Special session for maps ’n taxes; Guv counting on Senate GOP
Editor’s Note: This story was originally published in the October 31, 2025 issue of Indiana Legislative Insight.
Melissa wasn’t the only hurricane to hit the Western Hemisphere this week. Governor Mike Braun (R) called lawmakers into special session on Monday, November 3 to address adjusting the Indiana tax code to comport with federal changes in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and redistricting.
“I am calling a special legislative session to protect Hoosiers from efforts in other states that seek to diminish their voice in Washington and ensure their representation in Congress is fair. I am also asking the legislature to conform Indiana’s tax code with new federal tax provisions to ensure stability and certainty for taxpayers and tax preparers for 2026 filings,” said the Governor in a Monday morning news release that he followed with appearances on friendly talk radio programs.
In other administrations, an announcement this momentous would come in the form of a big press conference with legislative leaders and members of Congress flanking the governor, and they would all be eager to answer questions thrown their way from the media . . . but, strangely, there was no such public announcement, and it’s quite understandable why legislative leaders weren’t part of it (and it would be embarrassing for the congressional delegation to later have to walk back supportive comments if displeased over their new district lines).
The announcement came on the morning that Republican National Committee Chair Joe Gruters was in Indianapolis to address the Indiana Republican Party’s (closed to media) Fall Dinner, leading some Democrats to grumble that the timing further reinforced the fealty of the Governor and Hoosier Republicans to the President and MAGA movement.
We told you back in August when new map talk arose to expect a special session to be called during the first week of November, and redistricting would be coupled with a tax-tweak issue (though we expected it to involve the property tax) to make a special session more palatable to those other than partisan Republicans.
Most fascinating about the situation: the Governor had been professing all along that he would not seek a special session unless legislative sentiment merited one, but Senate President Pro Tem Rodric Bray (R) has made it clear – effectively on a daily basis over the past week – that the votes are not there in the Senate for new maps. House Speaker Todd Huston (R) has confirmed that the votes exist for new maps in the House (although no one knows yet what those maps might look like).
Beyond the fact that all support is hypothetical until an actual map is proposed for a vote, the nuance overlooked by most is that no one with any inside knowledge or understanding of the legislative supermajority has definitively ruled out passage of a mid-decade redistricting package.
Listen closely and all you’ll have to read into the end of the sentence that the votes aren’t there “now” or “yet” – but not that the votes can’t or won’t eventually be there. And that’s why the Governor ultimately decided to call the special session.
“When you hear ‘The votes aren’t there,’ that’s mostly coming from Democrats and others that don’t want it to occur,” Governor Braun tells Tony Katz on WIBC 93.1-FM Monday afternoon. “Once this goes public, you’ll have people getting off the fence, and you’re going to see the votes will be there.”
“We think we’re close enough to where, once it becomes a public discussion … any senators that are still waffling will hear from their own constituents,” Gov. Braun continued. “I think it will convene on (November 3), and there will be a lot of reinforcement for it.”
On Wednesday, he tells Dan Spehler of WXIN-TV Fox 59 in Indianapolis, that 14 senators are publicly for redistricting and “probably another 8 are privately for it if it comes up to a vote.” “We’re real close,” he assured backers, and we hear that he’s saying the same thing privately as publicly. The Governor is preternaturally confident about getting the votes.
The difference between the Senate count and the Governor’s tally may simply boil down to a “failure to communicate,” as Kokomo native Strother Martin’s character suggested to Paul Newman in Cool Hand Luke. The disparity may be a function of the Governor’s team specifically questioning how lawmakers will vote on the maps vs. others asking more general questions about how they feel about redistricting.
Indiana Democratic Party Chair Karen Tallian, herself a former longtime member of the Senate, obviously feels differently than the Governor on this. Tallian, who lives in Porter County, part of CD 01 which is targeted for extinction by redistricting supporters, offered these comments on Monday:
Governor Braun has lied to us. How can the people of Indiana have faith in their government when we can’t believe what our elected officials tell us right out loud. Braun called for the legislature to draw new congressional maps in a rare, likely unconstitutional, mid-term redistricting despite telling Hoosiers for weeks that he would not do that unless the House and Senate had the votes. Just days ago, the Senate Republicans announced they do not have the votes. Wasn’t that an outright call to stand down? Didn’t that mean that the Senators listened to their voters and heard the clear message that midterm redistricting is a No?
“What are Hoosiers supposed to think about this? At best, Braun has been brow-beaten, changed his mind, and finally kissed the … ring … of the man who would be King. Or, maybe Braun is telling the Republican Senators that they, not him, will take the blame for any retribution that the White House has been doling out. Or, perhaps, most unsettling of all, Braun lied to us from the beginning.
The sole GOP naysayer as to the big picture is veteran Sen. Greg Walker (R), one of the majority members who is not seeking reelection in 2026.
“I don’t know how this will play out because from my understanding of conversations we’ve had – without naming any names – I would conclude that there’s not an opportunity to move a bill through the Senate regarding midterm redistricting,” Sen. Walker told the Columbus Republic on Monday. “If the House wants to originate a bill (on redistricting) and send it over (to the Senate), we don’t have to give it a hearing, and that’s normal process,” Sen. Walker added. “But I would think it would be a monumental waste of time and, again, eroding voter confidence in our government if we can’t even plan our work any better than that. Whereas if we’re at odds, then the old refrain is, ‘Kill the bill if you can’t get it passed.’ ”
Indiana Republican Party Chair Lana Keesling of Fort Wayne, who lives in Fort Wayne, within the GOP stronghold of CD 03 sees more of an imperative and optimism than Sen. Walker. She said this after the Governor’s announcement:
Democrat controlled states like Illinois and California have spent years maintaining deeply partisan election maps and insisting the illegal aliens their ‘sanctuary’ policies attract be given congressional representation, and they are now doubling down to give themselves even greater control.
If Indiana is to have fair representation in Congress, redistricting is an absolute necessity, and I applaud Governor Braun for standing up for Hoosiers in calling this special session.
I am confident our Republican House and Senate majorities will deliver for their constituents on this issue, and I am proud to give them my absolute support in doing so.
Finally, the protests against a special session over the past two weeks have emanated from Democrats, and they have been loud and persistent about it, while legislative Republicans have been largely quiet, at least until a handful of brief social media posts around the gubernatorial announcement backing the call.
The onslaught of Democratic protests and the minimal Republican defense reminded us of floor debate – particularly in the House – where you only heard from Democrats railing against the bills and Republicans offering no public defense . . . and the legislation then passing on votes along the lines of 68 – 30. That analogy may be prophetic
The Process
There is considerable leeway for legislative leaders in how they handle the call for a special session – and they indicated Wednesday that they intend to take advantage of the flexibility.
They could simply convene their respective chambers on Monday and adjourn sine die. After all, if maps remain the unresolved sticking point, it’s not as if there was a huge public groundswell for aligning Indiana’s tax code with OBBBA. We don’t believe outside of a suggestion we made in these pages that this could occur in a special session, that there has been any public discussion of it. Certainly the Governor and legislative leaders have not spoken publicly about any such imperative.
However, Speaker Huston indicated that his chamber will not rush into anything.
House Republicans are working on scheduling and have been in communication with our colleagues in the Senate about the logistics of convening the General Assembly following the Governor’s call for a special session.
Per Indiana code, the General Assembly has up to 40 days to conduct legislative business in a special session. Given the calendar and member availability, we will not be convening on Nov. 3 but are working within this general time frame as we consider the schedule.
During the 2022 special session, the Governor called the General Assembly into session on July 6, the Legislature convened on July 25 and session ended on Aug. 5.
Additionally, the General Assembly is statutorily required to convene for Organization Day on Tuesday, Nov. 18, which is the official start of the 2026 regular session.
As always, our goal is to accomplish our work in a way that is most efficient and cost effective for Hoosier taxpayers. Our plan is to have a legislative schedule out as soon as possible.
The Senate Majority Caucus quickly added:
We are working with our senators and our counterparts in the House to determine the scheduling availability of members. In all likelihood, the Senate will not be ready to convene the week of Nov. 3. Recall that in the most recent special session, the legislature did not convene for a few weeks after the initial date provided by the governor.
Like President Kennedy ignoring the more recent and inflammatory Khruschev communication during the Cuban Missile Crisis – and edging events toward a peaceful resolution – the Governor responds to the House message:
I appreciate the leadership of Speaker Huston and House Republicans as they prepare for the upcoming special session. The momentum and support across the General Assembly have become clear and I’m confident their thoughtful and responsible approach will lead to a successful outcome. I look forward to working closely with our colleagues in both the House and Senate to address these important issues and ensure Hoosiers continue to have strong representation in our nation’s capital.
You should not read the delay as any sort of indication that the votes aren’t here for redistricting; even if this were to be a special session looking only at tax issues, leaders would probably take their time in preparing.
So . . . it’s not likely that lawmakers, refreshed from turning their clocks back this weekend for Daylight Saving Time, will be in the State House for any substantive action until at least November 10 (although you shouldn’t rule out a quick one-day gavel-in Wednesday or Thursday to get the process rolling and set forth some ground rules). Indeed, the New York Times reveals that “Some members of the Senate were not given any advance notice that the special session would be called.”
In any event, this “delay” will allow solons to at least quickly parse the Tuesday election results from other states (and Indiana school referenda success rates), most notably New Jersey and Virginia gubernatorial for signs as to just how much the national electorate might be stirred up, and how the Democratic message might be resonating – or not – with voters.
Sen. Liz Brown (R), now an ardent redistricting supporter who faces a primary from the right, told WISH-TV in Indianapolis early this week that she expects a two-week session with no suspensions of rules that would expedite the agenda.
The betting bucks in the prediction markets will probably settle on eight to 10 session days being consumed.
Lawmakers may also want to combine formal voting with mid-month Organization Day festivities, perhaps convening some informal hearings or listening sessions before then to judge just how volatile public sentiment is on the subject.
Another procedural matter to bear in mind is that leadership doesn’t have to convene that particular day (although the clock starts running then). Lawmakers have 30 legislative days or 40 calendar days within which to accomplish what they might. Is it best to drop a map on members upfront and seek a quick vote before any public groundswell against redistricting when the issue becomes front and center, or is it less problematic to take time, hold hearings around the state on assorted maps, and hope that public input on assorted proposals makes the prospect of new districts more palatable?
Even if there are no formal hearings – or any outside the State House – there may be unsanctioned events that continue to occur. A number of Democratic House members have held (orderly) redistricting town halls, and Sen. Greg Goode (R) will host one (of sorts) for 2½ hours on Saturday, November 1 back home in the Terre Haute City Hall (recall that the mayor is a Democrat opposed to new maps). “I may be the only IN Legislator holding a listening session with constituents on redistricting,” Sen. Goode teases on X – and he definitely places an emphasis on “listening” to what constituents say. “Soon, I will announce some common sense rules for the Nov 1 listening session that will allow for people to speak their opinion while ensuring order, civility, & safety.” Hen he did unveil the protocol Thursday, the key provision was that proof of residency in his SD 38 was required for admission to the council chamber.
We expect other groups on both sides to organize similar events around the state, but which largely are oriented toward those with views that mirror their own.
One big question is which chamber will originate any maps. The House is the likely starting point for the tax law changes (even though they are not being offered as a revenue-generating proposition), but there’s no requirement that congressional district maps begin in one chamber or another . . . and if you are Speaker Huston, do you want to force your members to go on record for new maps that might be rejected by the Senate? Or if you are holding the gavel in the House, do you want to use passage of maps in that body to force stubborn supermajority senators to make a decision and vote for the maps in that body?
If the votes are truly “not there” in the Senate, and the Senate Majority Caucus sees no path to 26 votes (it would require 65% of the majority caucus and a much larger share of those who have still professed to be undecided; House Republicans say they have already marshaled at least 73% of their caucus to get the 51 votes required on the east side of the Rotunda), would Sen. Bray be pressed by a defiant caucus to tee up the remap bill, defeat it, and then adjourn sine die? If the votes truly aren’t there for passage, would they take this step to embarrass their governor? Would institutionalist Bray block such a potential humiliation by simply not holding a vote – or would this be interpreted as being even more of a slap in the face to the Governor?
“We’ve received the Governor’s call for a special session and will continue having conversations within our caucus and with our counterparts in the Senate on our next steps,” Speaker Huston shares on Monday.
One of those steps will likely involve the particular legislative panel which will review and presumably advance the bill with the maps.
For more on that, we’ll turn back to Sen. Greg Walker, whom you should also recognize as the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Elections, which – traditionally – is where redistricting bills start their journey through a given chamber.
“I would look at the current makeup of that committee and argue there are not enough votes to get that through committee,” suggests Sen. Walker, who has 20 years of service in the Senate.
He continues to his hometown paper, “But, you know, things can change. No bill has to be sent to elections just because the topic is elections. You could go to rules. You could go to other committees with a bill. But currently, I don’t know which of our standing committees has enough support to move language like this to the floor without, again, some surprises. I thought we were supposed to avoid surprises. I thought we were supposed to use common sense, good judgment and deliberation instead of surprises. But I’ll be surprised (if a redistricting bill clears committee) is all I can say. I anticipate being surprised, if you know what I’m saying,” Sen. Walker, who is close to leadership, concludes.
The process has lots of moving parts . . . and the respective rules panels might find themselves playing an outsized part in any special session drama (and remember, Sen. Bray – whom the Senate needs more than he needs the Senate – chairs the Senate Committee on Rules, which could prove decisive).
The Other Issue
The sweetener of sorts for the special session is comporting Indiana’s tax code with the wide-ranging federal law signed on July 4.
The Governor reminds Hoosiers in his special session call that Indiana uses federal tax law as the starting point for the Indiana tax return, and the recent changes to federal tax law in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act include provisions that impact Indiana state tax filings.
His office explains that “Addressing this discrepancy through a special session will provide taxpayers, accountants, and businesses the confidence and clarity ahead of filing season, avoid amended returns and filing delays, and continue the Indiana Department of Revenue’s strong record of fiscal management.”
There is no bill, however, that has been drafted to address this, and no lawmaker has been identified by 206 as being the preferred author for the designated afterthought.
We’ve not heard any push either from the public or legislators to move up the alignment dates for OBBBA-related issues, and this type of action has often happened in the early days of a regular session, if needed . . . but it’s obvious that no quick and easily explainable tweaks to SEA 1-2025 that will make both taxpayers and local government units happy are floating around yet.
Democrats have been entirely silent about this aspect of the special session call, likely not looking to distract from what they see as their key task at hand . . . while also waiting to see what form any draft may actually take. A simple conformance vote may be acceptable, but if there are any real policy changes that might be unacceptable to the minority, they could raise a bigger fuss about the absence of property tax reform, the new tax bogeyman.
The Intrigue
So who really knows what the Senate will do? Leader Bray continued through mid-week to say that the votes weren’t there for redistricting, but wouldn’t say that they never would be. Speaker Huston smartly remained out of the business of predicting anything but what his own House colleagues might do.
Others, however, seemed oddly confident that enough senators would eventually come around that new maps would officially be drawn – regardless of what they might look like. Making such statements is truly going out on a limb given Sen. Bray’s vote count and reticence, and the prospect that a given map might not draw a particular congressional district to the liking of an ambitious senator who is current “yes” vote, or now who may be close to an incumbent member of Congress that is unhappy with losing some Republican votes or gaining or losing some particular territory.
The President continues his personal crusade, with the New York Times telling readers that “Over the weekend, Mr. Trump continued his redistricting push with a phone call from Air Force One. He spoke with Indiana House Republicans, who have been broadly supportive of redrawing the maps, according to someone familiar with the call. The call ended with a private telephone poll that showed support in the lower chamber for redistricting. But the Senate has indicated some resistance in Indiana.”
One of the most puzzling expressions of confidence came directly from the White House (there were differing accounts as to whether they had taken a formal whip count). White House Deputy Chief of Staff James Blair a top advisor to the President who oversees legislative, political, and public affairs, spoke to Punchbowl News about Hoosier hospitability. “Blair doesn’t agree with the Indiana Senate GOP leadership that redistricting can’t pass in the Hoosier State. ‘I think we’ll see how Indiana continues to evolve, but I don’t think that’s a correct assessment,’ Blair said.”
When was the last time you trusted an outsider’s assessment of the situation in the Senate over its own leader? But then again, Sen. Bray’s spokesperson appeared to be speaking in the present tense, as we noted, and that doesn’t seem to rule out a battlefield conversion as the Blair statement indicates.
The Maps
Rest assured that Republicans are not counting their chickens (or candidates) before new maps are hatched. There is no candidate recruiting yet, in large part because there truly are no maps – even “unofficial” (wink, wink) versions informally circulating. Yes, the Vice President flashed a map to state lawmakers that showed in broad terms how Republicans could accomplish a 9-0 advantage (and the only objective will be to target both Democrats) without compromising any incumbents, but that was simply a model.
What do the two Democrats at risk of losing their seats have to say about the special session convened for that express purpose?
“The only thing more unpopular in Indiana than redistricting is the Governor himself,” claims U.S. Rep. Frank Mrvan (D). “His attempt to silence the very voters he represents is yet another example of how out of touch he is with the people of our great state.”
U.S. Rep. André Carson (D) vents his concerns: “Hoosiers have said they don’t want redistricting. Indiana Republican lawmakers have said they don’t want redistricting – until the Trump administration bullied them into it. I have faith in the leaders who have chosen not to succumb to these blatant political threats and encourage them to stay strong. It’s more important to have a pat on the back from your constituents instead of a pat on the head from a lame duck president,” he concludes.
No decisions have been made about just what those maps would look like, and a big problem may be in carving up Indianapolis from two to three districts; no nearby GOP incumbent seem to want to take on a big chunk of the city, and there may be a problem in keeping all of the incumbents in their current districts (though they could still be given safe haven nearby) . . . which we would assume to be a fatal flaw in most other remaps, but which may not be as problematic this year (and which serves as a reminder to the congressional delegation that they should always be working those State House back channels!).
All indications are that the cartographers will work their magic using the 2020 census data (numbers debunked by the MAGA camp), and not the updated census figures or including special census numbers collected on behalf of growing communities that funded interim official counts.
We’re not sure yet whether the caucuses will bring in D.C. consultants again to shape the maps, but it is probably more likely than not that you will see outside help.
The Fallout
We’ve told you about assorted groups running digital ads and sending texts seeking support from solons for redistricting . . . and threatening primary challenges to those who won’t back new maps. The New York Times reports this week that “Republican lawmakers in Indiana have been inundated with emails from conservative groups like Turning Point USA, threatening to mount primary challenges against any who do not fall in line.”
Sen. Brown, who faces a serious primary from the right next May, is running her own radio ads “in Northeast IN to urge my colleagues to pass redistricting and support @POTUS,” she tweets – while soliciting contributions via PayPal to keep the crudely produced spot on the air.
Hamilton County Republican Party Chair Mario Massillanamy tells WISH-TV in Indianapolis this week that the President will be coming in to ask each senator personally where he or she stands on redistricting. The White House has been hinting about targeting non-supportive Hoosier lawmakers, and Deputy Chief of Staff Blair tells Punchbowl News more generally that “President Trump plans to tap his substantial political war chest – running to hundreds of millions of dollars – to support Republicans in the 2026 elections and has already been quietly funding political races nationwide.
Is the Governor really twisting arms? What we’ve been able to pick up is that he is strong-arming GOP lawmakers . . . but has no qualms about making it clear to them that there’s not a great deal of political upside to disagreeing with a president and governor of their party.
Lieutenant Governor Micah Beckwith (R) weighed in this week as well. He has been recruiting candidates for open Senate seats – and challengers to GOP incumbents whom he doesn’t believe are sufficiently conservative long before redistricting became an issue. “If we are a very conservative state, which I believe we are … that may be a case to say, ‘We’ve got to get our house in order if this fails,’ ” Lieutenant Governor Beckwith suggests. “And, certainly, I know the President’s looking at that as well,” he adds.
Democrats are also fighting back and suggesting that beyond the possibility of “dummymandering” – backfire for Republicans going too far – they plan to milk their grievances as much as possible heading into the fall, raising money not only on the audacity of the GOP maneuver (the Indiana Democratic Party began firing off special session-themed fundraising missives with within just a few hours of the Governor’s Monday announcement) . . . but also focused on the quality and ideology of GOP nominees that emerge from contested primaries and the state GOP convention next year.
And Governor Braun has also found himself in the national spotlight – and not in a flattering way – thanks to a beyond-snarky social media taunt by California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA).
There is also the prospect – or likelihood – of legal action.
Top Democratic election litigator Marc Elias – his firm is currently litigating 63 voting and election cases in 30 states – wrote publicly this month that “As Republicans keep up attacks on congressional maps, they should get used to seeing my law firm in court.” He notes that “It is the middle of the redistricting cycle – when litigation should be at its low point – and yet my firm is busier than ever, currently litigating eight redistricting cases. All of them aim to undo Republican gerrymanders that disadvantage minority voters. And we don’t expect to slow down any time soon. We are already preparing to sue Florida, Kansas, Indiana, and Ohio when they inevitably follow suit. In each state, the names are different and the facts and laws vary slightly, but the underlying pattern remains the same: minority voters are targeted to make way for white Republicans.”
Elias adds, “We will litigate to defend the right of Black and other minority voters to be held to a fair and equal standard. If it is unconstitutional racial gerrymandering to create districts that empower minority voters, why isn’t it a violation to purposely create districts that empower whites?”
We told you in some depth several weeks back about potential grounds for challenges and concluded that you should not expect any of the likely avenues to prove successful. But there is the strong prospect that a friendly federal judge might find an opening for temporarily enjoining new maps . . . and that, combined with the need for election officials to distribute information and prepare election materials with a filing deadline that opens in about nine weeks – on January 2, 2026 – and closes on February 6. That condensed timeline could convince a judge to simply enjoin any new district lines through the 2026 election . . . particularly in the absence of a legal imperative or nonpartisan policy objective arguing for a novel mid0decade redistricting.
Lt. Governor Beckwith even acknowledges to WTHR-TV’s Dustin Grove Friday afternoon that the spate of mid-decade redistricting “[is] going to force the Supreme Court to get involved” and rule on the timing and substance of redistricting efforts, which he welcomes.