Five President Donald Trump-endorsed Statehouse candidates have ousted state lawmakers who voted against redistricting, but at least one incumbent is holding onto their seat, according to multiple outlets.
As of 9:45 p.m., NBC News and Decision Desk HQ or the Associated Press have called six races in favor of Trump-endorsed candidates:
In Senate District 39, an open seat previously held by Sen. Eric Bassler, R-Washington, the Trump-endorsed Jeff Ellington is declared the winner with 46% of the vote compared to Republican Kristi Risk's 31% and Tanner Bouchie's 23%.
In Senate District 1, Trevor De Vries has been declared the winner in a 50-point landslide over incumbent Sen. Dan Dernulc, R-Highland, according to Decision Desk HQ data.
In Senate District 11, Brian Schmutzler is declared the winner over incumbent Sen. Linda Rogers, R-Granger, by more than 18 percentage points, according to Decision Desk HQ data.
In Senate District 41, state Rep. Michelle Davis, R-Whiteland, bested incumbent Sen. Greg Walker by 16 percentage points with nearly all the votes counted, according to Decision Desk HQ data.
In Senate District 19, Blake Fiechter defeated incumbent Sen. Travis Holdman by more than 22 percentage points, with 88% of precincts reporting, according to Decision Desk HQ data.
Senate District 21, the two outlets have declared Tipton County Commissioner Tracey Powell the winner over Sen. Jim Buck, R-Kokomo, by a margin of nearly 30 percentage points with almost all the votes counted, according to Decision Desk HQ data.
Meanwhile, the two outlets named Sen. Greg Goode, R-Terre Haute, who voted against redistricting, the winner of his three-way primary in Senate District 38. With 86% of precincts reporting, he has 54% of the vote, to Trump-endorsed Brenda Wilson's 36% and Alexandra Wilson's 10%.
One district is being declared by NBC News as too close to call: Senate District 23, where Sen. Spencer Deery, R-West Lafayette, is just over 1 percentage point ahead of Trump-endorsed Copenhaver with nearly all precincts reporting.
Trump also endorsed the handful of senators running for reelection who did support redistricting, bringing his total number of endorsements in Indiana Statehouse races to 19.
At the time of the redistricting vote, Indiana was the only red state to vote to deny Trump's push to redraw the congressional maps to give the GOP an advantage in the midterms. A majority of Senate Republicans joined Democrats to vote Indiana's map down in December; seven of those no-voting senators were on the ballot this primary election.
Incumbency is a tough hill for any challenger to climb, particularly in a low-turnout primary. Many of these incumbents are not used to having challengers at all. That's why the political talk of the town was to what degree a Trump endorsement would help these challengers mount an upset.
But it wasn't merely a Trump endorsement assisting the challengers. Outside groups like Hoosier Leadership for America, Club For Growth and other political action committees have flooded the Indiana airwaves, social media and mailboxes with millions in advertising spending to urge Hoosiers to reject the "RINO" incumbent and choose the challenger who has Trump's backing.
Several of the leading spenders on ads were PACs affiliated with U.S. Sen. Jim Banks, who boasted these victories in a statement Tuesday night.
"Everyone in Indiana politics should have learned an important lesson today: President Trump is the single most popular Republican among Hoosier voters," he said. "Indiana is a conservative state, and we deserve conservatives in our State Senate who have a pulse on Republican voters."
At a Wells County election night watch party, Holdman, a senator for nearly two decades, said he was somewhat surprised by the result.“I have one message for people: Revenge and retribution is not a Christian value,” Holdman said. “That’s what this was all about. I’m not bitter about it. It’s just a fact.”Fiechter described the win as “surreal.”“I hadn’t let myself think about winning or losing,” he said.
He said he thought the influence of Trump was “obviously instrumental” in him winning but said he doesn’t think outside influence will continue from Washington.“I’m going to stick with my own gut and my own instincts,” he said.It was a fast and stunning defeat for an Indiana legislative stalwart, who’s been a fixture in the Statehouse for nearly two decades.Less than three hours after polls closed, Holdman and his family walked out the door onto Johnson Street into the grey rain.
This article will update as election results become available.
