All eyes are on Indiana as the state Senate considers a redistricting effort that could determine whether or not Republicans keep the U.S. House majority in the 2026 midterms. Meanwhile, Republicans across the country are increasingly convinced that Democrats will repeatedly try to impeach President Donald Trump if they take control in 2026.
The Indiana State Senate’s Elections Committee is in the process of listening to testimony from over 100 Hoosiers about the proposed redistricting map that has already passed the House, which would likely flip the two Democrat U.S. House seats from blue to red, resulting in nine Republican and zero Democrat representatives. Leftists protesting the proposed map overwhelmed the state Capitol with chants such as, “Vote no,” “This is what democracy looks like,” and “No cheating,” according to the Indiana Star.
A vote on the map, which the House passed by a vote of 57-41, is expected in the Senate on Thursday.
Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., took to X to convey how critical the redistricting effort is for Republicans. “Indiana is pro-Trump Republican state, yet our map is 7-2 instead of 9-0. Democrats manipulated census data and stole seats after [Joe] Biden took office.”
The senator added, “If [Democrats] take Congress, they’ll try to impeach Trump and erase our America First wins. Indiana can’t let that happen.”
Conservative operatives spoke to The Daily Signal about the map’s chances for success. Even though there are 40 Republicans in the 50-member upper chamber of the Indiana state Legislature, final passage is not a sure thing, and failure to pass the current map would likely result in the redistricting effort failing entirely.
Conservative groups are sending a strong message to Republican Indiana senators and senate leadership.
David McIntosh, the president of Club for Growth, took aim at Senate President Pro Tem Rodric Bray in a statement provided to The Daily Signal.
“Sen. Rod Bray: This is our FINAL WARNING. Pass the new congressional map supported by President Trump and Hoosiers. Failure to get this done means you and any other opposition will be defeated and removed from office in your next election. Let’s get it done!” McIntosh said.
Bray had previously been accused of slow-playing the redistricting effort in the Hoosier State.
Nevertheless, conservatives who have been working on passing the Indiana map are optimistic that the bill will garner the 25 votes it needs to pass the Senate, which has become a major topic of conversation in Washington because control of the House, and likely a series of impeachment efforts against Trump, hangs in the balance.
Trump Pushes Hard for Indiana Redistricting
Trump has stressed the urgency of Indiana’s redistricting effort to give Republicans two more House seats in public and in private.
On Friday, the president urged Republican state senators to pass the new congressional map.
“I am hearing that these nine Senators, some of whom are up for Re-Election in 2026, and some in 2028, need encouragement to make the right decision: Blake Doriot, Brett Clark, Brian Buchanan, Dan Dernulc, Ed Charbonneau, Greg Goode, Jim Buck, Rick Niemeyer, and Ryan Mishler. Let your voice be heard loud and clear in support of these Senators doing the right thing,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.
According to a report from Politico, Trump spoke with Indiana’s Republican Gov. Mike Braun at the White House Christmas party on Sunday. Braun reportedly told the president and other guests that he thought redistricting would pass.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., has also been doing his part to secure another term with the speaker’s gavel by reportedly manning the phones with reluctant Indiana state lawmakers.
Grassroots Pushing Squishy Indiana Republicans to Act
While Indiana’s redistricting effort is broadly popular among Republican voters in the state, some GOP lawmakers have been hesitant to sign onto the new congressional map, apparently fearing Democrat challenges to their seats and appearing to shrink at the confrontational nature of the effort.
Conservative activist groups, like Heritage Action for America, Turning Point Action, and the Club for Growth, have rallied grassroots activists to get state Republicans on board with the redistricting effort. Those efforts have included educating the grassroots, rallying Indiana residents to call their legislators, and spreading the message through the media.
“We’ve seen a number of those 20 [Republican state senators] drop off to the point now where we’re down to about, we need four more Republicans to say yes to redistricting. So we’re very close, and we anticipate getting there, but the floor vote is the fight,” Paul Lagemann, the state advocacy manager of Heritage Action for America, told The Daily Signal. Lagemann has taken the redistricting case to national media, appearing last week on Steve Bannon’s “WarRoom.”
The Club for Growth has promised to help primary Republican state senators who do not end up supporting redistricting.
Some Indiana Republicans, however, don’t feel the urgency expressed by the president and grassroots activists.
“There is no way that [President Donald Trump] should have time to have a conversation with me about Indiana mapmaking when that’s not his business, for starters. But secondly, doesn’t he have anything better to do? I can make a big list of things that are more important for him to focus on,” Republican state Sen. Greg Walker told a local media outlet.
The Stakes Couldn’t Be Higher
Hesitancy at redistricting comes at a precarious time for Republicans who are facing the normal headwinds of being the party in power for the upcoming midterm elections as well as several unique challenges. First, there have been a slew of retirement and resignation announcements from Republican members of Congress, including Reps. Troy Nehls of Texas, Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Jodey Arrington of Texas, Elise Stefanik of New York, and Randy Feenstra of Iowa.
Republicans currently have a thin majority in the House and have launched redistricting efforts in red states across the country. Many of these states have stepped up to the challenge. In Texas, for example, redistricting is likely going to result in five additional GOP seats.
Democrats are pushing their own redistricting efforts, however. California has already gerrymandered its congressional maps. In Virginia party leaders are seeking to put a constitutional amendment in front of voters that could net the Democratic Party at least two House seats. Maryland is contemplating its own gerrymandering efforts.
What Comes Next?
Bray told reporters on Monday that he’s unsure if the map has the votes: “I’ve said before that they weren’t, and what I’m saying now is we’ll find out Thursday.”
Despite Trump and Braun pushing for the redistricting effort, Bray had refused to act sooner. But inaction became untenable because, in Bray’s words, the redistricting issue was “causing a lot of strife.”
“It seemed like suddenly the issue was more about whether we’re coming in or not,” Bray claimed. “So we just decided to come in and vet the issue, and we’ll vote on it and answer the question.”
Before it reaches the floor of the Indiana senate, however, the legislative measure must make it out of the election committee. There would also be a second reading of the bill where dozens of amendments, including some poison pills, are expected to be proposed.
Despite Republican’s large advantage on paper, the redistricting fight in Indiana is far from over.
