By Tom Davies
Indiana Capital Chronicle
President Donald Trump has taken direct aim at a high-ranking Indiana state senator who voted against the congressional redistricting plan by endorsing a potential Republican primary challenger.
A social media post from Trump Thursday night blasted Sen. Travis Holdman as a RINO — Republican in name only — “who, for whatever reason, voted against Redistricting in Indiana, in a District that I won by 39 points, which puts the United States Congress in jeopardy.”
Trump’s post said he would give “my Complete and Total Endorsement” to Blake Fiechter, a Bluffton City Council member whom the post called “a True America First Patriot.”
Holdman, who has been in the Senate since 2008, is the chamber’s third-ranking member as majority caucus chair and also is chair of the influential Tax and Fiscal Policy Committee.
Holdman is seeking reelection in Senate District 19 that includes all or parts of Adams, Allen, Blackford, Jay and Wells counties in northeastern Indiana.
Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Gov. Mike Braun and other redistricting supporters have repeatedly threatened political vengeance against Republican legislators who opposed Trump’s demand for a redrawing of Indiana’s U.S. House maps aimed at helping the GOP win all nine seats.
“We could have easily picked up two seats in Indiana, so Holdman, an America Last politician, put our Majority in the House of Representatives at risk, thereby putting our Country in a very dangerous position in losing some of the magnificent gains that we have made over the last year,” Trump’s post said.
Holdman did not immediately reply Friday to messages from the Indiana Capital Chronicle seeking comment.
Holdman made himself a Trump target in November by announcing: “The message from my district has been clear — they do not support mid-cycle redistricting, and therefore I cannot support it.”
He was among 21 Republicans who joined all 10 Democratic senators in opposing the redistricting plan when it failed in a 31-19 vote on Dec. 11.
Trump’s endorsement of Fiechter is the first the president has made since he started making his political threats months ago.
Fiechter is a real estate broker who is in his first term as an at-large member of Bluffton’s city council after winning election in 2023.
Fiechter did not immediately respond to email messages seeking comment about his political plans.
He had not filed a candidacy for the Senate seat or opened a state campaign fundraising committee by midday Friday, according to Indiana Election Division online records. The candidate filing deadline for the May primary is Feb. 6.
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The Indiana Capital Chronicle is an independent, nonprofit news organization dedicated to giving Hoosiers a comprehensive look inside state government, policy and elections. The site combines daily coverage with in-depth scrutiny, political awareness and insightful commentary.
