Indiana decides not to consider redistricting. Graphic by Lily O’Connor. Photo courtesy of CNN and Cardinal Media.

LILY O’CONNOR | NEWS EDITOR | lkoconnor@butler.edu 

Indiana Senate Republicans decided not to meet about the congressional redistricting pushed by President Donald Trump on Nov. 14. As the Republicans hold the majority in the Indiana Senate, this decision was unexpected and makes Indiana one of the few Republican-led states to vote against Trump’s request.

Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray explained that the Indiana Senate will not meet in December to redraw the maps as previously planned and encouraged by the Trump administration and Governor Mike Braun. This will be the first time in decades that state legislators have not met for a special session at the governor’s request.

Despite Trump’s continuous pressure to reconsider, Indiana lawmakers have stood by their decision.

Political science professor Ryan Daugherty believes that the Senate’s decision had to do with the recent “blue wave” of Democratic politicians winning elections in places like Virginia, New Jersey, New York City and Georgia.

Daugherty explained that Democrats and independent voters are upset with the current administration and are increasingly showing up to elections. Redrawing the districts could end up backfiring on the Republicans. 

“They call it a ‘dummymander,’ where you water down your voters so much that it can’t sustain a wave election,” Daugherty said. “Right now, with [seven Republican districts and two Democratic districts], the fear would be, ‘If we carved up Indianapolis and we carved up the region near Chicago, we can do that, but then what ends up happening? Instead of being seven to two, we turn it into a five to four, Democratic majority.’”

Redistricting in between census cycles is uncommon and often done only with ulterior motives, according to Daugherty. 

“The push for redistricting is very obviously a partisan push,” Daugherty said. “Anytime that you’re trying to redistrict out a cycle means that you’re like, I don’t want to say you’re up to no good, but it’s very blatant what’s going on … It is very clear that Republicans are concerned they are going to lose the [Indiana House of Representatives] next year. They want to do everything they can, coming from the Trump administration, to try and maintain their hold on the House.”

The Trump administration has called for many Republican majority states, such as Texas, to redistrict to favor Republican candidates, which has caused some Democratic majority states, like California, to retaliate with their own initiatives.

Brendan Byce, a senior finance major and president of the Butler University College Republicans, believes that several states redistricting in the middle of a census cycle sets a bad precedent for the future. 

“If it keeps going the way it’s going, it’s going to be every year that every state is going to want to redistrict maps,” Byce said. “I don’t think that that’s a good path to go down.” 

Daugherty shares this sentiment. He thinks that people — including Republicans — in Indiana were against the redistricting because of a sense of upholding democracy. Indiana redistricting was unpopular among 89% of Democratic voters, 59% of independent voters and 25% of Republican voters. 

“When you’re thinking of politics as a game, there are the rules and everyone abides by these rules,” Daugherty said. “You’re now trying to say, ‘Well, I don’t like the direction it’s going, so now I’m going to change your rules.’ That doesn’t account for people’s sense of fairness.” 

Dylan Noble, a senior political science major and the president of the Butler University College Democrats, agrees that many people might think that redistricting outside of the census is too far. 

The maps were redrawn at the last census four years ago. According to Noble, many current Indiana senators who oppose the redistricting were involved in previous redistricting.

“They just drew these maps four years ago,” Noble said. “Many of the senators who were against it were the same senators who drew the current maps four years ago, and were perfectly happy with what they did. I think Indiana Republicans in particular tend to be a bit more tradition-oriented than national Republicans. I think there’s also kind of a sense of, ‘No, we don’t do it like that. Like, this is genuinely cheating.’”