Map Quest
Okay, we’ve had a few hours to soak in the new legislative maps and like I stated in yesterday’s post, most Republicans are pretty content, Democrats, not so much. Here’s a quick breakdown of who ended up in the same district.
Democrats
- Ed DeLaney and Greg Porter*
- Jeb Bardon and Vanessa Summers
- Chet Dobis and Vernon Smith
*DeLaney told my colleagues at RTV 6 that John Day is also in the District with he and Porter. State Representative Eric Koch says incumbent addresses weren’t taken into account when the maps were drawn and they won’t be taken into account when revisions are made.
Republicans
- Jeff Espich and Dan Leonard
- Jud McMillin and Tom Knollman
- Don Lehe and Richard McClain
Democrats and Republicans
- Bruce Borders and Kreg Battles
- Bob Cherry and Scott Reske
- Tom Dermody and Nancy Dembowski
- Ralph Foley and Matt Pierce
There are eight new open seats. By my estimate, six are in Republican–leaning areas while two are in more Democratic areas.
Two other interesting bits of news to come out of this was Indiana Democratic Chairman Dan Parker saying in a radio interview that the party was keeping their options open, including a voting rights lawsuit, which would argue the new maps harm minority representation, something Republicans dispute.
In addition, Marion County Democratic Executive Director Adam Kirch said the 7th Congressional District just got a lot more difficult for Democrats to hold on to since the entire district lies in Marion County and the top fourth of it, which includes the Democratic stronghold of Pike Township is now in the 5th Congressional District.
Committee votes are expected this week.
