As a Democratic voter in a largely Republican state, Ava Hadaway of Mishawaka has often felt like her vote doesn’t matter.
“When it did matter, and we saw what we saw, it was exhilarating,” said Hadaway, a 43-year-old escrow officer who spoke to Free Press Indiana News Wednesday. “I haven’t felt this good waking up and turning on the news in a long time.”
Anger at President Donald Trump and national Republicans fueled dramatic gains for Democrats in the Indiana Legislature on Tuesday. In Hadaway’s northern Indiana House district, Democrat Alex Wait defeated Republican incumbent Dale DeVon. It’s one of at least 16 House seats that Democrats flipped.
While the GOP still holds the majority, Indiana Democrats now hold more House seats than they have since 2010. In the Senate, Democrats gained at least five seats.
“A lack of concern or compassion for struggling families right now — it just had me so angry,” Hadaway said. “Even with no children and a double-income home, it’s still tough.”
Republican Gov. Mike Braun told reporters on Thursday that the election results should be a “wake-up call” for Republicans, who should refocus on affordability.
FPI News spoke with voters in districts that changed hands about what they want to see from lawmakers.
Focus on economic issues
Several voters who helped Democrats flip seats said Republicans are out of touch with the challenges in their lives and communities.
Lisa Stump, 64, lives in Osceola, a small town a few miles from Mishawaka. She will also be represented by Wait. Stump said she supported some judges she described as Republican, but otherwise she voted entirely for Democrats.
A widow who now works as a crossing guard, Stump used to work in RV manufacturing. She said she’s seen jobs in that industry disappear and wages fall.
Stump was glad to see DeVon defeated because she does not believe he has done much for the area. She wants Republican state leaders to focus on serving Hoosiers.
“I hope they’re getting the message. And I don’t see how or why they won’t be able to work together,” Stump said. “Why can’t our government work together instead of against each other?”
Dramatic wins in the suburbs
Joe Arvin, 58, remembers voting for former Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels. But in recent years, he’s largely backed Democrats. Arvin said he feels alienated by many Republicans because he’s not very religious.
“This is Indiana. Make the roads flat and make food affordable. That’s the important stuff,” said Arvin, an accountant and father of two from Avon.
Democrat William Colteryahn defeated Republican incumbent Greg Steuerwald — who had served in the Legislature for nearly two decades — to win the Indiana House seat representing Arvin.
Steuerwald was one of several suburban Indianapolis Republicans who lost their reelection bids. Republican House Speaker Todd Huston of Fishers also lost to Democrat Lauren Cole.
Now that Democrats have gained more power in the Legislature, Arvin said, “I want them to keep the focus on the financial issues — the things that actually they can have an impact with.”
Plainfield nurse Isaiah Duncan, 27, is used to seeing Republicans win in Indiana. When he saw the results this week — including that he would be represented by Colteryahn — it felt like his vote mattered.
“It’s just refreshing,” said Duncan, a father of two who describes himself as a progressive Democrat. “It was just nice to know — oh, OK, my vote is actually being represented.”
Duncan said he’s excited that Republicans no longer hold a supermajority in the House. He would like to see the state Legislature provide more funding for education and healthcare, including rural hospitals and Medicaid.
“I hope that it has sent a signal,” he said. “The grand old party politics and the mindset is not what the people of Indiana want.”
Disappointed Republican voters
Many voters in the flipped districts are not celebrating the results.
A former teacher and widow, Joan Gorner, 89, considers herself conservative. She voted exclusively for Republicans this election because “the Democrats have gone wacky,” she said.
Gorner moved to Valparaiso from Washington state about a year and a half ago, and she was disappointed to see her representative, Republican Ed Soliday, defeated by Democrat Ryan Kominakis.
“I’m relatively new here, but I kept my ear to the ground and listened,” she said. “I think he represented the people well.”
Gorner said she will watch how Kominakis and other Democrats vote in the Legislature.
“If they’re out wasting money and throwing it away — the hard-earned money of the people in this state — then I’ll vote against them,” she said.
Richard Reed, 71, moved to Mishawaka last year to be closer to family. A Republican, Reed was glad to leave Washington, D.C., for an area he considers “purple.”
Reed voted for DeVon, the Republican incumbent in his House district, and he was disappointed that a Democrat won the seat.
“I was expecting the national kind of results because of historical trends and frankly Trump’s behavior,” Reed said. But he said he’s “a little bit baffled” by the local results.
“You look around, areas of blue governance and they’re not good,” he said, pointing to policies on crime and problems in urban areas.
Still, Reed does not anticipate that DeVon’s loss will have a substantial effect.
“It reflects poorly on some people’s judgment,” he said, “but that’s the voice of the people.”
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FPI News reporter Dylan Peers McCoy covers pressing issues throughout the state and how local communities are tackling those challenges. Reach her at 508-259-4809 or dylan.mccoy@fpinews.org.
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