concerns with him. He held his first such event in January 1988. This practice was also continued under his successor, Steve Luecke. Kernan was involved in the creation of Indiana's Vietnam and Korean War memorials. 1996 election as lieutenant governor In 1996, Kernan was elected as Indiana's lieutenant governor on the Democratic Party ticket with then-lieutenant governor Frank O'Bannon topping the ticket as the gubernatorial nominee. Kernan had been reluctant to accept O'Bannon's offer to run with him, initially desiring to instead continue to serve as mayor. Others who had been rumored to have under consideration by O'Bannon for a running mate included Tom DiGuillio, Mike Gery, Baron Hill, John Walda, and Jill Long Thompson. Pamela Carter had ruled herself out of consideration. There has been some reporting that O'Bannon may have first offered the running mate position to Long Thompson and that she had rejected. Kernan, the mayor of a Northern Indiana city, brought geographic balance to the ticket headed by O'Bannon, a native of the Southern Indiana city of Corydon. O'Bannon had previously signaled that he was exploring choosing a running mate from Northern Indiana in order to provide that geographic benefit. Kernan and O'Bannon had a strong preexisting acquaintanceship. O'Bannon had developed a working relationship on issues of economic development since O'Bannon oversaw the Indiana Department of Commerce as lieutenant governor. Kernan had developed a particularly strong camaraderie with O'Bannon six years earlier in 1990, when Kernan and other Indiana mayors accompanied O'Bannon on a trade mission to Poland, Soviet Union, Ukraine, and Yugoslavia. O'Bannon's selection of Kernan was announced June 3, 1996 with a press release followed by press conference in South Bend and Indianapolis. in its press release, the gubernatorial campaign promoted Kernan as having had a record of success in attracting businesses to the city of South Bend. While campaigning for lieutenant governor in 1996, Kernan continued to fulfill his duties as mayor. In part to facilitate this, Kernan operated his end of the campaign out of a separate campaign office from O'Bannon, located in South Bend. Despite starting the general election as underdogs, O'Bannon and Kernan's ticket to defeat overcame a deficit to defeat the Republican ticket of Steve Goldsmith and George Witwer. Upon being elected Lieutenant Governor, Kernan was involved in the process of helping guide the selection of a successor for mayor. Kernan involved St. Joseph Democratic Party Chairman Butch Morgan