Pryor reacts to JD Vance’s return to Indiana to bully GOP senators

Today, Vice President JD Vance returned to Indiana in an attempt to strong-arm Republican legislators into a special session to gerrymander the congressional maps. 

State Rep. Cherrish Pryor (D-Indianapolis), House Democratic Floor Leader and a member of the House Committee on Elections, issued the following statement:

“It has been almost two months since JD Vance first came here to convince Indiana Republicans to do his bidding and rig the next election to maintain political power. If one thing has become clear over these weeks, it's that Hoosiers don’t want this. The people of Indiana do not want their votes in the next election decided for them before it has even begun. 

“Our maps are already gerrymandered. In the 2024 election, the Democratic nominee for governor got 41% of the vote, but Democrats hold 22% of congressional seats. The two districts that the Washington establishment has decided to target represent the most diverse parts of the state. Any attempt to dismantle the fair representation of these communities is a direct attack on Black voters and other minority groups. 

“Instead of enacting policies that will help working families, Republicans on a state and national level have cut essential services and programs while giving tax breaks and benefits to the wealthiest among us. Hoosier families are struggling with high costs for utilities, housing, healthcare and groceries – all the things this administration campaigned on solving. Not only has the cost-of-living crisis not been solved, but it has also been made significantly worse by the disastrous tariffs. From farmers, to small business owners, to parents wondering how they are going to afford Christmas gifts for their children, people are feeling the devastating economic impact of this bad policy. And Republicans know that they have failed Hoosiers and failed this country. They are running scared from their own policy by trying to cheat and predetermine their own victory in the 2026 midterm instead of facing the voters. Just like a bully, they don’t want to operate by the rules because they know they will lose, so they have decided to change the rules altogether.

“VP Vance needs to go back to DC and work on the issues his administration promised to solve on 'day one.' It is telling that in the middle of a government shutdown, the vice president is in Indiana trying to bully Senate Republicans to assist in his power grab instead of actually trying to solve problems for the American people."