Gov.-elect Mike Braun assembles the majority of his cabinet, some of whom will also hold positions as agency heads. (Whitney Downard/Indiana Capital Chronicle)
Three more secretaries in Gov.-elect Mike Braun’s cabinet will also lead agencies, bringing the total number of people serving dual roles to five.
Braun unveiled a new cabinet structure earlier this month where eight appointed secretaries will oversee “verticals,” or related agencies. Each would get a salary and have the power to hire additional staff, adding new positions under Braun’s administration.
The three additional secretaries also serving as agency heads now includes:
- Mike Speedy, the secretary of Business Affairs, will also lead the Department of Labor
- David Adams, the secretary of Commerce, will also lead the Indiana Economic Development Corporation
- Jennifer-Ruth Green, the secretary of Public Safety, will also be the director of Homeland Security
They join Katie Jenner, who will be both the secretary and agency head of education, and Lisa Hershman, the secretary of Management of Budget who is also the director of the Office of Management and Budget.
Suzanne Jaworowski, Gloria Sachdev and Matthew Ubelhor will also serve as the secretaries of Energy and Natural Resources, Health and Family Services, and Transportation and Infrastructure, respectively. They will not also serve as agency leaders.
The final cabinet members include Anthony Scott as the superintendent of the Indiana State Police, Brigadier General Lawrence Muennich as the Adjutant General of the Indiana National Guard, Lt. Gov.-elect Micah Beckwith and Chief of Staff Joshua Kelley.
Braun previously said this layer of management would create government efficiencies and be “entrepreneurial” and “accessible.” In contrast, Gov. Eric Holcomb had nearly two dozen members of his cabinet.
In addition to Kelley, three others have been named as part of Braun’s office: Jason Johnson, the deputy chief of staff who will oversee legislative affairs; Jessica Wedgewood, the deputy chief of staff who will oversee operations; and Patrick Price, who will be the governor-elect’s legal counsel.
Twenty others will lead various agencies under Braun alongside the secretaries included above. In addition to Jenner, who will spearhead education efforts, Braun retained ten agency leaders previously appointed under Gov. Eric Holcomb.
They include:
- Holly Lambert, Insurance Commissioner
- Steve Russo, the executive director of the Indiana Public Retirement System
- Lindsay Hyer, the executive director of the Professional Licensing Agency
- Thomas Fite, the director of the Department of Financial Institutions
- James Michaels, the superintendent for the Indiana School for the Blind and Visually Impaired
- David Geeslin, the superintendent for the Indiana School for the Deaf (though he previously announced he would be retiring in 2025)
- Lindsay Weaver, Indiana Health Commissioner
- Steve Cox, the director of the Indiana Broadband Office
- Dan Huge, the chair of the Indiana Finance Authority
- and Don Lamb, the director of the Indiana State Department of Agriculture
The remaining ten newly appointed agency heads include several who previously held other positions within their departments and politicians. They are:
- Mitch Roob, the secretary of the Family and Social Services Administration. He previously ran that agency under then-Gov. Mitch Daniels.
- Lloyd Arnold, the commissioner of the Department of Correction
- Alan Morrison, the director of the Department of Natural Resources. Morrison was just re-elected to the Indiana House and will have to resign and be replaced by a caucus of party insiders.
- Kevin Garvey, the commissioner of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles
- Adam Krupp, the director of the Department of Child Services. He previously ran the Indiana Department of Revenue under Holcomb.
- Jake Adams, with the Department of Veterans Affairs
- Fred Glynn, the executive director of the Office of Community and Rural Affairs
- Brandon Clifton, Indiana Department of Administration Commissioner
- Pete Miller, the executive director of the Indiana Management Performance Hub
- Kent Abernathy, Indiana Department of Transportation Commissioner
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