Indiana primaries 2024: Spartz survives, big spenders prevail

538 tracked several establishment-versus-insurgent GOP primaries.

Tuesday saw the resolution of several major Republican primaries in Indiana: Voters selected the men who will likely become the state’s next U.S. senator and governor, and three open U.S. House seats were the canvas for fierce primary battles between the establishment and populist wings of the GOP. A maverick Republican incumbent also successfully defended her seat after waffling over her decision to seek reelection.

538 reporters and contributors broke down the election results as they came in with live updates, analysis and commentary. Read our full live blog below.


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Early returns in the 6th District

We’ve gotten a trickle of votes counted in the 6th District, which includes suburbs and rural areas east of Indianapolis. With 15 percent of the expected vote reporting, Jefferson Shreve, who has dipped into his considerable pockets to self fund a bid to the tune of $4.5 million is ahead with 30 percent, while car dealership consultant Jamison Carrier is in second with 24 percent.

—Jacob Rubashkin, Inside Elections


Indiana voters' concerns are similar to what we see nationwide

That's interesting, Mary, and in line with what we see nationwide. Voters are particularly down on the economy under President Biden. When PerryUndem, in partnership with 538, conducted a focus group with voters about the economy, most named cost-of-living issues as their specific economic concern. Some were also worried about the job market, layoffs and the price of housing. In general, Trump-leaners gave Biden worse marks on the economy, but Biden-leaners weren't thrilled about it either. They were less specific when it came to what they wanted a president to do about it, however.

And Democratic and independent voters are very concerned about the state of democracy and worry about a repeat of Jan. 6. Trump's trials and statements on the campaign trail haven't eased their concerns. Republicans worry about the state of democracy as well, but they seem to be influenced more by Trump's repeated falsehoods that the 2020 election was stolen and by conspiracy claims about noncitizens voting.

—Monica Potts, 538


Spartz has early edge in 5th District GOP primary

Checking in on Rep. Victoria Spartz, the most endangered incumbent we've got our eye on, and she's out to an early lead in the 5th District Republican primary — but one that's far from insurmountable. With 23 percent of the expected vote reporting, Spartz leads Chuck Goodrich 40 percent to 32 percent. There's quite a ways to go, but Spartz does lead in the three counties that have reported any votes, including Hamilton, the sizable Indianapolis suburban-exurban county that will likely make up close to half the primary vote in this district.

—Geoffrey Skelley, 538


GOP primary voters in Indiana are focused on the economy

While we're waiting for more results, let's check in on the issues Indiana voters are focused on in this election. According to a March Emerson College/The Hill poll, 44 percent of voters who said they planned to vote in the Republican primary named "the economy (jobs, inflation, taxes)" as the most important issue facing the state, far higher than the second most chosen option of immigration, which was selected by 17 percent of GOP primary voters, and crime, selected by 12 percent. No other issue was chosen by more than 7 percent of GOP primary voters.

Democratic primary voters, on the other hand, see things very differently: Just 18 percent chose the economy, while 25 percent selected "threats to democracy." Another 16 percent chose "abortion access" and 10 percent chose education.

—Mary Radcliffe, 538


Checking in on how Republican women are doing

We're tracking how female Democrats and Republicans are doing in Indiana's gubernatorial, Senate and House primaries. As I mentioned earlier, two out of the state's nine sitting House members are women, but the state has never had a female senator or governor.

Among Democrats, women are largely running in places where winning in November is a longshot; in many cases (like the gubernatorial race, and in the 2nd and 6th District), they were unopposed.

Among Republicans, Rep. Houchin has won reelection in the 9th District, and Rep. Spartz has won reelection too, in the 5th District, despite a well-funded challenge. In the 3rd District, Former Allen Circuit Court Judge Wendy Davis is trailing, but that race is still too close to call. And as we already reported, the sitting lieutenant governor, Suzanne Crouch, wasn't able to leverage that role into winning her party's nomination for governor.

—Meredith Conroy, 538 contributor