Trump taunts Indiana 'RINOs' on primary day
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- Donald Trump endorsed challengers in Indiana's GOP primary against lawmakers who opposed his redistricting push, writing on Truth Social that 'There are eight Great Patriots running against long seated RINOS — Let's see how those RINOS do tonight!'
- Pro-redistricting groups spent millions of dollars ahead of the primary in a bid to defeat the Republicans who rejected a GOP-led effort to redraw Indiana's congressional lines in December.
- The Trump-backed redistricting map passed the Indiana House but was defeated in the state Senate, with 21 Republicans joining 10 Democrats in voting against it.
- Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray, whom Trump called 'a total loser,' told CNN he does not regret his decision, saying 'Indiana's going to do things the way Indiana needs to do them.'
- The Indiana primary is viewed by experts as a test of Trump's endorsement power and voters' appetite for redistricting, coming on the heels of a Supreme Court decision that weakened the Voting Rights Act.
- Indiana Republicans currently hold a 7-2 advantage in the state's House delegation; the Trump-backed map sought to redraw all nine districts to wholly favor GOP candidates.
Why it matters: The Indiana primary puts Trump's endorsement power to a direct test: eight state Senate Republicans who defied his redistricting map face Trump-backed challengers bankrolled by millions in outside spending. A win for the Trump slate would reinforce the president's ability to reshape state congressional maps and discipline GOP defectors, while a loss would undercut a mid-cycle redistricting push now playing out across multiple states.
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