Marion mayor seeking GOP nod for Indiana treasurer

Former Olympic figure skater and Marion Mayor Wayne Seybold announced Tuesday he is running for Indiana treasurer.

Seybold said he would seek the Republican nomination for the office primarily concerned with state investments and pensions. He touted his work as mayor and said he would work to coordinate more with local officials if elected.

"The way we continue to strengthen Indiana and, again, move it from good to great, is by building and making sure that our local governments are strong," Seybold said.

Current GOP state Treasurer Richard Mourdock is term-limited from seeking re-election. Mourdock's comments during last year's U.S. Senate race about rape and abortion sunk his campaign and evolved into a cautionary tale for Republicans nationwide. Seybold said he has not yet sought Mourdock's endorsement.

Seybold skated in the 1988 Olympics with his sister and is in his third term as Marion's mayor. Seybold also lost in a crowded Republican primary last year for the 5th District congressional seat representing central Indiana. He touted his work turning around the city's finances upon taking office in 2003, and said he would bring that same focus to the treasurer's office. But Marion is mired in a new round of financial troubles, a fact Indiana Democrats quickly seized on.

"Mayor Seybold lost a Congressional bid last year and has run his city's finances into the ground," Democratic Chairman John Zody said in a statement. "We hope he and others who might be interested in running for this office will pledge to fulfill the duties of the office, not make it a political stepping stone at taxpayer expense."

The three-term mayor has had to borrow money this year to pay off operating expenses and city vendors and has fought with the city council to borrow more money, according to reports in The Chronicle-Tribune of Marion.

On the political front, Seybold has already secured the support of several leading Republicans, including Dan Dumezich and Bob Grand, the Indiana co-chairmen of Mitt Romney's 2012 campaign. But unlike primary battles, which require more money, the party's treasurer battle will be fought at next year's Republican convention, should any other candidates enter the ring.

Other top lawmakers, Republican party officials and Statehouse lobbyists have signed on with Seybold, including former U.S. Rep. Dan Burton and former Republican Party chairmen Murray Clark, Rex Early, and Mike McDaniel.

No Democrats have yet emerged to run for treasurer.