By Joseph Ax
Dec 11 (Reuters) – President Donald Trump’s bid to redraw Indiana’s congressional map and boost Republican odds of keeping control of the U.S. House of Representatives faces a pivotal test on Thursday, when the Indiana Senate is set to vote on whether to approve it.
Despite months of pressure from the White House, it remains unclear whether the map has enough support to pass the chamber, where Republicans hold a 40-10 majority. A number of Republican senators have expressed opposition to the rare mid-decade redistricting, including the Senate leader, Rodric Bray, and the caucus can afford to lose only 15 votes.
The proposed map, which passed the Indiana state House last week, would likely give Republicans a 9-0 sweep of the state’s U.S. House seats in next year’s midterms, when control of Congress will be at stake. The new boundaries would reshape the two districts currently held by Democrats, including by splitting the state’s largest city, Indianapolis, into four districts.
Trump has threatened to support electoral challengers to any Republican senators who refuse to vote in favor of the map. Bray had initially declined to hold a vote on redistricting, citing a lack of support, before reversing course and convening the Senate this week to consider it.
Redistricting typically occurs at the start of each decade to incorporate new U.S. Census data. But Trump ignited a nationwide battle this summer, when he successfully urged Texas Republicans to draw a new congressional map taking aim at five Democratic incumbents.
In response, Democrats in California proposed their own redrawn map intended to flip five Republican seats, a plan that was overwhelmingly approved by voters in November. Other states, both Republican- and Democratic-controlled, have initiated their own redistricting efforts.
Some state lawmakers have balked, however. Trump’s push has stalled in Indiana and Kansas amid reluctance from some Republicans, while Democrats in Maryland are split on whether to advance a new map.
Democrats must flip only three Republican seats in the 435-member House next year to win a majority.
(Reporting by Joseph Ax; editing by Paul Thomasch and Lincoln Feast.)
