Indiana Gov. Braun Keeps Wait-and-See Stance on Redistricting
Indiana Gov. Mike Braun Keeps Wait-and-See Stance on Redistricting as GOP Lawmakers Deliberate
STATEWIDE–Gov. Mike Braun on Friday again declined to say where he stands on redistricting congressional maps, maintaining that he wants to hear first from Republican leaders in the Indiana General Assembly.
“I’ve been very clear on that issue. That hasn’t changed,” Braun told reporters during a visit to the Indiana State Police post in Indianapolis. “You’re going to hear individual representatives and senators speak up, and the two leaders of each caucus, I think, are going to … put a lot of thought into what their own members are wanting to do, and that process will take a while to play out.”
Braun emphasized that he is deferring to House Speaker Todd Huston and Senate President Pro Tem Rodric Bray. Neither of the Republican legislative leaders have made their positions clear either, though some of their caucus members have.
One longtime Senate Republican came out Friday against redistricting as the likelihood for a special session seems to be gaining momentum.
“Our maps are only four years old. They have undergone considerable public scrutiny and review,” said Sen. Greg Walker, R-Columbus. “There is no justification for holding a special session to change our districts in mid-census. If Texas and California want to take the cynical step of redistricting their seats, so be it. But Hoosier lawmakers should be leaders in resisting this hypocrisy, not followers of this effort promoted by outsiders, not Hoosiers.”
Braun urges ‘listening’
Indiana’s next, regularly scheduled legislative session will begin in early January. There is a one-day ceremonial Organization Day also in November.
“Once I get a clear message from (Bray and Huston), I’ll decide whether we’re going to call a session — or if there are other reasons why you’d need a session prior to what we’re going to be doing in January,” Braun added.
The governor’s indecisiveness comes as Indiana Republicans face increasing pressure from Washington, D.C., to revisit the state’s congressional districts, last drawn in 2021.
Club for Growth — a leading national conservative group — has put together an ad saying, “Hoosier Republicans must fight back. Trump needs state lawmakers to pass new maps to level the playing field.”
A group of Republican state lawmakers traveled to the White House earlier this week where talks centered, in part, on redistricting. Bray and Huston additionally had a private discussion with President Donald Trump.
“They are polling their own members in each caucus,” Braun said. “They’re in the process, they’re getting their own members engaged, and you’ll see more — because there’ll be more.”
The governor noted, however, that he has yet to speak with Bray, Huston or other state lawmakers about redistricting.
“I want everybody to weigh in, to speak out individually, and then the two leaders will have to collate all that and see where we go,” Braun continued. “And if somebody wants to speak to me directly, just like on any subject, I’m more accessible than probably any governor has been, and they want to talk to me about it, fine, I’m not reaching out to them because they’re members of those two caucuses.
Where Indiana lawmakers stand
While many Indiana Republicans have kept mum about their stances on redistricting, some have shifted their tone since returning from their trip to the nation’s capital.
Walker — who is not seeking re-election — urged Braun and colleagues to resist any push for redistricting.
He defended the current boundaries, writing that “the current maps increased the number of counties contained within one district and reduced the number of townships split among districts.”
He noted that 84 of Indiana’s 92 counties remain whole under the plan and that population totals in each district are “nearly equal, give or take a handful of people, at just over 753,000 people.”
Republicans currently hold a 7-2 advantage in Indiana’s congressional delegation. The maps, approved by the GOP-controlled legislature and signed into law by then-Gov. Eric Holcomb, have not been challenged in court.
“To those who want to redraw the districts it’s worth noting that they are very good maps, free from lawsuits,” Walker said. “Our legislature should keep our focus on solving problems facing Hoosiers, not responding to the political priorities of other states or D.C. interests.”
“Our maps are fair,” he added. “They are balanced. And in Indiana, voters have the power.”
Indiana Gov. Mike Braun Keeps Wait-and-See Stance on Redistricting as GOP Lawmakers Deliberate was originally published on wibc.com
