Lt. Governor Eric Holcomb sworn in Thursday

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Eric Holcomb has been sworn in as Mike Pence’s new lieutenant governor. Holcomb took the oath hours after being confirmed by the House and Senate to replace Sue Ellspermann, whose resignation to pursue the presidency of Ivy Tech. As lieutenant governor, Holcomb will oversee agencies including the Indiana State Department of Agriculture and the Department of Commerce. He says the chance to be an ambassador touting Indiana’s economic opportunities is what attracted him when Pence offered “a position I never sought.” Holcomb had been campaigning for the nomination to replace retiring U-S Senator Dan Coats, but withdrew from the race to replace Ellspermann. Pence notes that campaign had already carried Holcomb to all 92 counties, a feat he says few Hoosiers other then state officeholders can claim. Pence declares Holcomb may be the best-prepared Indiana lieutenant governor ever, because of both his extenskive travel around the state and his behind-the-scenes experience in state and federal government as a top aide to Coats and former Governor Mitch Daniels. Supreme Court Justice Mark Massa, who served as Daniels’ general counsel, administered the oath, while Daniels’ lieutenant governor Becky Skillman returned to the statehouse as master of ceremonies.