A false police emergency call to a state senator’s home following a presidential taunt. National political groups pouring in big money to defeat that senator — and accusations of dirty tricks involving a candidate with the same last name as President Donald Trump’s endorsed pick.
That’s just some of the drama surrounding the May 5 Republican primary where Sen. Greg Goode of Terre Haute is trying to prevail despite defying Trump last year over congressional redistricting.
Advertisements costing six figures or more touting Trump’s endorsement of Vigo County Councilwoman Brenda Wilson have flooded TV and computer screens and mailboxes for weeks.
First-time candidate Alexandra Wilson, meanwhile, has faced an ongoing legal fight to remain on the primary ballot while maintaining that her campaign stemmed from opposition to a contentious Terre Haute school construction project and not a plot to help Goode win.
The Republican nominee will advance to November’s general election against Democrat Kacey Blundell, who is unopposed in the primary. The winner will get a four-year term representing Senate District 38 that includes all of Clay and Vigo counties and part of Sullivan County in western Indiana.
Lawmakers receive a base salary of $33,000 but with per diem and leadership pay can make upwards of $80,000 annually.
Goode facing “barrage of wrath”
Goode, who is Republican U.S. Sen. Todd Young’s state director, has spent more than $500,000 in his first legislative primary race since winning a 2023 Republican caucus to fill the Senate seat after then-Sen. Jon Ford’s resignation.
He joined other senators in voting down the Trump-backed redistricting plan a month after he hosted a November town hall during which 71 people spoke against redrawing the congressional maps and none spoke in favor.
A couple weeks after that town hall, Trump blasted Goode and Senate President Pro Tem Rodric Bray in a social media post as RINOs — for Republican in name only — who “could be depriving Republicans of a Majority in the House.”
Hours later, police officers surrounded Goode’s home on a false report of domestic violence happening, the first of several similar “swatting” threats against Republican legislators during the redistricting debate.
Goode didn’t take a public position on redistricting until the afternoon of the Senate’s vote defeating the proposal. He disagreed with the proposed map’s splitting of the Terre Haute area between two congressional districts, saying “I am confident that my vote reflects the will of my constituents.”
Goode said he anticipated what he called a “barrage of wrath from outside the state of Indiana” that he’s faced in attack ads against him and stands by his redistricting vote.
“I feel very much at peace and with confidence that I made the right vote reflecting my district, based on what I heard from the residents of District 38,” Goode told the Indiana Capital Chronicle this week.
Brenda Wilson riding on Trump backing
Brenda Wilson is among seven primary candidates endorsed by Trump and Gov. Mike Braun who are looking to knock off current Republican senators who opposed the redistricting bill.
Almost all of the vast spending to promote her candidacy has come from pro-redistricting political groups, including a dark-money group aligned with Republican U.S. Sen. Jim Banks.
Brenda Wilson’s campaign reported raising less than $20,000 through April 10 and spending about $7,000, according to state campaign report filings. Goode countered by raising nearly $520,000, more than half of it from the state Senate Republican campaign organization and fellow senators.
Brenda Wilson did not respond to several messages from the Capital Chronicle seeking an interview about her campaign.
A recent Wilson campaign social media post said “Redistricting is not the sole focus of my campaign” before going on to criticize Goode’s redistricting opposition as “conveniently contrived” because “the group you’re listening to is comprised of people of the opposite party.”
“I understand the importance of what it means to be America First, not my friends first,” the post said. “Help me fight for true conservative values and be the America First voice in the Indiana Senate!”
Goode said he was highlighting his work on topics such as blocking the possible diversion of water from the Wabash River and concerns about proposed tolls for Interstate 70.
“I’ve just been really focused on the issues that are important to the district and the outreach to those voters in the district, and trying to block out all of the noise that has been coming in from outside of my district, and frankly, outside of the state of Indiana,” Goode said.
Ballot fight frustrates Alexandra WilsonDays after Alexandra Wilson filed her candidacy, she received a flurry of phone calls and text messages from top White House staffers and others suggesting she would be in line for political appointments if she dropped out of the Republican primary.
She refused those offers and since then she’s been fending off an attempt to kick her off the ballot because of a 2010 criminal case (which has since been expunged) and fighting allegations that she’s part of a nefarious plot to confuse voters intending to support Brenda Wilson.
Both of those matters have been pushed by prominent conservative attorney Jim Bopp, who is a top Braun political ally and is supporting Brenda Wilson.
Alexandra Wilson’s name remains on the primary ballot but she says the legal turmoil prevented her from building campaign support and stymied her ability to talk about issues such as the Terre Haute school construction plans and a controversial carbon sequestration project in the area.
“I’m in it to be there for those people and listen and do whatever I can do to alleviate any situations that affect their livelihood or cost of living in general,” Alexandra Wilson said.
Her state finance report showed she provided all of the less than $500 spent on her campaign through April 10.
Goode, for his part, said he had no role in Alexandra Wilson joining the race.
“From my perspective, I don’t care who else is on the ballot,” he said. “I just feel very confident that I’ve been voting my district. I’ve been working hard in my district.”
Indiana Capital Chronicle is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Indiana Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Niki Kelly for questions: info@indianacapitalchronicle.com.
