President Donald Trump’s redistricting bonanza may have met its match in Indiana.
The Trump administration’s political allies in D.C. believe Republicans could squeeze at least one more GOP seat out of the state. They’re quietly exploring their options, according to multiple sources.
But it’s unclear if anyone in the Hoosier State is on board.
The state’s delegation currently has two Democrats, Rep. André Carson in Indianapolis and Rep. Frank Mrvan in the northwest corner of Indiana, also known as “The Region.” There are seven Republicans.
Mrvan’s district is trending toward the GOP and could easily be redrawn to be even more favorable. Carson’s seat, which includes Indianapolis, would be much more difficult to target.
“We’re one of many states that are looking at that,” Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.) told us.
But Young also urged caution: “You can spread out your Republican vote a little too thin so that every few cycles, seats are going back and forth. And that can sort of cut both ways.”
Why Indiana could be different. Indiana is the latest front in the ongoing redistricting wars. But it will be a heavier lift than in other states because many in the Indiana legislature aren’t fire-breathing partisans eager to blow up their map. Their style is often described as more akin to former Vice President Mike Pence than Trump.
The key players here are GOP Gov. Mike Braun; Indiana House Speaker Todd Huston and state Senate President Pro Tem Rod Bray. The legislature is immensely powerful in Indiana, in part because it can overrule a gubernatorial veto with a simple majority.
Braun would have to call a special session to redistrict.
The big question here is how forcefully Trump and his allies lean on Indiana Republicans to push through another seat. The White House has been aggressive in pressing Texas and Missouri lawmakers to redraw maps, and their pressure campaigns seem to be paying off.
It will ultimately be a battle of wills between Trump’s ardent desire to insulate the fragile House GOP majority and the Midwest niceties of Indiana politics.
The Indiana legislature could easily carve up Mrvan’s district, overwhelming its blue cities like Gary and Hammond with redder counties to the south. Lawmakers chose not to do this in 2021.
Carson’s seat in Indianapolis would be much more challenging. Trump lost this district by 42 points in 2024. Republicans would need to crack it like a pinwheel, creating an ugly map that may be too much for the Indiana legislature to stomach.
But if there’s one truism that comes from the Trump era: Nothing changes Republican minds faster than a call from the president.
