Keri Yousif, November 3, 2025

More than 200 people attended State Senator Greg Goode’s listening session in Terre Haute on Saturday, November 1. From millennials to boomers, from Republicans to Democrats and Independents, from veterans to teachers and social workers, District 38 told Goode to vote no on redistricting in Indiana.

Their arguments were numerous:  it’s “against the Constitution,” it’s a “power grab,” it’s a “waste of taxpayers’ money,” it “harms the democratic process,” it’s “cheating.”  As one speaker stated:  this is a case of “officials wanting to choose their constituents instead of constituents choosing their officials.”

There was also a near-universal call for state time and money to be spent on other, more pressing priorities, namely food insecurity, healthcare, and education, which were the top three priorities cited by speakers. Ultimately, the public called on Goode to practice what many described as bygone political integrity.

They asked Goode to, “do what is right,” to “stand up,” to “resist pressure,” to “act on your values,” referencing the White House on several occasions. An older gentleman made an impassioned plea for Goode to “separate the sense from the nonsense.”  

Goode took it in stride, listening for more than two hours to every one of his constituents that wanted to express their opinion, many of whom waited more than an hour to get their two minutes in front of the senator. As one man told Goode, “You must feel like you’re at the county fair sitting in the dunking booth.”

That might have been true, but Goode never let it show. He was welcoming and sincere, and the public noticed. People repeatedly thanked him for holding the session and, more importantly, listening. Indeed, with the exception of brief introductory remarks, Senator Goode was silent, letting voters lead the meeting.

Goode organized the session to hear constituents’ concerns on the Republican-proposed redistricting ahead of the 2026 mid-term elections. Following reported pressure by the U.S. President and national Republican leaders, Governor Braun called for a special session, beginning Monday, November 3, to consider a potential redistricting of Indiana.

Goode represents District 38, which includes Vigo and Clay Counties and the northern part of Sullivan County. He was elected, by Republican caucus, in 2023, assuming Jon Ford’s seat following Ford’s resignation from the state senate in October 2023. Goode’s term ends in 2026, during the exact midterm elections that could be affected by the proposed redistricting.

Goode’s district, however—state district 38—was redrawn and approved in 2021 based on 2020 Census data. Traditionally, district maps are intended to last a decade, from census to census. Redistricting typically occurs following the federal census, as the latest census data is used to document any population shifts that might justify a possible redistricting.

The current mid-cycle (half-way between two federal censuses, 2020 and 2030; and just prior to midterm elections, which are half-way between the 2024 and 2028 presidential elections) call for redistricting has been primarily focused on federal congressional district maps, not on state legislative maps, meaning that Goode is under pressure to stump for his fellow Republicans at the state and federal level.

A recent poll shows that the majority of Hoosiers oppose the move to redistrict (53% of registered voters against, 34% in favor). And Goode’s listening session showed the same. In the two hours I attended the session, not a single person spoke in favor of the proposed redistricting.