Hundreds of protesters gathered outside the Indiana Statehouse Tuesday evening to oppose President Donald Trump’s push to redraw congressional districts in favor of Republicans.
Earlier in the day, several Republican state lawmakers visited the White House amid the debate over redistricting.
Melissa Borja, an Indianapolis resident who runs a group that educates and mobilizes Asian American voters, said she believes pushing back on redistricting is essential to her mission.
“It's putting me in a really difficult position to tell people to vote if the system is not fair,” Borja said. “We deserve better than this unfair nonsense that's happening.”
Seven of Indiana’s nine congressional districts are represented by Republicans. Democrats hold the congressional districts in northwest Indiana and in central Indiana, including Indianapolis.
The current state legislative and congressional districts were passed by the General Assembly in 2021.
To redraw the districts, Gov. Mike Braun would need to call a special session. He said he won’t do that until legislative leaders decide whether to move forward with redistricting. Republicans hold a supermajority in the state and could redraw the maps without Democratic members voting to approve.
Late Tuesday, it was unclear how many members of the Republican legislature headed to the White House. While redistricting wasn’t specifically mentioned in the invitation, Vice President JD Vance met with Braun and other lawmakers earlier this month as part of the administration’s push to redistrict states throughout the nation.
Even some Indiana Republicans who have typically aligned with Trump are skeptical of the redistricting push.
Previously, State Rep. Jim Lucas (R-Seymour) criticized the redistricting effort and said it could be viewed as a “stunt.” On Tuesday, he signaled he was open to it, according to multiple media reports.
That shift came as several Republican officials and lawmakers, including Rep. Andrew Ireland (R-Indianapolis) announced support for a special session.
"I fully support Congressional redistricting in Indiana," he wrote on X Monday. "Democrats haven’t won the support of everyday Hoosier voters for more than a decade, and they have no business representing us in Washington."
On Tuesday, Ireland posted a photo of himself outside the White House on social media.
Attorney General Todd Rokita also said he supported the redistricting effort, and his office would defend the maps passed by the General Assembly if they were challenged in court. “I’m done bringing a knife to a gunfight against aggressive, nonstop left-wing tactics,” he said in a statement. “It’s time to fight on an even playing field and secure fair representation for our state.”
Many protesters and speakers said they believe efforts to redraw Indiana’s districts in Republicans’ favor amount to cheating — and argued lawmakers should instead focus on issues like rising energy costs and a shortage of child care.
Others, like Pastor David Greene of Concerned Clergy of Indianapolis, said the redistricting effort is a Republican attempt to reduce the voting power of Democrats and Black voters.
“This isn't just about redistricting,” Greene said. “It's about erasing the political power of Black communities in Indiana.”
And a new poll suggests most Hoosiers don’t support redistricting this year. The survey, conducted by the left-leaning Change Research company from Aug. 18–21, asked 1,662 registered voters about the issue. Just 34% said they initially supported redrawing Indiana’s congressional maps, while 52% opposed it. Nearly half of those opponents — 43% — said they were “very opposed.”
Indianapolis resident Rita Smith, 66, called the push for redistricting an unprecedented move that threatens her vote.
“I've never seen this much mess going on in government that I can remember,” she said.
“I'm tired,” agreed Linda Robinson, 67, an Indiana resident. “I'm tired of Donald Trump and all of his minions doing whatever they think they want to do.”
If Braun calls a special session to redistrict and update maps this year, the new districts would be in place for the 2026 midterm elections.
This story was updated to include Rep. Jim Lucas' changing stance on redistricting.
Farrah Anderson is an investigative health reporter with WFYI and Side Effects Public Media. You can follow her on X at @farrahsoa or by email at fanderson@wfyi.org.
