Indiana Republicans Asked to Redistrict Face Growing Threats

Spencer Deery's son was getting ready for school when someone tried to provoke police into swarming his home by reporting a fake emergency. Linda Rogers said there were threats at her home and the golf course that her family has run for generations. Jean Leising faced a pipe bomb scare that was emailed to local law enforcement. The three are among roughly a dozen Republicans in the Indiana Senate who have seen their lives turned upside down while President Trump pushes to redraw the state's congressional map to expand the party's power in the 2026 midterm elections, the AP reports.

It's a bewildering and frightening experience for lawmakers who consider themselves loyal party members and never imagined they would be doing their jobs under the shadow of political violence. Redistricting is normally done once a decade after a new national census. Trump wants to accelerate the process in hopes of protecting the Republicans' thin majority in the US House in elections next year. His allies in Texas, Missouri, Ohio, and North Carolina have already gone along with his plans for new political lines. But resistance surfaced in Indiana, where the GOP controls the Senate. Although Gov. Mike Braun and the House of Representatives are on board, the proposal may fall short with senators who value their civic traditions and independence over what they fear would be short-term partisan gain.

"When you have the president of the United States and your governor sending signals, you want to listen to them," said Rogers, who has not declared her position on the redistricting push. "But it doesn't mean you'll compromise your values." On Friday, Trump posted a list of senators who "need encouragement to make the right decision," and he took to social media Saturday to say that if legislators "stupidly say no, vote them out of Office," adding that he will help. Senators are scheduled to convene Monday to consider the proposal after months of turmoil. Last month, Republican Senate leaders had said they would not hold a vote on the matter because there was not enough support for it. Trump lashed out at them on social media, calling the senators weak and pathetic.

Republican leaders in the Indiana Senate said in mid-November that they would not hold a vote on the matter because there was not enough support. The threats against senators began shortly after that. Not even the plan's supporters are immune to them. Republican Sen. Andy Zay said his vehicle-leasing business was targeted with a pipe bomb scare on the same day he learned that he would face a primary challenger who accuses Zay of being insufficiently conservative. Zay, who has spent a decade in the Senate, believes the threat was related to his criticism of Trump's effort to pressure lawmakers. "When you push us around and into a corner, we're not going to change because you hound us and threaten us," Zay said.