Jill Long Thompson’s campaign canceled TV ads set to air today and over the weekend.  Ads are still scheduled to run next week.

The spokesman for the Democratic candidate for governor says that the move is strategic, not a question of money.  Jeff Harris says a new ad will begin next week.

When Sen. Evan Bayh appears on stage this afternoon with Barack Obama at Purdue University the eyes of Indiana political junkies will be focused on an event designed to change the political landscape in this state.   Jill Long Thompson won’t be there.

The Democratic candidate for governor will continue on her Hoosier Hometown tour visiting five cities in southern Indiana, including Boonville and Tell City.  Long Thompson spokesman Jeff Harris says the candidate already had a schedule set when she learned of the Obama visit.

He says the campaign hopes there will be opportunities to get Obama and Long Thompson together in the future.

Jill Long Thompson’s running mate decision is made. 

Jeff Harris, the press secretary for the Democratic candidate for governor says “We’ve got our guy.”   But, he says, only three people know and the campaign hopes to keep the selection secret for a week or so.

That’s a real test of will for at least three people and you know that number will grow.

I say keep your eyes on state Representative Dennie Oxley of English. 

Jill Long Thompson’s search for a running mate is an in-house operation.  The campaign originally reached out to Tom New, former Frank O’Bannon chief of staff, to see if he would head up a search committee.  New declined.

That led the campaign to take up the task on its own.  Campaign manager Travis Lowe and Communications director Jeff Harris will do the legwork.   Harris says New will be a consultant.

The original version of Jill Long Thompson’s new attack ad originally showed a school that wasn’t designed by CSO Architects (Jim Schellinger’s firm) when the announcer accuses Schellinger of lobbying school districts to hike property taxes.

Jeff Harris of the Thompson campaign says campaign staffers discovered the error and changed it.  Photographers, he says, shot the wrong schools by mistake.

Jennifer Wagner of the Schellinger campaign called the whole episode “ridiculous.”  She says the first school shown was designed by an architect who donated to Thompson (Wayne Schmidt) and that she got caught in an attempt to mislead voters.

And you thought this Democratic primary for governor wouldn’t get negative and petty.

Jill Long Thompson’s new spokesman just called to debunk Internet reports that the Democrat candidate for governor is short on petition signatures required to make the ballot. 

That’s right the Thompson campaign now has a spokesperson.  Its Jeff Harris, who is familiar to political reporters in these parts.  He worked for the state Senate and the Vi Simpson campaign in 2004.  He even has an Indianapolis cell phone.

Harris says he quit his job to take up with the Long campaign.  (That’s confidence for you.)  And, he says Long will file to put her name on the ballot at the Statehouse tomorrow.