We Believe in Believing—That It Is Possible to Defeat Extremism in Indiana

In Indiana politics there is a prevailing belief that Indiana is a bright ‘red’ state and therefore Democrats can’t win elections. This may be based on our experience that Democrats haven’t won many statewide elections over the past several years, but that reality has been cleverly orchestrated by the dominating and uneven influence of one party controlling our statehouse and state government. The fact is that Indiana is a politically gerrymandered ‘rigged’ state which makes it very difficult for non-extreme candidates to win an election. After more than a decade of living through the negative impact of one-party rule and unrepresentative governance, voters have become disillusioned and apathetic. In 2020, Indiana ranked 46^th in the country in voter turnout and in 2022, Indiana ranked dead last. Thus, the cycle seems unending and this ‘belief’ masquerades as an unavoidable fact.

This election is different. Indiana has an abundance of young, competent, energetic, diverse ‘happy warriors’ ready to take on the extremists and restore decency and freedom into our state government. These candidates just need you to get to know them and believe in them.

“I Believe in Believe” ~ Coach Ted Lasso

Did You Know:

In the next few paragraphs, you are going to be introduced into the power of three in state governance. It’s important to understand these dynamics because they significantly impact our lives and our politics.

• Our state government has been dominated by a trifecta supermajority. Since 2011, the GOP has not only controlled the governorship and both the house and senate in our state legislature (a trifecta), but they also have a supermajority in both chambers of the statehouse. In Indiana, the result of one party wielding such power is that the minority party is rendered powerless and is unable to represent their constituents. In Indiana, we essentially have a super charged one-party governance structure. The only way to ensure greater partisan balance in the statehouse and restore a more representational governance is to increase voter turnout and elect non-extreme candidates.

  • A trifecta is not unusual in politics and often when this is the case, good governance can happen if the chambers are equally balanced in representation. In the first two years of the Biden/Harris administration there was a trifecta, but with razor thin margins of a dominating party, so bills were passed often with a bi-partisan vibe. That’s how we got the American Rescue Plan, the bi-partisan infrastructure law, and Inflation Reduction Act that capped the price of insulin to $35.00.

  • The reverse is also true. If there is a trifecta or a trifecta supermajority where MAGA extremists and Christian Nationalists are in control, oppressive and anti-pluralistic laws are passed. Formerly held freedoms are stripped away. Indiana is one such state. If MAGA extremists win the presidency and take control of both chambers of Congress, such will be the case for our country and Project 2025 will be implemented.

• Indiana also has a triplex in addition to the trifecta supermajority.  A triplex is when the Secretary of State, the Attorney General and the Governor all hail from the same political party. Our Secretary of State, Diego Morales, and Attorney General, Todd Rokita are MAGA extremists. Both continue to promulgate the ‘Big Lie’ that the 2020 Presidential election was stolen. The Secretary of State controls elections in Indiana, and the AG wields strong litigation power. Todd Rokita sued the Indiana University Hospital physician who performed a legal abortion on the 10-year-old rape victim from Ohio. He failed in this attempt; the courts found the lawsuit to be without warrant and he was in fact reprimanded for his abuse of power and influence.

Why It Matters:

The supermajority trifecta has resulted in some of the most extreme legislation in the country. Abortion is totally illegal in Indiana with limited exceptions, including a ban on telemedicine. Indiana suffers under an open carry law that contributed to the recent shoot out on I465 due to road rage about trash blowing out of a truck bed. Indiana ranks near the very bottom in education, we rank poorly in having clean drinking water and clean air to breathe. Indiana had the third highest maternal mortality rate in the nation.

In the 2024 legislative session, a law was passed that insists on ‘intellectual diversity and intellectual inquiry’ in state college classrooms. This ‘diversity’ and ‘intellectual inquiry’ is ambiguous and undefined in the law, which opens the door for a plethora of conspiracy theories to be considered legitimate and intellectually equal to historic and scientific fact. When lawsuits were filed opposing this legislation, Todd Rokita filed a legal brief in support of the law that states the teaching of state university professors is "government speech" and thus can be entirely controlled — and censored — in both “subject matter” and “perspectives” by the state legislature, a board of trustees, or some other government authority.

Because of the trifecta supermajority, the triplex and extreme partisan gerrymandering, citizen advocacy and activism does little to impact legislative decisions. Bills are passed on a partisan basis irrespective of testimony, advocacy, citizen activism or the will of the people. Indiana has become a state laboratory for authoritarianism. The only way for Hoosiers to have voice and fair representation is to vote these extremists out of office. It’s up to us, but we must believe that we can.

What You Can Do:

Believe in believing that we can resist the extremists that have dominated our politics for well over a decade. It’s up to every one of us to be informed and savvy about the 2024 elections. Here are a few ways to make a difference.

• Stay informed about the candidates and what they stand for. Believe that it is possible to make Indiana a more compassionate and hospitable place to live, for all Hoosiers, not just a few.

• Avoid social media as a place for news and information. Resist the false equivalency that both parties embrace a pluralistic democracy or support the common good.

• Talk to your family, your neighbors and your networks about the candidates and what’s at stake in this election.

• Support candidates in districts other than your own, because once elected, these legislators impact the lives of all Hoosiers.

• Support our Voting is Your Superpower campaign to help register thousands of Gen Z’ers by October 7th. Indiana needs their energy and their voice. We currently have more requests from high schools and campaigns than we have resources on hand, so we need your financial support. Make a donation to help fund the cost of printing flyers, cards, cell phone decals, stickers, yard signs, t-shirts, etc. If you are interested in donating, you can also contact us at hoosiers4democracy@gmail.com.

Here are key races you need to be aware of:

Governor’s Race:

Jennifer McCormick and Terry Goodin are running against Mike Braun and Micah Beckwith. Mike Braun will support MAGA extremism, no matter who wins the Presidency. Micah Beckwith, a self-proclaimed Christian Nationalist, will work to further restrict our freedoms and instill the doctrines of radical Christian fundamentalism into our laws and our lives. If elected, Jennifer McCormick will end the trifecta in Indiana.

Attorney General:

Destiny Wells is opposing Todd Rokita for the role of Attorney General. Todd Rokita called on the U.S. Supreme Court to hear a lawsuit by the state of Texas alleging that election practices in four battleground states where President Donald Trump lost in the 2020 election were unconstitutional. He continues to be an election denier and is one of the most extreme AGs in the nation. If elected, Destiny Wells will collapse the triplex that exists in Indiana.

U.S. Senate:

Valerie McCray is opposing Jim Banks for the U.S. Senate. Jim Banks is a MAGA extremist, and advocates for a national abortion ban and restricting pregnant women leaving the state to seek legal abortions even with life threatening pregnancies. He is considered a key supporter and contributor to Project 2025.

Indiana House Races:

Heidi Beidinger is opposing Dale Devon in HD5. Dale Devon supports a more restrictive abortion ban and his campaign is funded by out-of-state donors committed to keeping Indiana a MAGA rigged state.

Josh Lowry in the HD24 is running against Hunter Smith. Smith is connected to the Indiana Family Institute, a fundamentalist Christian group that seeks to ban gay marriage and lobbies to infuse Christian doctrine into social policy and legislation.

Matt McNally is opposing Danny Lopez in HD39. This district was held by Jerry Torr for almost 25 years and has been a part of the supermajority stranglehold on our state legislature. Danny Lopez is an old-guard politico who has served in leadership positions in the Daniels, Pence and Holcomb administrations. Let’s flip this seat to help end the supermajority.

Erika Robinson Watkins is opposing Edmond Solliday in HD4. Edmond Solliday is a 79 year old incumbent who has been in the Indiana legislature since 2006. He served on the Elections and Apportionment Committee for over a decade which opposed any redistricting reform that would end the partisan gerrymandering despite significant public support for such reform. Hoosiers for Democracy co-founders testified before this committee countless times in support of modest redistricting reform to no avail. Civic organizations like the League of Women Voters and Common Cause led years-long efforts of citizen engagement to encourage more balanced legislative maps, but our efforts fell on deaf ears. This is one district that if flipped would make a huge impact on our state!

Tiffany Stoner is opposing Becky Cash in HD25. House District 25 was newly created in parts of Boone and Hendricks counties after the 2020 census and is a result of the gerrymandered district maps. If Tiffany Stoner can flip this district seat, she will minimize the impact of the GOP supermajority.

Michelle Higgs has coordinated a multi-district, 22 county collaboration of non-extremist candidates and together they have set up a series of Rural Summits happening across southern Indiana. These nine candidates represent about 24% of Indiana’s rural voters. These Rural Summits are a collaborative strategy for amplifying and responding to the needs of rural citizens. The summits allow candidates to connect with voters who feel left behind by the statehouse and invisible to those in power. These multi-district summits serve to reverse the disempowerment of isolated gerrymandered districts and turn those rural counties into a superpower of engaged, connected and informed rural voters. The HD candidates engaging in these Rural Summits include:

Michelle Higgs HD60, Kurtis Cummings HD46, Michael Potter HD47, Thomas Horrocks HD62, Teresa Kendall HD63, Jennifer David HD66, Trish Whitcomb HD69, Sarah Blessing HD70, Hollie Payton HD73

If Michelle Higgs and three others from these rural districts are able to flip their seats, the supermajority could be upended.

This is our moment in history to continue the unending work of making our country a ‘more perfect union.’ The baton has been passed to us. We must accept the assignment and believe that we can do this—even in Indiana!

Yours in democracy,

Debbie, Rachel and Barbara

Notes:

For more information about Indiana’s ranking for public education see here and here

For more information about see trifecta and triplex structures in government, see  State government trifectas - Ballotpedia

For more information about AG Todd Rokita’s request to dismiss the lawsuit challenging Senate Enrolled Act which aligns with a  national trend in MAGA controlled states to legislatively censure what can be taught in Indiana’s state colleges and universities, see this Indiana Capitol Chronicle article

For a historic understanding of the risk that Senate Enrolled Act 202 has on academic freedom and intellectual rigor, see Scopes Monkey Trial