Indiana Senate Republicans who opposed congressional redistricting were largely defeated during Tuesday's primary election, with only one race so far called for an incumbent after President Donald Trump's call to oust them.
The results come after months of political threats, and an estimated $9 million in spending to back primary challengers against the incumbents. The incumbents' losses show Trump's continued strength in the state.
In a statement, U.S. Sen. Jim Banks (R-Ind) said the wins should send a message.
"Everyone in Indiana politics should have learned an important lesson today: President Trump is the single most popular Republican among Hoosier voters," Banks said in a statement. "Indiana is a conservative state, and we deserve conservatives in our State Senate who have a pulse on Republican voters."
Trump's push to redistrict was part of a nationwide effort to win more seats in Congress by redrawing state maps across the country, part of a move to keep Republican control of the U.S. House. In Indiana, Republicans currently hold seven of the nine U.S. House seats. The proposed redistricted map targeted the two remaining Democratic strongholds to be more favorable to the GOP.
In November, Trump vowed that any Republican who voted against redrawing the state's congressional boundaries, "potentially having an impact on America itself, should be PRIMARIED."
In spite of Trump's threats, Indiana Senate Republicans rebuffed him, siding with Senate Democrats to kill the redistricting bill 31-19.
The reverberation of that Indiana vote was felt for months and played out on primary election day in Indiana.
It kicked off a flurry of campaign donations, national endorsements, and door-knocking led by various political groups aligned with the President — attracting national attention and boosting money spent on Indiana races.
Trump posted his support on social media for primary candidates opposing incumbent Republicans on Election Day, saying "There are eight Great Patriots running against long seated RINOS - Let's see how those RINOS do tonight!"
As results came in Tuesday night, it became clear that Trump's push was largely successful.
“I want to thank President Donald Trump for his support,” said Rep. Michelle Davis (R-Whiteland) after winning in District 41 against incumbent Greg Walker. “I’m proud to stand with him in fighting for commonsense policies that protect our freedoms and put Americans and Hoosiers First.”
Indiana political experts said the night was a definitive win for President Trump.
“In American politics, typically 90% of the time the incumbent wins,” said Laura Merrifield Wilson, a professor of political science at the University of Indianapolis. “It’s highly unusual to see so many challengers defeat incumbents.”
She said the win may even open the door for a fresh redistricting effort next year.
Sen. Greg Goode (R-Terre Haute) may be the only incumbents to survive. Goode was at the center of some of Trump's earliest threats against senators and was among the first lawmakers to report being the victim of a swatting attempt.
Speaking with WFIU’s Ethan Sandweiss, Goode said his campaign “blocked out all the noise and all of the drama while we did the work.”
Despite Trump’s opposition, Goode said he still supported the President.
“What I believe is that Donald Trump got some really bad political advice from D.C. insiders who did not understand Indiana,” he said.
Sen. Spencer Deery (R-West Lafayette) declared victory Tuesday night with just a three-vote difference between him and challenger Paula Copenhaver.
“Thank you to everyone who made this victory possible. It was a challenging and close race,” he said in a post to social media. “We were massively outspent, but Hoosier voices prevailed.”
But in a post on social media Copenhaver also seemed to claim victory and said "after all provisional ballots are counted, we will prevail."
That race may be contested.
The rejection of redistricting in Indiana was watched around the country as Trump has pushed Republican states to redraw maps to favor their party in the congressional midterms.
Trump has set off an unprecedented mid-decade redistricting race as he tries to maintain the narrow Republican hold on the House. Several GOP-led states, starting with Texas last year, have undergone redistricting. Some Democratic-led states have tried to counter but have not caught up. Several southern Republican-led states are considering it now.
The redistricting fallout also split Indiana's Republican party, pitting figures like Sen. President Pro Tem Rodric Bray (R-Martinsville) against more Trump-aligned figures like Gov. Mike Braun and Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith.
Sen. Bray has widely been credited with killing the redistricting push, claims he has largely pushed back against. Following Tuesday nights loss, Bray's leadership in the Indiana Senate may be in question.
Ahead of Tuesday’s vote, Bray told CNN that he had “no regrets” about lawmakers' decision not to redistrict.
Contact Government Reporter Benjamin Thorp at bthorp@wfyi.org
