The Indiana House is poised Thursday to approve new legislative district boundaries that will shape, in many ways, the state's election results and public policies for the next 10 years.
The Republican-controlled chamber voted largely along party lines Wednesday to insert the Indiana Senate redistricting plan just released Tuesday into House Bill 1581, which already contained the GOP's proposed Indiana House and congressional districts.
State Rep. Greg Steuerwald, R-Avon, said that will enable the new maps to immediately advance to Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb for final enactment, assuming the Republican-controlled Senate next week endorses the House-approved plan without making any changes.
The new boundaries for Indiana's nine congressional districts, 100 House districts, and 50 Senate districts then will be in effect for the 2022 elections, and remain in force until the next redistricting in 2031 following the 2030 U.S. Census.
By law, new legislative districts must be drawn every 10 years to adjust for population shifts and ensure every district in the state contains approximately the same number of people.
Data show the proposed maps all but ensure for the next decade Republicans will continue controlling the Indiana House, which has had a Republican majority since 2011, and the Indiana Senate, which Republicans have led since 1978.
Barring dramatic changes in voter habits, the GOP also is likely to hold on to at least seven of Indiana's nine seats in the U.S. House for the foreseeable future.
Steuerwald said he believes the maps fairly represent the preferences of Hoosier voters while also ensuring communities with similar interests are grouped together in compact, contiguous legislative districts that comply with all state and federal laws.
State Rep. Matt Pierce, D-Bloomington, sees things differently. He said Hoosier Democrats want a chance to compete with Republicans, but it's hard to do so when Republicans draw maps that give the GOP an automatic head start in most districts.
"All we're asking for is a fair shot," Pierce said. "Please stop marginalizing us and the people we represent."
Pierce offered as an alternative an Indiana House district map drawn by Adam Stant, of Indianapolis, as part of the Indiana Citizens Redistricting Commission's map drawing contest, that would have maximized the number of genuinely competitive House districts.
State Rep. Sue Errington, D-Muncie, said without competitive elections there's less of an incentive for lawmakers to seek bipartisan policy agreements, and a tendency toward extreme policies from representatives whose greatest threat is a primary election challenger.
The House ultimately voted 68-27, largely on party lines, to reject Pierce's alternative redistricting plan.
State Rep. John Jacob, R-Indianapolis, then attempted to insert in the legislation a prohibition on COVID-19 vaccine mandates.
Jacob was ruled out of order by House Speaker Todd Huston, R-Fishers, because Huston said Jacob's amendment was not germane to the underlying redistricting proposal.
Meet the 2021 Northwest Indiana legislative delegation
State Rep. Greg Steuerwald, R-Avon, left, and state Rep. Matt Pierce, D-Bloomington, right, discuss the legislative redistricting proposal in the Indiana House chamber Wednesday as House Speaker Todd Huston, R-Fishers, center, looks on.