Banks earns Senate seat, Rokita cruises to victory
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Congressman Jim Banks has won Indiana’s vacant seat in the U.S. Senate previously held by Indiana Governor-Elect Mike Braun, while Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita retained his position following Tuesday’s election. The Indiana Capital Chronicle followed both races, as well as those for Indiana’s congressional districts.
Banks breezes to win in Indiana U.S. Senate race
Republican Congressman Jim Banks easily earned a promotion to the U.S. Senate Tuesday night after unofficial results showed he secured 57.7% of votes in the race for Indiana’s open seat, overcoming Democratic competitor Valerie McCray and Libertarian Andrew Horning.
With 43% of the vote counted, McCray had received 39.6% and Horning about 2.7%.
The Associated Press called the race at 7 p.m. Eastern.
Banks, the GOP favorite, had a multimillion-dollar campaign war chest and an endorsement from former President Donald Trump. He currently represents the state’s 3rd Congressional District, centered around Fort Wayne — a seat he has held since 2017.
“I am grateful for the support of my family and the support I’ve had from Hoosiers across the state. I owe this victory to all who contributed to it,” Banks said Tuesday evening.
He spent Election Day in Columbia City, his hometown. And while most other statewide Republican candidates gathered Tuesday evening in Indianapolis, Banks opted for the Allen County GOP Watch Party in Fort Wayne.
“I’ve got to tell you, I wasn’t nervous about the election. I felt good about it. I mean, Indiana is a conservative state. Indiana deserves a conservative senator fighting for us, and that was what I was running to be,” Banks told a crowd of supporters after securing his win.
Read more from the Indiana Capital Chronicle here.
Rokita cruises to victory in Indiana attorney general race
Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita, a Republican, claimed a knockout victory over Democrat challenger Destiny Wells on Tuesday.
The Associated Press called the race shortly before 9 p.m. Eastern, with Rokita leading 59.5% to Wells’ 40.5%. About 48% of the vote was in.
“The people of Indiana have rejected this push to the left, and because of this overwhelming vote tonight, I will continue to put us first, to put Indiana first,” Rokita told a supportive crowd at an Indiana Republican Party election event.
Rokita said he had run a “positive campaign” for attorney general, noting that he hadn’t once mentioned Wells.
His challenger, meanwhile, campaigned on restraint—drawing a sharp contrast to Rokita’s combative approach.
“Let me ask you: Are we going to let them win?” he asked Republican delegates while onstage — in red boxing gloves — at a June convention.
“I’d say now is the time to keep fighting, to lead boldly, to take the gloves off to protect Hoosiers, preserve and defend liberty in this country,” he bellowed.
Read more from the Indiana Capital Chronicle here.
1st Congressional District
Incumbent U.S. Rep. Frank Mrvan seemed likely to hold onto his congressional seat, but the Associated Press hadn’t called the race five hours after polls closed. At 11 p.m., Mrvan was leading with about 54% of the vote.
The Democrat has served the northwest Indiana district since 2020. He faced Republican Randy Niemeyer and Libertarian Dakotah Miskus.
Niemeyer ran a vocal campaign and had more than 44% of the vote by late Tuesday. Miskus was at just shy of 2%.
Prior to his tenure in Congress, Mrvan was a North Township Trustee for 15 years and is the son of longtime state lawmaker Frank Ed Mrvan. The younger Mrvan lives in Lake County with his wife and two daughters.
2nd Congressional District
Republican U.S. Rep. Rudy Yakym sailed to reelection on Election Night, winning out over Democrat Lori Camp and Libertarian William Henry.
The Associated Press called the race around 9:20 p.m., with Yakym leading 67.4% to Camp’s 29.6%. Henry had received 3%. Votes were still being counted.
Yakym was first appointed to the 2nd Congressional District following the death of former U.S. Rep. Jackie Walorski in a car crash in 2022.
The South Bend native will represent his hometown, along with other portions of north-central Indiana, in the 2nd Congressional District. Republicans have held the safe Republican seat for years.
3rd Congressional District
Republican and former U.S. Rep. Marlin Stutzman will be heading back to Washington, D.C. after winning a campaign for the 3rd Congressional District.
Stutzman, who previously held the same seat between 2010 and 2017, survived a contentious primary in May. The Associated Press called the race with him leading with 64.3% of the vote.
Democrat Kiley Adolph and Libertarian Jarrad Lancaster has 32.8% and 2.9% of the vote, respectively, as of 7:45 p.m.
The reliably red district includes Indiana’s second-largest city, Fort Wayne, and covers the greater northeastern Indiana area.
4th Congressional District
Sitting U.S. Rep. Jim Baird, a Republican, will keep his congressional seat after claiming victory over his competitors, Democrat Derrick Holder and Libertarian Ashley Groff.
The Associated Press called the race shortly before 9 p.m. Tuesday for the incumbent, who was leading with more than 66% of the vote. Holder, a former marine, earned 30%, and Groff, of Hendricks County, received almost 4%.
Baird has served in the U.S. House of Representatives for the 4th Congressional District — which covers a large portion of the western part of the state — since 2019. Prior to that the Army veteran was in the Indiana House for eight years. He has largely focused on military issues while in Congress and called himself “pro-life, pro-Israel, and (a) supporter of the Second Amendment” during his latest campaign.
The 4th District seat has been a Republican stronghold since 1995.
5th Congressional District
Republican Rep. Victoria Spartz, the first Ukrainian-born member of Congress, easily won reelection to a seat she almost gave up.
The Associated Press called the race when she had a 55.8% lead in Indiana’s 5th Congressional District north of Indianapolis.
Spartz initially said she wouldn’t run again but changed her mind days before the filing deadline. She faced off against Democrat Deborah Pickett, a resident of Carmel who served in the U.S. Army Reserve. She focused on fighting for personal rights and liberties, and received 39% of the vote.
Also running were Libertarian Lauri Shillings and Independent Robby Slaughter.
6th Congressional District
Republican Jefferson Shreve will take over the 6th Congressional District after defeating Democrat Cynthia “Cinde” Wirth and Libertarian James Sceniak.
The Associated Press called the race with him leading almost 66% compared to roughly 30% for Columbus school teacher Wirth and 4% for behavioral therapist Sceniak.
This traditionally Republican seat represents central and eastern Indiana, including a strip of southern Indianapolis. It’s open for the first time in about six years after incumbent Greg Pence chose not to seek reelection.
Shreve sold off his self-storage company for nearly $600 million in 2022. Since then, he’s plugged some of his personal wealth into politics: more than $13 million into a failed bid for Indianapolis mayor, and $6 million – thus far – into his congressional campaign. He emerged victorious from a crowded GOP primary field.
7th Congressional District
Democrat U.S. Rep. André Carson breezily earned himself a return ticket to the U.S. Capitol, defeating Republican John Schmitz and Libertarian Rusty Johnson.
The Associated Press called the race around 9 p.m. with him leading 69.1% to Schmitz’ 28.3%. Johnson had earned 2.6%. Votes were still being counted.
Carson has represented the 7th Congressional District since 2008, when he won a special election to replace his grandmother, the late U.S. Rep Julia Carson.
Prior to his time in Congress, Carson held a handful of state government positions and briefly served on the Indianapolis-Marion County City-County Council. He is the second Muslim to be elected to Congress.
The deep-blue district is the most densely populated in Indiana, covering roughly two-thirds of Marion County.
8th Congressional District
A former state legislator now has a new home in Congress — Republican state Sen. Mark Messmer easily claimed victory over Democrat Erik Hurt and Libertarian K. Richard Fitzlaff on Tuesday in the race to represent the 8th Congressional District.
The Associated Press called the race shortly after 7 p.m. with Messmer leading at roughly 74%.
The deep-red district covers southwestern Indiana. Incumbent U.S. Rep. Larry Bucshon’s retirement left the seat open.
Messmer, of Jasper, served in the state Senate from 2014 until September. He was the state Senate’s majority leader from 2018 to 2022, when Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray replaced him. The reason for the leadership change was unclear.
But Messmer was one of two Republican senators who were not present for a final vote on the state’s near-total abortion ban in 2022. Before that, he voted down an earlier version of the bill, saying lawmakers’ discourse showed the impossibility of “threading the needle” on abortion-related matters.
The small business owner and engineer previously served in the Indiana House of Representatives, starting in 2008.
9th Congressional District
U.S. Rep. Erin Houchin won her first reelection bid Tuesday, besting Democrat Timothy Peck and Libertarian Russell Brooksbank to represent Indiana’s 9th Congressional District.
The Associated Press called the race at 10:17 p.m. with Houchin leading at 64.7%.
The traditionally red district covers much of the state’s borders with Kentucky and Ohio.
Houchin took office in 2023, succeeding former U.S. Rep. Trey Hollingsworth. She previously served eight years in the Indiana Senate, representing Salem. Along with her service in the State Senate, Erin was a Hoosier small business owner operating a public relations company focused on helping law enforcement communicate the good work they do.
In the U.S. House, she serves on the Financial Services, Rules, and Education and Workforce committees.
An emergency doctor and founder of several health tech companies, Peck has a background as a teacher and physician with the Harvard Medical School.
A concrete truck driver and Army Reserve veteran, Brooksbank is the party chair for the Clark County Libertarian Party and serves on the Clarksville Town Council.
The Indiana Capital Chronicle is an independent, not-for-profit news organization that covers state government, policy and elections.