Indiana Gov. Mike Braun calls a special session to redraw the state’s congressional boundaries
Oct 27, 2025, 6:14 AM | Updated: 6:18 am
Indiana Republican Gov. Mike Braun called Monday for state lawmakers to return to Indianapolis for a special session to redraw the state’s congressional boundaries, escalating a national fight over midcycle redistricting.
President Donald Trump has ramped up pressure on Republican governors to draw up new maps in an attempt to give the party an easier path to maintain control of the House in the midterms. While Republicans in Texas and Missouri have moved quickly to enact a new set of districts and California Democrats are seeking to counter with their own redistricting plan, Indiana lawmakers have been far more hesitant to the idea and held weeks of discussion on the topic.
Braun is calling for the General Assembly to convene Nov. 3.
It’s unclear whether enough of the GOP majority Senate will back new maps.
The White House held multiple meetings with Indiana lawmakers who were holding out for months. The legislative leaders kept their cards close as speculation swirled over whether the state known for its more measured approach to Republican politics would answer the redistricting call.
Vance first met with Braun and legislative leaders in Indianapolis in August and Trump met privately with state House Speaker Todd Huston and state Senate President Pro Tem Rodric Bray in the Oval Office weeks later. Vance also spoke to state lawmakers who were visiting Washington that day.
Vance returned to Indianapolis on Oct. 10 to meet with the governor, as well as the Republican state House and Senate members.
But a spokesperson for Bray said on Wednesday that the Indiana Senate lacked the votes to pass a new congressional map, casting doubt on the success of the special session.
Braun is a staunch ally of Trump in a state the president won by 19 percentage points in 2024. But Indiana lawmakers have avoided the national spotlight in recent years — especially after a 2022 special session that yielded a strict abortion ban. Braun had previously said he did not want to call a special session until he was sure lawmakers would be behind a new map.
