FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP):  Indiana could be in play in next year's Republican presidential race despite its late primary.

Experts say a crowded Republican field means it could take longer for a front-runner to emerge. Allen County Republican Party Chairman Steve Shine tells The Journal Gazette that could generate the same kind of excitement that the 2008 race between Democrats Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama brought to the state.

That year was the only time Indiana's May presidential primary has mattered since 1976.

More than 30 states' presidential primaries or caucuses will take place before Indiana's 2016 primary.

Andrew Downs of the Mike Downs Center for Indiana Politics says he doesn't expect Democrats to spend much time or money in Indiana unless Clinton has a credible primary challenger.