After about three hours of public testimony against mid-census redistricting, the House Elections and Apportionment Committee approved a bill allowing for redistricting to move forward for consideration by the House in an 8-5 vote.
The lone Republican ‘no’ vote came from State Rep. Tim Yocum, R-Clinton, who voted with the four Democratic committee members against mid-census redistricting. Democrats proposed five amendments to the bill, including one that would require a study committee on when to hold redistricting, but they all failed 4-9.
Throughout the committee hearing, no Republican committee member — besides bill author State Rep. Ben Smaltz — addressed the bill.
The House convened its session shortly after the hearing, voting 63-24 to accept the committee report on House Bill 1032. After the session, State Rep. Earl Harris, D-East Chicago, said the House is scheduled to hear House Bill 1032 on second reading Thursday and third, and final, reading Friday.
Ahead of the committee vote, Committee Chairman Timothy Wesco, R-Osceola, said he supports mid-census redistricting because of actions former President Barack Obama and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, both Democrats, to encourage partisan drawing of Congressional maps. Obama filmed an advertisement supporting California’s redistricting ballot measure, which was created after Texas redrew its maps, and Pritzker has been supportive of redrawing maps in Illinois if Indiana’s redistricting efforts are successful.
House Bill 1032, authored by Smaltz, R-Auburn, would allow the legislature to amend congressional districts “at a time other than the first regular session of the general assembly convening immediately following the United States decennial census.”
The bill also establishes new Indiana Congressional district boundaries, and states that any challenges to the new maps will be heard by the state’s Supreme Court. Most redistricting efforts have been followed by federal legal challenges.
The bill states that the current Congressional Districts won’t expire before Nov. 3, 2026.
Under the bill, the Secretary of State’s Election Division will assist counties with implementation of the new maps.
In the committee meeting, Smaltz said Indiana is taking up mid-census redistricting because of actions across the country, including Texas, California, Virginia and Missouri. The constitution allows for Congressional Districts to be drawn with political consideration in mind, he said.
“We have drawn these maps to create a Republican political advantage,” Smaltz said.
President Donald Trump and his administration has asked Republican-led states to undertake mid-census redistricting to maintain the Republican majority in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Redistricting typically occurs every 10 years after the release of census data. The Indiana constitution dictates that the legislature should take up redistricting every 10 years after census data is released.
In response to Trump’s request, Texas conducted mid-census redistricting to give Republicans five more seats, to which California responded with voter-approved mid-census redistricting to create five more seats.
In August, Vice President JD Vance met with Indiana Republicans to discuss redistricting in Indiana. Ultimately, after more meetings and discussions with federal officials, Gov. Mike Braun called for a special session to address redistricting.
Ahead of Organization Day, Nov. 18, Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray, R-Martinsville, announced the Senate does not have the votes to pass new maps and canceled the Senate’s December session.
Officials with the Indiana House have maintained that they have the votes to pass new maps, and at the end of Organization Day House Speaker Todd Huston, R-Fishers, told his chamber to be prepared to come in December to address redistricting.
On Nov. 25, the special session became official as Huston announced the House would convene on Dec. 1 and Bray said the Senate would follow on Dec. 8.
A few hours before gaveling in Monday, the House released its proposed map that splits the current First District, held by U.S. Rep. Frank Mrvan, D-Highland, into two, which effectively puts the northern half of Porter County into the Second District. The new First District stretches from Lake County toward central Indiana.
The Seventh District, currently held by U.S. Rep. André Carson, D-Indianapolis, was divided into four sections, with the majority of Marion County split into the districts held by U.S. Rep. Jefferson Shreve, R-Indianapolis and U.S. Rep. Erin Houchin, R-Salem.
The new map was drawn by a group that works with the Republican NationalmCommittee, Smaltz said.
Under the new map, the state’s First, Second, Third, Seventh and Nineth Districts will have 753,948 Hoosiers and the state’s Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Districts will have 753,947 Hoosiers, Smaltz said.
The new map divides seven counties, while the current map divides eight counties, and the new map divides nine townships, while the current map divides 13 townships. Smaltz said.
Committee member State Rep. Matt Pierce, D-Bloomington, said the “whole point of this exercise” is to give Indiana Republicans all nine of the state’s congressional seats in the U.S. House of Representatives as opposed to the current makeup of seven Republicans and two Democrats.
Hoosiers have been discussing mid-census redistricting since August, Pierce said, and as of last week, it appeared that the issue wouldn’t be brought up. Pierce alluded to the change stemming from President Donald Trump threatening to support primary opponents of incumbent Republicans who oppose mid-census redistricting.
The new maps “don’t guarantee” a 9-0 Republican Congressional makeup for Indiana in the U.S. House of Representatives, but rather “an advantage,” Smaltz said. When it comes to political pressure, Smaltz said he hasn’t felt any pressure to pass new maps.
“I have had plenty of time, adequate time to consider,” Smaltz said. “I was not force, coerced, or otherwise arm twisted into doing this. I felt like the administration was very professional in allowing me to get there on my own.”
On Monday, Smaltz said he and his family were threatened for his support of mid-census redistricting. But, Smaltz said that political pressure “is part of politics.”
“It’s part of the process,” Smaltz said.
Committee member State Rep. Cherrish Pryor, D-Indianapolis, said threatening violence is not a normal part of the political process.
Pryor asked Smaltz what consideration was given to the racial makeup of each district. Smaltz said political advantage was considered when creating the districts.
Committee member State Rep. Carolyn Jackson, D-Hammond, asked Smaltz what has changed since 2021, when Indiana last conducted redistricting, to warrant new maps. Smaltz said it was the “movement across the country is becoming the new norm of redrawing maps.”
More than 60 people testified, only two in favor of mid-census redistricting, for more than three hours in committee Tuesday. Those who opposed the measure criticized the state’s Republican leadership for proposing a redistricting bill to appease Trump and urged them to vote no.
Former Lt. Gov. Sue Ellspermann addressed the committee, stating that Hoosiers “aren’t asking for” redistricting.
“We have fair maps, ones which have performed — some might say overperformed — for the Republican majority. The plea to redraw Indiana’s maps is coming out of Washington, D.C.,” Ellspermann said. “Some may argue that they have the right to ask and, in that case, we certainly have the right to answer no.”
Megan Robertson, the interim director of Indiana Conservation Voters, said she grew up in Porter County, or the First Congressional District, and lives in Indianapolis, or the Seventh Congressional District. She was shocked to see that the First District will be split into two while the Seventh District will be split into four.
The new map comes from a group in Washington, D.C., that doesn’t know Indiana, Robertson said. It’s upsetting that the committee is voting on the map the day after it was made public, she said, and that the legislature is poised to approve the maps in two weeks.
“We’ve got lots of issues we could be addressing. We’re here today because Washington, D.C. thinks they know better than we do. They think they know better than Hoosiers, and they think they know better than you all did when you voted to pass these bills in 2021,” Robertson said.
Before the vote, Pryor said she was disappointed that the maps were drawn in a way to dilute the votes of minority voters.
Ahead of the vote, Pierce said he was saddened by the action his Republican colleagues would take at the request of a sitting U.S. President.
“What’s happening here is not normal,” Pierce said.
