IBLC decries GOP attempts to rig Indiana elections

Today, Aug. 7, Gov. Mike Braun met with Vice President JD Vance regarding the possibility of a special session to redistrict Indiana's congressional maps. This meeting comes after President Donald Trump called for Republican-led states to redistrict to increase the number of GOP seats in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Indiana House Democrats were joined by Indiana Senate Democrats and U.S. Representatives André Carson and Frank J. Mrvan for a press conference this afternoon condemning any possibility of redistricting.

State Rep. Earl Harris Jr. (D-East Chicago), chair of the Indiana Black Legislative Caucus (IBLC), issued the following statement regarding the possibility of new maps:

"The only two Democrats from Indiana serving in the federal government – Congressmen Frank J. Mrvan and André Carson – represent areas with some of the largest minority populations in the state. This GOP rush to redistrict congressional maps is not just a pathetic attempt to strip voters of their right to a free and fair election; it's a direct attack on Black and minority voters in Indiana.

"The Voting Rights Act of 1965 has been drastically stripped down over the last decade, making minority voters even more susceptible to be stifled by unfair and unjust changes to the election systems. I have little confidence in our governor and our Republican supermajority's will to consider the voices and circumstances of minority and disenfranchised Hoosiers in their rush to appease Donald Trump.

"I should also point out that a special session would cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars. This session, Indiana Republicans have created drastic cuts to SNAP, Medicaid and passed Senate Enrolled Act 1, which will raise local income taxes for many Hoosiers. In 2022, when we were called back for a special session to address abortion access, the two-week session cost taxpayers $240,000. Making taxpayers foot the bill for this is egregious by itself, but doing so in the wake of these benefit cuts and local tax hike is, frankly, a slap in the face to Hoosiers."