By Eric Bradner

Indianapolis (CNN) — Vice President JD Vance met Thursday with Gov. Mike Braun and state legislative leaders as the White House ramps up pressure on Republican-led states to redraw their congressional maps.

But Indiana’s GOP leaders didn’t commit to giving President Donald Trump’s administration what it wants: a mid-decade effort to turn the two Democratic-held House seats in the Hoosier State into right-leaning districts.

Braun was noncommittal, telling reporters that “we listened” and describing the conversation as “pretty good.” Indiana House Speaker Todd Huston said in a statement they’d had a “meaningful discussion” and will “continue conversations.” Senate President Pro Tem Rodric Bray said he “appreciated the opportunity to hear from the vice president on a variety of issues, which we will continue to talk through in the days ahead.”

The Indiana Republican leaders are likely to face immense pressure from the White House and Trump allies. Still, many Republican operatives in Indiana said they are skeptical that a redistricting effort will take place.

And former Gov. Mitch Daniels, who remains a hugely influential figure in Indiana Republican politics, told CNN he opposes a mid-decade redrawing of Indiana’s maps.

“It’s certainly not going to reduce the level of public cynicism or increase the level of confidence,” Daniels said. “It may be appropriate in some places, but I don’t understand that Indiana is one. I think we have pretty fairly drawn lines now, and I don’t see any good reason that they should be tampered with out of cycle.”

Vance ignored CNN’s questions entering the Capitol Thursday about why Indiana should redraw its congressional districts and what he would tell Braun. Vance was brought in through tunnels to keep him away from public eyes as protesters rallied outside the governor’s office. He left after about an hour and later attended a Republican National Committee fundraiser at the InterContinental Indianapolis hotel.

Trump’s push to find more Republican seats ahead of next year’s midterms has launched a nationwide redistricting arms race. Republicans hold a slim majority in the US House, with Democrats currently needing to net just 3 seats next year to win back control.

The meeting in Indianapolis comes as Texas Republicans seek to redraw the state’s maps to add five GOP-leaning House seats — an effort Democrats are impeding by fleeing the state to deny the Texas House the two-thirds quorum necessary to do business.

Republicans are also eyeing Ohio, where a quirk in state law requires the maps to be redrawn, and Missouri, for more potential seats. And Democratic governors in California, Illinois, New York and other states are vowing to retaliate with their own redistricting push.

What could Republicans gain in Indiana?

One, maybe two, House seats.

The GOP already holds seven of Indiana’s nine House seats, so they’d be targeting the seats of Democratic Reps. Frank Mrvan and, potentially, André Carson.

Mrvan’s 1st District includes what’s known as “the Region” — Indiana’s cities and suburbs that stretch southeast of Chicago. Carson represents the 7th District, urban territory that includes most of Indianapolis.

Those two seats have long been in Democratic hands. Carson, who won a special election to replace his late grandmother in 2008, has never faced a serious challenge. Mrvan, the son of a state senator who first won his House seat in 2020, coasted to a nearly 10-point victory last November despite some GOP efforts to target his seat.

Political operatives in Indiana say Mrvan’s district could be made more favorable to Republicans with nips and tucks from neighboring rural, deep-red districts. Carson’s much more compact and heavily Democratic district, though, would likely have to be sliced into several different pieces, dispersed into multiple districts.

Who are the key players?

Indiana’s filing deadline is in February, and the part-time legislature is out of session until January, so redrawing the congressional maps would likely require Braun to call a special session.

From there, it’d be up to Huston, the House speaker, and Bray, the Senate president pro tem. Both first won their offices in 2012 — Bray succeeded his father Richard, a long-time state senator. They’ve both remained quiet amid questions about Indiana joining the redistricting arms race.. Both first won their offices in 2012 — Bray succeeded his father Richard, a long-time state senator. They’ve both remained quiet amid questions about Indiana joining the redistricting arms race.

One consideration could be the costs of a potential special session in lawmaker per diems and travel expenses, as Indiana faces a budget crunch.

How are Democrats responding?

Democrats rallied steps away from the governor’s office as Vance, Braun and legislative leaders met Thursday. However, they have no real power to stop a Republican redistricting push.

The GOP has supermajorities in Indiana’s House and Senate, which means Democrats couldn’t slow things down by following the lead of Texas House Democrats and fleeing the state to deny the quorum necessary to do business.

Carson, in a news conference after that rally, urged Braun to “show the independent spirit — Indiana has always had an independent, libertarian streak” and “demonstrate sovereignty.”

Mrvan told the crowd outside the governor’s office that he thought redistricting was a “done deal.”

“Historically, people have bent the knee to the Vance-Trump administration,” he told reporters afterward.

Still, both Mrvan and Carson said they will run for reelection regardless. Mrvan said he expects new districts would face legal challenges.

“Everywhere I go, people say, ‘Find middle ground, we’re tired of the fighting,’” Mrvan said. “And what they’re about to do is they’re going to elevate that to the whole state of Indiana because they’re afraid of a checks-and-balances system.”

State Rep. Matt Pierce, the Indiana House Democratic leader, urged Braun to resist pressure from Trump.

“I think they know that it’s unusual to call special session for this purpose, but you know they’ve not been able to say no to Donald Trump yet, and so that’s my concern,” Pierce said.

“The governor can single-handedly stop this by simply refusing to call the special session,” he said, “and if he does, the leaders of the legislature need to say, ‘No, we’re not going to subvert democracy just to satisfy President Trump.’”

This story has been updated with additional details.

CNN’s Ethan Cohen and David Wright contributed to this report.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2025 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.