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From the White House to the Statehouse—with an airport layover—mid-cycle redistricting took center stage Tuesday as dozens of GOP legislators talked with Trump officials about a variety of topics, including the controversial map do-over. Meanwhile, Democrat lawmakers called out their colleagues and Hoosiers gathered to protest the maneuver.
One staunch opponent, Rep. Jim Lucas, said his stance softened after hearing from Vice President JD Vance. Previously a “hard no,” Lucas said he isn’t yet a yes but he is worried about the paralyzing effect a Democratic House majority would have on President Donald Trump’s agenda.
“I’m open minded to it,” Lucas summarized. “… we’ve seen what happens when the Democrats have the House. President Trump spent his first four years fighting off attack after attack after attack.”
In particular, he pointed to the potential of nuclear facilities proposed under Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, saying that his constituents were battling increased utility costs.
“If the Trump administration is bogged down fighting Democrat attacks for the next two years after the midterms, then all Hoosiers lose out,” Lucas said.
Much of the conversation with White House officials on Tuesday confirmed that Indiana “is on the right track,” he added, stressing that redistricting wasn’t the only topic.
“The biggest takeaway is how genuinely nice and down to earth everybody in that administration is,” said Lucas, a Republican from Seymour. “There was absolutely zero pressure applied on us. No threats, nothing like that.”
He emphasized that much of the discussion centered on how Indiana leads in comparison to other states, including its ban on using food benefits to purchase soda and candy. He pointed to concerns about the state fiscal impacts of chronic health conditions like obesity and diabetes, especially for the Hoosiers enrolled on Medicaid.
“We’re already doing a lot of those things,” said Lucas about agenda items like school vouchers and immigration. “… It was really nice. A lot of that meeting, they basically praised Indiana for the great job we’re doing.”
House Speaker Todd Huston and Sen. Pro Tem Rodric Bray reportedly had a private meeting with Trump, according to Politico reporters, who said “more than” 55 lawmakers attended. Huston’s daughter, Liz, is an assistant to Trump’s press secretary.
Another Indiana Liz—Sen. Liz Brown of Fort Wayne—had some choice words on redistricting following the meeting, citing curses from prominent national Democrats about redistricting.
“The rhetoric coming out of Democrats’ mouths right now as they call for liberal states to gerrymander in Democrats’ favor is violent and disgusting,” said Brown on Facebook.
“I attended because Hoosiers know our conservative values could be at stake if states like California are allowed to have a louder liberal voice in Congress. I support President Trump in his efforts and I look forward to returning to Indiana and discussing next-steps to ensure our conservative values are fairly represented in D.C.,” she concluded.
At least three lawmakers, including Lucas, said they didn’t use taxpayer dollars to fund the trip. All lawmakers are allowed to claim one trip annually, though communications staff with the Republican caucuses said they didn’t know who might file for that reimbursement.
From the airport
Earlier Tuesday morning, as Republicans potentially caught flights to the nation’s capital, Democrats urged their counterparts to resist Trump’s redistricting push at a “Sayonara, Sellouts” press conference held at the Indianapolis International Airport.
Sen. Andrea Hunley, D-Indianapolis, shared that lawmakers would receive roughly $213 per day for a special session, a higher rate than their typical non-session pay. Across all 150 legislators, that would be a nearly $32,000 daily expense for food and housing. That doesn’t include mileage.
Hunley called on her Republican colleagues to forgo not only their travel stipend for the Washington, D.C., trip, but also their allowances during a special session.
“It’s time to put your money where your mouth is, not just the taxpayers’ dime,” Hunley said. “At a time when our state budget is already crunched, it is so irresponsible to ask our taxpayers to foot the bill.”
Additionally, outside legal counsel might be needed if the maps are challenged in court. Attorney General Todd Rokita vowed to defend any new maps in a Tuesday release.
The gathered Democrats seemed confident that a lawsuit would be necessary if proposed maps divvy up Marion County’s 7th Congressional District. It’s the state’s most racially and ethnically diverse district, with less than half of residents identifying as white.
“I don’t see that Republicans will be able to get nine Republican districts without carving up the minority votes in the minority districts,” said Rep. Cherrish Pryor, D-Indianapolis.
Pryor asserted that District 7 was already drawn in a way to advantage Republicans, who shaped the district to include the upper two-thirds of Marion County, rather than the bottom two-thirds, in 2021. She said that was done to shore up Republican support in the 5th District north of Indianapolis, which was turning purple prior to the change.
Democrats openly wondered if Hoosier Republicans felt financial pressure, noting that Indiana is the third-most reliant state on federal funding. They also referenced newly released polling indicating that most Hoosiers oppose mid-decade redistricting.
But Pryor didn’t think it would be enough.
“I think we will go into a special session; I think that Republicans will fall in line; and I think that we will have to have a lawsuit,” Pryor said. “… (but) I hope that they have backbone, and I hope that they can come up with the courage to say no to Donald Trump.”
At the Statehouse
Hundreds of irate Hoosiers rallied behind the Indiana Statehouse on Tuesday evening, booing Indiana’s Republican U.S. representatives—all seven professed their support last Monday—and cheering for the smattering of GOP state lawmakers who’ve come out in opposition.
“We want to thank the elected officials who are actually standing up to incredible pressure from D.C. to change these maps mid-decade,” Indiana Conservation Voters Executive Director Megan Robertson said, to cheers from the crowd.
“We’ve had about 10, 11 Republicans come out publicly, too, saying they don’t want it, so we need to thank them—and keep that backbone! Be strong!” She continued. “They’re doing what’s right, and we need them to know that we’ve got their backs.”
Speakers repeatedly denounced the effort as “cheating.”
The president and his supporters “know that they can’t run on merit because their ideas are terrible,” MADVoters Indiana Executive Director Amy Courtney said. “… If you can’t win on merit, what do you do? Well, if you’re Donald Trump or his sycophant, (Gov.) Mike Braun, or any of the MAGA Republicans, apparently, the answer is, you cheat!”
Courtney called on attendees to “resist,” adding, “Don’t give them the privilege of your apathy. Don’t tune out. Take action today to use your voice and demand fair elections, because there can be no cheaters in a democracy.”
The Rev. David Greene, president of the Concerned Clergy of Greater Indianapolis, noted the effort may target Indiana’s only Black member of Congress—Democratic Rep. André Carson—and the votes of those he represents.
“We must call it what it is: modern day voter suppression,” Greene said. “It’s being done with software instead of segregation. It’s being done with district lines instead of a poll tax. … Sixty years ago, the Voting Rights Act was signed because people marched; they bled and died for the right to be counted. Now, in 2025, some want to reverse that progress.”
He, like other speakers and attendees, blamed out-of-state influences.
“Gov. Braun, let me speak clearly and directly to you,” Greene said. “This is not Texas. This is not Florida. This is Indiana. We don’t need Washington insiders telling us how to draw our lines or silence our neighbors.”
The Indiana Capital Chronicle is an independent, nonprofit news organization that covers state government, policy and elections.
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