth outpaced the number of tests, and that the share of positive tests was increasing. Pence also falsely claimed that coronavirus fatalities were declining all across the country (Statistics Statistics of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States#Deaths per day, here), that the curve had been flattened, and that all 50 states were opening up. In private meetings with Republican senators, Pence urged them to focus on "encouraging signs". Pence told the senators that cases were increasing in only 3% of counties and 12 states; however, data at the time showed that cases were increasing in at least 5% of counties and in at least 20 states. On December 18, the Pences received the Tozinameran, Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for SARS-CoV-2, in front of a live audience at a televised event to show Americans that the vaccine is safe and effective.


2020 vice presidential election

Ahead of his Joe Biden 2020 presidential campaign, presidential campaign on February 28, 2019,
Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
referred to Pence as a "decent guy" in a speech in Omaha, Nebraska, when making an anecdote about an audience falling silent after Pence mentioned Trump's name. Biden later faced criticism for his complimentary remarks due to Pence's alleged anti-LGBT positions, which Biden would later apologize for and clarify by saying, "I was making a point in a foreign policy context, that under normal circumstances a Vice President wouldn't be given a silent reaction on the world stage." Biden had previously referred to Pence as a "decent guy" in 2018, and Pence and Biden exchanged conversations via phone before Pence's 2017 transition into the vice presidency. In June 2019, the Democratic former New York City Council president Andrew Stein opined that Trump could improve his re-election chances by replacing Pence as his running mate with former Governor of South Carolina, South Carolina governor and former United States Ambassador to the United Nations, United States ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley. Despite that, Trump said Pence will be his running mate. He declined to endorse Pence should his running mate seek 2024 United States presidential election, in 2024 to succeed him, but said he would give it "very strong consideration". In remarks about law enforcement during the 2020 Republican National Convention, 2020 Republican convention, Pence said a federal security officer, Dave Underwood, "was shot and killed during the riots in Oakland", implying he was killed by rioters, when instead a man linked to the far-right Boogaloo movement had exploited the unrest as a cover for murder. On October 7, 2020, Pence participated in a debate with
Kamala Harris Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 49th vice president of the United States from 2021 to 2025 under President Joe Biden. She is the first female, first African American, and ...
that was held by ''USA Today'' in Salt Lake City, Utah, and moderated by Susan Page, the Washington bureau chief of the newspaper. The debate was held with adaptations designed to avoid contagion of the COVID-19 virus given that the vice president had been in close contact with people who had been infected at a recent event White House COVID-19 outbreak, at the White House. Plexiglas partitions separated the candidates and masks were required for all attending except the candidates and moderator. By some estimates, Pence interrupted Harris twice as much as she interrupted him. Media outlets noted that near the end of the debate, a fly landed on Pence's head for almost two minutes. A CNN poll found that 59% of registered voters felt that Harris had won the debate, while 38% felt that Pence had. On November 7, 2020, after several days of vote counting, Biden and Harris were declared by most major news networks to be the winners of the election. On December 14 the Electoral College confirmed the win, giving the Biden-Harris campaign 306 votes compared to 232 for the Trump–Pence campaign; however, Trump Donald Trump#False claims of voting fraud, attempt to prevent presidential transition, refused to concede and insisted that he had actually won. Throughout November and December Trump and his campaign filed more than 50 lawsuits alleging election fraud and other irregularities; all of them were eventually rejected by judges. Trump also pressured Republican officials, lawmakers and even Attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election#Pressure on Justice Department, the Justice Department to take actions to overturn the election. In late December 2020, a federal lawsuit was filed against Pence by Republican congressman Louie Gohmert and 11 Arizona Republicans who would have become presidential electors had Trump actually won Arizona. The plaintiffs sought to give the vice president the power to reject state certified presidential electors in favour of "competing slates of electors" so that Biden's victory over Trump could be overturned. The United States Department of Justice represented Pence in this case, and argued for its dismissal, stating that the lawsuit was a "walking legal contradiction" because it sought to grant power to the vice president, while suing the vice president. Within a week, the lawsuit was dismissed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, and the appeal was rejected by a United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit panel, both due to the plaintiffs' lack of Standing (law), standing. Gohmert then appealed to the Supreme Court, which on January7 tersely "denied" his petition.


Vote counting and storming of the Capitol

In January 2021, Trump began to pressure Pence to take action to overturn the election. As vice president, Pence presided over the January 6, 2021, 2021 United States Electoral College vote count, congressional joint session to count the electoral votes—normally a non-controversial, ceremonial event. In the days leading up to the session, Trump declared both in public and in private that Pence should use that position to overturn the election results in swing states and declare Trump–Pence the winners of the election. Pence demurred that the United States Constitution did not give him that power, but Trump falsely insisted that "The Vice President and I are in total agreement that the Vice President has the power to act." According to ''The New York Times'', multiple sources claim that Trump called Pence before he departed to certify the results urging him again one last time ultimately telling him, "You can either go down in history as a Patriotism, patriot, or you can go down in history as a pussy." Before the start of the Joint session of the United States Congress, Joint Session, Pence stated in a "Dear Colleague" letter that the Constitution prevented him from deciding which electoral votes counted and which did not. According to ''Politico'', Pence was inspired by Al Gore presiding over his own defeat twenty years earlier during the 2000 United States presidential election, 2000 presidential election, when Pence was a newly-elected member of Congress. On January 6, 2021, the day on which a joint session of Congress met to 2021 United States Electoral College vote count, count and certify the results of the Electoral College for the 2020 presidential election, Trump held a rally at which he urged listeners to go to the Capitol and repeatedly expressed the hope that Pence would "do the right thing". Many listeners then marched to the Capitol and January 6 United States Capitol attack, stormed it. On January 15, ''The Washington Post'' reported that Pence came "dangerously close" to the rioters during their occupation of the Capitol. Pence was not evacuated from the Senate chambers until 14 minutes after the initial breach of the Capitol was reported. He and his family were eventually ushered from the Senate chambers into a second-floor hideaway. One minute later, the mob rushed onto a stair landing only 100 feet away, from which they could have seen him enter the room if they had arrived a minute earlier. After his evacuation from the Senate chambers, his Secret Service detail wanted to move him away from the Capitol building but he refused to get in the car. Pence later approved the deployment of the United States National Guard, National Guard, which raised questions as the vice president is not the commander-in-chief. After the Capitol was cleared, Congress resumed its joint session, and officially certified the election results with Pence declaring Biden and Harris the winners. During the siege, Trump criticized Pence as lacking "courage". Earlier L. Lin Wood, a lawyer associated with Trump, had called for Pence to be "executed" by "firing squad". In spite of the threats against Pence, Trump never reached out to Pence or inquired about his safety during the attack on the Capitol, according to sources close to the vice president. Aides believed that Pence was being set up as a scapegoat for Trump's failure to overturn the results of the election. Pence was described as very angry with Trump. The two did not speak for several days, until January 11 when they met at the White House to discuss the prior week's Capitol siege and the final days of their administration. On January 20, Pence attended the inauguration of Joe Biden as president of the United States, unlike Trump. Afterwards, he left the Capitol with his successor, Kamala Harris. On April 3, 2025, the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation announced Pence as the recipient of the JFK Profile in Courage Award "for putting his life and career on the line to ensure the constitutional transfer of presidential power on Jan. 6, 2021".


Post-vice presidency (2021–present)

Pence left office on January 20, 2021, succeeded by the 49th Vice President of the United States, vice president of the United States,
Kamala Harris Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 49th vice president of the United States from 2021 to 2025 under President Joe Biden. She is the first female, first African American, and ...
. Pence did not have a permanent place of residence in Indiana when he left the vice presidency. Official records indicated that Pence had not owned a residence in Indiana since 2013, having lived in the governor's mansion and then the vice president's residence in Washington. As a result, for several months after leaving office, he and his wife stayed at residences owned by various Indiana Republican politicians. It is believed that he was at one time staying in a cabin owned by his former lieutenant governor, Indiana Governor
Eric Holcomb Eric Joseph Holcomb ( ; born May 2, 1968) is an American politician who served as the 51st governor of Indiana, from 2017 to 2025. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served from 2016 to 2017 as the 51st Lieuten ...
. In May 2021, the Pences bought a home in Carmel, Indiana. In February 2021, it was announced that Pence would join The Heritage Foundation as a distinguished visiting fellow. He also joined the Young America's Foundation conservative youth organization, with plans to launch a new podcast with the group in the coming months. At speaking engagements in the months after the end of the Trump administration, Pence spoke with "an almost reverence" of the former president, according to one journalist. Pence narrated a four-part television series on the career of right-wing radio host
Rush Limbaugh Rush Hudson Limbaugh III ( ; January 12, 1951 – February 17, 2021) was an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative political commentator who was the host of ''The Rush Limbaugh Show'', which first aired in 1984 and was nati ...
titled ''Age of Rush'', which debuted on Fox Nation in March 2021. Pence had previously cited Limbaugh as an inspiration for his career in talk radio and then in politics. In April 2021, it was reported that Pence signed a deal with publisher Simon & Schuster for two books, including an autobiography. The day the Supreme Court overturned ''Roe'' in June 2022, Pence told Breitbart News: "''Roe v. Wade'' has been consigned to the ash heap of history...Having been given this second chance for life, we must not rest and must not relent until the sanctity of life is restored to the center of American law in every state in the land." Pence appeared in the July 2022 documentary ''Unprecedented (miniseries), Unprecedented''. In October 2022, Pence condemned "unprincipled populism" and "Vladimir Putin, Putin apologists" in the Republican Party. Since leaving the vice presidency, Pence has distanced himself from Trump's Attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election, attempts to cast doubt on the 2020 presidential election and made high-profile speeches in early nominating states. Pence has also separated himself from Trump by endorsing candidates in several Republican primary elections in opposition to the candidate endorsed by Trump. In the primary for 2022 Georgia gubernatorial election, governor of Georgia, Pence endorsed incumbent governor Brian Kemp over the Trump-backed candidate, former senator David Perdue. This was described as a "Proxy fight, proxy battle" between Pence and Trump, with Pence's candidate Kemp winning the nomination easily. In the 2022 Arizona gubernatorial election, Pence endorsed Karrin Taylor Robson while Trump endorsed Kari Lake. In the 2022 Wisconsin gubernatorial election Pence endorsed former Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch; Trump supported businessman Tim Michels. On February 9, 2023, it was reported that Pence had been subpoenaed by special counsel Jack Smith (lawyer), Jack Smith regarding the attack on the Capitol, following months of negotiation between Pence's attorneys and the special counsel. After several unsuccessful challenges to the subpoena by Pence's lawyers and by Trump himself, Pence testified before the grand jury on April 27, 2023, saying, "We'll obey the law, we'll tell the truth." The same day as the subpoena was reported, Pence released a statement expressing support for "parental rights", especially regarding how teachers treat children who express different gender identities, which he described as left-wing efforts "to indoctrinate our children behind parents' backs". The statement was released through Advancing American Freedom, a communications group Pence founded in 2021 with political donations. Ahead of the RNC in 2024, Pence released a statement condemning the new GOP stance on abortion, which echoed Trump's position that the issue should be determined by individual states. Pence described this shift as a "profound disappointment", arguing that it strips away "historic pro-life principles that have long been the cornerstone of the platform". In October 2024, Pence said he supported the acquisition of U.S. Steel by the Japanese company Nippon Steel, arguing it would prevent the world from becoming more reliant on steel exports from China. President Biden blocked the purchase in January 2025.


Classified documents investigation

In January 2023, after Joe Biden classified documents incident, classified documents were found at the home of President Joe Biden, Pence asked his lawyer to search his home "out of an abundance of caution". The attorney found around a dozen documents marked as classified in Pence's Indiana home and turned over the documents to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI. The discovery came after Pence had repeatedly said that he did not have classified documents. Pence has taken responsibility for the documents and said that he was unaware of his possession of them. The FBI and the Justice Department's National Security Division reviewed the incident. Pence indicated he would "fully cooperate". On February 10, the FBI searched his home. In June, the Department of Justice notified Pence that its investigation had ended and that no charges would be brought forward.


2024 presidential campaign

Polls of Republicans in 2021 regarding their preferred presidential candidate in 2024 implied that Pence could begin a campaign as a top-tier candidate if former President Trump were to forgo a run. At the same time, said polling also foretold a precipitous decline in Pence's polling numbers if Trump were to seek the presidency again. In light of this, there was a widespread view among both Republican leaders and grassroots Republicans that "Pence is dead in the early waters of 2024." In May 2022, ''The New York Times'' reported that Pence was considering a presidential run regardless of whether Trump decided to run for a second term. In 2023, Pence criticized former President Donald Trump, especially regarding the events that took place on January 6, 2021. While speaking at a Gridiron Club Dinner, an event attended by politicians and journalists, Pence said that Trump was wrong to suggest that Pence had a right to overturn the election results. Pence went further, saying that Trump's words not only endangered him, but his family and everyone at the Capitol. On June 5, 2023, Pence filed paperwork and officially launched his bid for the presidency. In July, Pence became the first 2024 Republican presidential candidate to visit Ukraine, where he met President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. On October 28, 2023, Pence, who had weak fundraising and poll numbers, withdrew from the race. Much of his campaigning had taken place in Iowa. On March 15, 2024, Pence announced that he would not endorse Trump, nor would he support Biden in the 2024 United States presidential election, 2024 presidential election. Pence did not attend the 2024 Republican National Convention. On August 9, 2024, Pence reiterated that he would not endorse Trump, nor would he support
Kamala Harris Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 49th vice president of the United States from 2021 to 2025 under President Joe Biden. She is the first female, first African American, and ...
after Withdrawal of Joe Biden from the 2024 United States presidential election, Biden withdrew from the race.


Post-campaign activity

In September 2024, Pence began teaching seminar and lecture courses in political science at Grove City College in Pennsylvania after being named its first Distinguished Fellow for Faith and Public Life. Teaching alongside the college president, Pence may join future classes at the western Pennsylvania college via video conference, depending on his schedule. On January 16, 2025, speaking in Taipei, Pence urged President-elect Trump to avert a nuclear arms race by continuing to support an independent Taiwan as a key Asian ally. On January 20, 2025, Pence attended Second inauguration of Donald Trump, Trump's second inauguration as a former vice president. On May 4, 2025, Pence received the Profile in Courage Award, John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, JFK Library.


Personal life

Pence and his wife, Karen Pence, Karen ( Batten), met while he was in law school at Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law, Indiana University. They were married in 1985. Pence's father died in 1988, leaving his mother a widow with four grown children and two teenagers. Mike and Karen Pence have three children: Michael, Charlotte Pence Bond, Charlotte, and Audrey. Michael Pence is a pilot in the United States Marine Corps. During Pence's service in the House, his family lived in Arlington, Virginia when Congress was in session and in
Columbus, Indiana Columbus () is a city in and the county seat of Bartholomew County, Indiana, United States. The population was 50,474 at the 2020 census. The city is known for its architectural significance, having commissioned noted works of modern architect ...
, during recesses. During an interview in 2002, Pence told a reporter that he would not have dinner alone with a woman other than his wife. On May 1, 2004, Pence's mother remarried – this time to Basil Coolidge Fritsch. In 2018, Pence's oldest brother, Greg Pence, Greg, entered and won the political race to represent Indiana's 6th congressional district in Congress (the seat previously held by Mike). Greg and Mike are similar enough in appearance that Greg once successfully acted as a decoy to lure the press away from his brother when Mike Pence was being touted as a potential running mate to Donald Trump. In 2016 he was diagnosed with asymptomatic left bundle branch block. In April 2021, Pence underwent surgery for a pacemaker implant due to a slow heartbeat. The family's pet rabbit, Marlon Bundo, was the subject of Marlon Bundo's: A Day in the Life of the Vice President, a children's book authored by Pence's daughter, Charlotte Pence Bond, Charlotte.


Religion

Pence was raised in a Catholic family, was an altar server, and attended parochial school.Also published
the same date in the ''National Catholic Reporter''.
He became a born-again Christian in college, while a member of a nondenominational Christian student group, and identified his first year—and specifically "a Christian music festival in Asbury, Kentucky, in the spring of 1978" referring to the Ichthus Music Festival at then Asbury University, Asbury College in Wilmore, Kentucky—as the moment he made a "commitment to Christ". After that point, Pence continued to attend Mass (Catholic Church), Mass (where he met his wife) and was a Catholic youth work, Catholic youth minister. Pence called himself Catholic in a 1994 news piece, although by 1995, he and his family had joined an Evangelical Christian, evangelical megachurch, the Grace Evangelical Church. In 2013, Pence said his family was "kind of looking for a church". In 2016, Pence and his wife regularly worshiped at College Park Church, a nondenominational church in Indianapolis. He has described himself as "a Christian, a conservative and a Republican, in that order", and as "a born-again, Evangelical Catholic". As one commentator put it, "Pence doesn't simply wear his faith on his sleeve—he wears the entire Jesus jersey." In a 2002 statement on the Floor (legislative), floor of the House of Representatives (reported in the ''Congressional Record''), Pence told his colleagues "...I also believe that someday scientists will come to see that only the theory of intelligent design provides even a remotely rational explanation for the known universe." When asked by
Chris Matthews Christopher John Matthews (born December 17, 1945) is an American political commentator, retired talk show host, and author. Matthews hosted his weeknight hour-long talk show, ''Hardball with Chris Matthews'', on America's Talking and later on M ...
in 2009 if he believed in evolution, Pence said "I believe with all my heart that God created the heavens and the earth, the seas and all that is in them. How he did that, I'll ask him about some day."


Publications

* *


See also

* List of Republicans who opposed the Donald Trump 2024 presidential campaign * Political positions of Mike Pence * Electoral history of Mike Pence * Vice presidency of Mike Pence


Notes


References


Further reading

* *


External links


Governor Mike Pence
official government website *
Profile
at Ballotpedia
Mike Pence's statements
at PolitiFact * , published September 30, 2019 CBS News


Articles


Collected news and commentary
at ''
The Indianapolis Star } ''The Indianapolis Star'' (also known as ''IndyStar'') is a morning daily newspaper that began publishing on June 6, 1903, in Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It has been the only major daily paper in the city since 1999, whe ...
''


Congress


Profile
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