VP Pence's brother wins GOP nomination for Indiana U.S. House seat

Just 17 minutes after the last polls closed in Indiana, the Associated Press declared Greg Pence the winner of the GOP primary race and the party's nominee for the state's 6th District U.S. House seat.

Greg Pence is the older brother of Vice President Mike Pence, who previously held the same Congressional seat for twelve years. Greg faced four opponents in the race on Tuesday, and had himself garnered 67 percent of the vote with 33 percent precincts reporting — an edge wide enough for the race to be called early in his favor.

If successful in the November race which he's favored to win, it would be the first office held by Greg Pence, who owns two antique malls and is a Marine Corps veteran. With the help of his brother and other Republican heavy-weights, Greg Pence was able to raise almost $1.2 million in the race.

Muncie businessman Jonathan Lamb was Greg Pence's biggest threat as an opponent in the primary; Lamb accused Pence of dodging debates and simply relying on his last name to win the race. At the time the race was called, Lamb had won 22 percent of the votes with 33 percent reporting.

The 6th Congressional District includes the cities of Columbus, Muncie and Richmond. Republican Luke Messer decided to vacate the seat in order to run for U.S. Senate. Messer was elected to the 6th District seat in 2013.