Trump-backed challengers score major victories after Republican senators defied White House push to redraw congressional maps
President Donald Trump and his allies scored a major political victory in Indiana on Tuesday after at least five Republican state senators who opposed his redistricting push were defeated in primary elections, underscoring the president’s continued grip on the GOP base.
One race remains too close to call as vote counting continues.
The races became a high-profile test of Trump’s influence following a bitter internal fight that erupted late last year when Indiana Senate Republicans rejected a Trump-backed effort to redraw the state’s congressional districts ahead of the 2026 midterms.
Trump had publicly called for Republican lawmakers who opposed the proposal to be “primaried,” and his political network quickly moved to back challengers against the dissenting senators.
By the end of Tuesday night, many of those incumbents were gone.
Redistricting battle sparked rare GOP civil war
The controversy centered on a proposed mid-decade congressional redraw designed to strengthen Republican control in Indiana’s congressional delegation.
The plan would have attempted to shift Indiana from a 7-2 Republican congressional advantage to a possible 9-0 GOP map by making Democratic-held districts more competitive for Republicans.
But despite Republicans holding a dominant majority in the Indiana Senate, the proposal failed in December after 21 Republican senators joined Democrats to reject it in a 31-19 vote.
The defeat marked one of the most notable Republican rebukes of Trump’s national redistricting strategy.
Millions poured into primary fights
Following the vote, Trump-aligned groups and Republican operatives poured millions of dollars into the Indiana primaries, transforming traditionally low-profile state legislative races into nationally watched contests.
Outside groups linked to Trump allies and Indiana Sen. Jim Banks spent more than $8.3 million targeting Republicans who opposed the redistricting effort.
The campaign drew involvement from several high-profile Trump advisers and political operatives, including longtime strategist Tony Fabrizio and White House political officials.
Among the defeated incumbents were longtime Republican lawmakers Travis Holdman, Jim Buck, Greg Walker, Linda Rogers, and Dan Dernulc.
At least one targeted incumbent survived.
Results could ripple beyond Indiana
The outcome is expected to reverberate beyond Indiana as Republican lawmakers in other states weigh whether to support Trump-backed redistricting efforts ahead of the midterms.
Political observers say the Indiana primaries demonstrated the risks Republican officeholders may face if they openly break with Trump on major political priorities.
The races also highlighted how state-level contests are increasingly becoming nationalized, with outside money, presidential endorsements, and ideological loyalty tests reshaping local Republican politics.
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