The expensive round of Republican in-fighting growing from the Indiana congressional redistricting debate will be decided by voters with Tuesday’s primary.
An estimated $9 million in advertising has been spent by national groups working to carry out President Donald Trump’s vow of political vengeance against Republican state senators who opposed his push to tilt the state’s U.S. House maps more in favor of GOP candidates.
The outcome of those eight state Senate races will have an impact on the Statehouse, but the primary results will also determine the Republican and Democratic nominees for U.S. House and other state legislative seats, many county offices, party precinct officials and state convention delegates.
The early in-person voting deadline is noon local time on Monday, with in-person voting hours of 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. local time Tuesday. State law requires mailed absentee ballots be received at local election offices by 6 p.m. Tuesday to be counted.
Trump’s sway up to voters
Much of the state’s political focus has been on Republican state Senate races where Trump has endorsed challengers to current legislators after the Senate voted down the redistricting bill in December.
A goal of pro-redistricting groups is to defeat enough of the current senators to force Senate President Pro Tem Rodric Bray from the chamber’s top position after Trump blamed him for the redistricting bill’s failure.
Political groups affiliated with U.S. Sen. Jim Banks have paid for many of the television, radio and digital ads attacking the current legislators.
Banks paints those senators as disloyal Republicans who are “anti-Trump.”
“I think we let the country down, but we can make up for it and elect better people so we don’t do it again,” Banks said in a recent radio show interview.
Those attack ads have lambasted those Republican senators as “liberals” who voted against Trump’s agenda.
Sen. Spencer Deery of West Lafayette, one of the targeted candidates, said the negative ads were meant to intimidate legislators into complying with orders from Washington politicians.
“All they have to hit me with are lies, and there’s no organic grassroots movement behind these attacks, because they’re not coming from Indiana and not coming from my district,” Deery said. “They’re coming from back east, from Washington, D.C.”
Republicans currently hold 40 of the 50 state Senate seats. Half of those districts are up for election this year — 22 now-Republican and three now-Democratic seats.
Couple key congressional primaries
Indiana’s two longest-serving U.S. House members face ardent primary opponents in their reelection bids.
Besides the challenges to Democratic Rep. André Carson and Republican Rep. Jim Baird, the state’s other current House members have little-known foes or no competition to advance to November’s general election.
Carson, first elected in 2008 to the 7th Congressional District in Indianapolis, has pushed back on complaints that he’s not been aggressive enough in Washington for the district or in energizing the Democratic Party in its state stronghold of Marion County.
Carson is on the ballot against George Hornedo, a Democratic strategist who got his start as part of President Barack Obama’s administration, and attorney Destiny Wells, who has previously been the statewide nominee of Democrats for attorney general and secretary of state.
Meanwhile, Baird’s bid for a fifth term from the 4th District is being opposed by state Rep. Craig Haggard of Mooresville. Haggard is challenging the 80-year-old Baird’s effectiveness in Congress.
Baird has countered by highlighting an endorsement from Trump and his office’s constituent service work.
Republicans hold seven of Indiana’s nine congressional seats — and whoever wins the 4th District and 7th District primary races will be heavily favored going into the November election as the districts have strong partisan leanings under the state’s unchanged district maps.
Statewide races not on primary ballots
Don’t be surprised by what is not included on primary ballots as no candidates for statewide offices will be listed.
This is the year during which Indiana doesn’t have a U.S. Senate seat up for the midterm election. That leaves secretary of state, treasurer and comptroller as the statewide races for the general election.
The Republican and Democratic nominees for those offices will be decided by delegates to their state party conventions in June.
Primary voters will find those delegate candidates — which are apportioned by county — on their ballots.
Here is a breakdown of key Indiana Senate primary races:
Republican senators who voted against redistricting
District 1: Sen. Dan Dernulc of Highland is challenged by Trevor De Vries
District 6: Sen. Rick Niemeyer of Lowell faces Jay Starkey
District 11: Sen. Linda Rogers of Granger is challenged by anesthesiologist Dr. Brian Schmutzler
District 19: Sen. Travis Holdman of Markle is facing Bluffton City Councilman Blake Fiechter
District 21: Sen. Jim Buck of Kokomo is opposed by Tipton County Commissioner Tracey Powell
District 23: Sen. Spencer Deery of West Lafayette is challenged by Paula Copenhaver, who is an aide to Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith and the Fountain County Republican chair
District 38: Sen. Greg Goode of Terre Haute faces Vigo County Councilwoman Brenda Wilson and first-time candidate Alexandra Wilson
District 41: Sen. Greg Walker of Columbus is challenged by state Rep. Michelle Davis of Whiteland
Other GOP senators with aggressive challengers
District 15: Sen. Liz Brown of Fort Wayne has faced a bitter primary against Darren Vogt, who is a staffer to U.S. Sen. Jim Banks and is also supported by Attorney General Todd Rokita.
District 22: Sen. Ron Alting of Lafayette is challenged by Richard Bagsby, who is running a right-wing campaign with the endorsement of Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith.
District 29 (a swing district now held by Democratic Sen. J.D. Ford of Indianapolis): Republican candidates are two former state senators — Mike Delph and John Ruckelshaus — and Roni Ford, a former school board member and U.S. Sen. Todd Young staffer.
The Democratic race includes pastor David Greene Sr., Pike Township Board member Demetrice Hicks, pharmaceutical lobbyist Kristina Moorhead and social worker Kevin Short.
District 31 (a swing district now held by Republican Sen. Kyle Walker of Indianapolis): Democratic candidates are Marion County Sheriff Kerry Forestal, Fishers real estate agent Catherine Torzewski, former state Senate staffer Andrew Dezelan and Lasima Packett, a retired National Guard member and community advocate.
On the Republican side, the candidates are Hamilton Southeastern School Board member Juanita Albright; Fishers City Councilwoman Tiffanie Ditlevson; Travis Hankins, who previously ran for a southern Indiana congressional seat, and attorney Jan Keefer.
District 39 (a strongly Republican district now held by GOP Sen. Eric Bassler of Washington): Republican candidates are Vincennes attorney Tanner Bouchie, former state Rep. Jeff Ellington of Bloomfield and Owen County Republican Chair Kristi Risk.
Democrat Joseph Baughman of Vincennes is unopposed in the primary.
District 46 (a strongly Democratic district now held by Sen. Andrea Hunley of Indianapolis): Democratic candidates are Allissa Impink, director of statewide community engagement for the Women’s Foundation of Indiana; educator and activist Clif Marsiglio; and cashier Sam Glynn.
No Republicans filed for the primary.
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.
