The (Terre Haute) Tribune-Star
The 2024 session of the Indiana General Assembly convened last week with a supermajority of Republicans in control of both houses of the legislature. That’s 70 of the 100 seats in the House of Representatives, and 40 of the 50 seats in the Senate.
Those lopsided numbers suggest that Indiana is a deep red state where voters overwhelmingly choose Republican candidates to lead their state at a clip of 70-80%.
Yet that’s a faulty notion. Hoosiers tend to be politically conservative, but they are far more moderate in their views than those legislative numbers suggest. Just look at vote tallies in recent statewide elections. GOP Gov. Eric Holcomb won reelection in 2020 with 57% of the vote, about the same as GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump, who was an incumbent at the time. Those were solid numbers, but not supermajority numbers.
It is fair to say that many Hoosiers aren’t well represented in the legislature, especially on major issues such as voting rights, abortion, reforming marijuana laws, restrictions on gun ownership and using public money for private schools.
Lawmakers could demonstrate a greater commitment to broader representation by proposing and adopting laws that better respect a Hoosier majority. Here is where they should start:
Make voting easier, not harder
Indiana consistently reports low voter turnout. Many factors contribute to poor participation, but restrictive voting laws are a contributor. The legislature could send a powerful message to potential voters by enhancing access to voting through such measures as mail-in voting for all, same-day registration and expanding voting hours on Election Day.
These are not radical ideas. They’ve been adopted and used successfully by a number of states. And voter turnout tends to be greater in states with such election laws.
Call a truce on culture wars
Hoosiers are never served well when their legislators get sucked into the political vortex of social issues. Attacks for the sake of ideology on the rights of women, LGBTQ citizens or minorities are destructive to cultivating a welcoming culture and aren’t worth the collective energy spent on them in the Statehouse.
Legislative leaders in the dominant part should muster the courage to stand up to the radical fringe of its caucus and quell its disruptive instincts.
Listen to the voters
What the majority of Hoosiers want from their legislature is often not what they get. Rather than responsiveness, lawmakers instead do what’s in their own interests to hold power.
To show they’re willing to listen to voters on matters of high importance, lawmakers should discuss a change in law to allow for citizens to petition for placement of referendums on election ballots.
Discard extreme partisan gerrymandering
The best way for the legislature to become more responsive to voters is to end partisan gerrymandering of voting districts. It is a key reason why Indiana’s legislature has become so politically imbalanced.
Lawmakers should begin laying the groundwork for establishing an independent, nonpartisan commission to oversee redistricting in 2030.
