ELKHART — Republican gubernatorial hopeful Mike Pence barnstormed through Elkhart Tuesday, introducing his pick for lieutenant governor, Sue Ellspermann, and touting her background in economic development.

“Simply put, Sue Ellspermann spent more than 25 years helping southwest Indiana grow,” he said at the Indiana Flight Center at the Elkhart Municipal Airport. “Now she’s going to help all of Indiana grow.”

Pence announced Monday that he had tabbed Ellspermann, a state legislator, to be his running mate and he was on the second of a two-day tour of the state to introduce her to the public. He stopped in the Merrillville area Tuesday morning before flying to Elkhart and Fort Wayne.

Few specifics came out of his appearance here. Job creation is Pence’s top priority as a candidate, though, and the need to promote economic development and help businesses grow were common themes.

Ellspermann, from Ferdinand in southern Indiana, worked in engineering and management before launching a consulting business in Evansville in 1986. She later helped found the University of Southern Indiana’s Center for Applied Research before her election to the District 74 seat in the Indiana House in 2010.

“She’s a doer and she’ll be an impact player for the state of Indiana,” said Pence, speaking in an airplane hangar surrounded by about 40 or 50 supporters.

Ellspermann emphasized the importance of job creation and developing the skills of workers across Indiana to lure high-tech jobs. “I know I can make a difference there,” she said.

Broadly, both Pence and Ellspermann spoke of their hope of raising Indiana’s national profile, building on what they said were the advances of Gov. Mitch Daniels’ administration. Pence, Ellspermann said, “will take us from good to great” and make Indiana’s economy the strongest in the Midwest and a national model.

As a freshman lawmaker, Ellspermann touted her efforts in helping achieve a balanced state budget, increasing educational opportunities, reducing corportate taxes and protecting “the sanctity of life.” She also expressed a willingness to work with Democrats.

“I don’t look at problems as Democratic or Republican. I look at them as problems to be solved,” she said.

As for her decision to vote Democratic in the 2008 Indiana primary, she alluded to the heated battle at the time between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton for the party’s presidential nomination. The Indiana Democratic Party issued a press release on her Democratic vote soon after Pence tabbed Ellspermann on Monday, asking if she cast a ballot for Obama or Clinton.

“I wanted to be a good Hoosier. I wanted to be sure we had the best candidate,” Ellspermann said, without identifying which of the two Democratic hopefuls she supported.

Pence smiled whan asked of Ellspermann’s Democratic vote. “I think it’s refreshing,” he said. Ellspermann is an “everyday Hoosier,” not a career politician.

Elkhart County Prosecutor Curtis Hill introduced Pence and several other area leaders were on hand.