INDIANAPOLIS —Indiana Senate Democratic Leader Shelli Yoder (D-Bloomington) issued the following statement on behalf of the caucus in response to Gov. Mike Braun’s public call for a November special session to rig Indiana’s congressional maps. Braun made the comments during a Monday interview on Fort Wayne’s WOWO radio, where he said lawmakers would “come around” on the plan and warned that Indiana could face “consequences” from the Trump administration if it does not comply.

“Let’s be absolutely clear. The reason a special session hasn’t been called yet is because Gov. Braun doesn’t have the votes. Not in the Senate. Not in the House. Even members of his own party know this is wrong. And they’re hearing what we’re hearing: Hoosiers won’t stand for cheating. Hoosiers play fair.”

“We’ve seen the closed-door meetings. We’ve seen lawmakers fly to Washington to take their marching orders from Donald Trump. We’ve heard the governor admit that Trump warned Indiana would face consequences if we didn’t fall in line. But here’s the truth — we’re already living through the consequences of Trump’s pandering to billionaires — despite Indiana voting for him.”

“Rural hospitals are closing. Farmers are losing land and markets because of reckless tariffs. Health care access is drying up. Utility bills are skyrocketing. Wages are stagnant. People are struggling to afford groceries and housing. And through it all, instead of defending Indiana and solving problems for Hoosiers, the governor has been busy defending Donald Trump.”

“This push to rig congressional maps has nothing to do with fairness. It’s about fear. It’s about silencing voters before the next election. If you have to cheat to win, you’ve already lost the trust of the people. If you’re trying to rig the rules in the middle of a term, then you’re not representing Hoosiers. You’re erasing them.”

“And when you cheat, you have to lie to make it work — blame the other party and hope people don’t see the truth. After the 2020 census, Republicans controlled redistricting in 41 percent of congressional seats. Democrats controlled 11 percent. The rest were drawn by courts or independent commissions. These are the same maps that elected Donald Trump. The same maps that put Mike Braun in office. They’re just no longer good enough for a party that’s worried about losing.”

“Every part of this is designed to wear people down — to divide us, distract us and drive us into silence. But we see what’s happening. We’ve seen extremism take root. We’ve seen trust in government collapse. And now they want to rig the maps to ensure they don’t face consequences for abandoning Hoosiers, pushing more extremism.”

“We’re not going anywhere. We’re not backing down. We will stay engaged. We will keep fighting for fair representation. Because that’s what democracy looks like.”

“Gov. Braun may be working for Trump. But we’re working for Indiana — and we refuse to let this state become the blueprint for destroying democracy.”