Indiana was admitted to the Union on December 11, 1816. Since then, Indiana has been represented in the United States Senate by 44 different men in Class 1 and Class 3; David Turpie served non-consecutive terms in Class 1, Dan Coats served non-consecutive terms in Class 3, and William Ezra Jenner served in both classes. Until the passage of the 17th amendment in 1913, senators were elected by the Indiana General Assembly; after that they were elected popularly by Indiana citizens. A senatorial term lasts six years beginning on January 3. In case of a vacancy the Governor of Indiana has the duty to appoint a new senator. The longest-serving of any Senator from Indiana is Republican Richard Lugar. The current senators of Indiana are Joe Donnelly and Todd Young.
Class 1
Class 1 U.S. Senators belong to the electoral cycle that was elected for three U.S. Congresses in the first elections of 1818, and then the seat was contested every three Congresses (six years) thereafter. The seat in recent years has been contested in 1994, 2000, 2006, and 2012. The next election will be in 2018.