Quick Summary: CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins declared that President Trump’s campaign to sway Indiana lawmakers on redistricting has failed after the State Senate rejected the proposal 31-19. A majority of Republicans opposed the plan, which would have added two Republican-leaning U.S. House seats. Collins highlighted Trump’s Oval Office comments downplaying his role and criticizing state Senate leader Rodric Bray, who is not up for reelection until 2028.
Kaitlan Collins: Trump’s 'Pressure Campaign Has Failed' After Indiana Senate Rejects Redistricting Plan
CNN anchor and senior White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins opened Thursday night’s edition of The Source with a stark declaration: President Donald Trump’s effort to pressure Indiana lawmakers on redistricting has failed.
The Indiana State Senate voted down the redistricting proposal by a 31-19 margin, with a majority of Republican senators opposing the measure. The plan sought to add two Republican-leaning U.S. House seats — a change that supporters argued could help the GOP defend its majority in next year’s midterm elections.
Collins Details The Vote And Trump’s Response
Collins framed the Indiana outcome as part of a broader pattern of the President attempting to influence state-level mapmaking to blunt the effects of a potential Democratic-controlled House. She noted that, despite Trump’s strong interest, more Republicans in the Indiana Senate voted against the plan than supported it.
Collins also aired President Trump’s Oval Office remarks responding to the rejection, in which he downplayed his involvement and criticized state Senate leadership.
President Donald Trump: "I wasn’t working on it very hard. Would have been nice, I think we would have picked up two seats, if we did that. You had one gentleman, the head of the Senate, I guess, Bray, whatever his name is, I heard he was against it. He’ll probably lose his next primary, whenever that is. I hope he does, because he’s done a tremendous disservice."
Collins pointed out that the senator the President referenced, Rodric Bray, is the Indiana Senate Republican leader and is not up for reelection until 2028 — undercutting Trump’s suggestion about an imminent primary threat.
Why It Matters
While the vote affects only Indiana’s congressional map, Collins argued it is significant as one example among multiple states where the President has sought to shape outcomes that could influence oversight and investigations in Washington. The Indiana rejection signals limits to the President’s sway over some state-level Republican lawmakers, even in states he won handily at the ballot box.
Watch the segment on CNN’s The Source with Kaitlan Collins for full coverage and analysis of the vote and its political implications.
