INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indiana Secretary of State Connie Lawson has decided to resign from the office with nearly two years left in her term.
The 71-year-old Republican didn’t give a specific reason for Monday’s resignation announcement, saying in a statement that 2020 took a toll on her and that she was stepping down to “focus on my health and my family.”
Lawson said she would leave office once Gov. Eric Holcomb has picked her replacement. Lawson’s current term runs until January 2023.
Lawson has been Indiana’s top elections officer for almost nine years. She was first appointed to the office in 2012 after then-Secretary of State Charlie White was removed from office following his conviction on voter fraud charges stemming from his 2010 campaign.
Lawson was then elected to her own four-year terms in 2014 and 2018. She wasn’t eligible to run again because of term limits. Lawson previously was a state senator for 16 years, including time as the Senate majority leader, and as the Hendricks County clerk.
