Voters in Indiana District 23 will choose between three candidates this November to represent them in the Indiana Senate. The district covers parts of Tippecanoe, Montgomery, Vermillion, Parke, Warren and Fountain counties.
Democrat David Sanders, a Purdue University professor, ran unopposed for his party's nomination. Sanders also ran for the seat in 2022.
Independent Joshua Brant announced he was approved to appear on the ballot in late July.
Republican incumbent Spencer Deery also aims to keep his seat. It was unclear for months whether or not he would be on the ballot.
The seat was hotly contested among republicans after Deery voted against President Donald Trump's push to redraw congressional districts mid-cycle to favor his party in the midterms.
That led the Trump administration to support Paula Copenhaver during the primary. She then challenged his three-vote win, and it was ultimately flipped by the Indiana Recount Commission.
Deery then appealed the decision to the Indiana Supreme Court. The court declared him the winner, ending the months-long legal battle over who is the rightful winner in Indiana's 23rd Senate District primary.
There are 50 members of the Indiana Senate. Their job is to work alongside the governor and the Indiana House of Representatives to create laws and set the state budget. They serve four-year terms, and in Indiana there is no limit on the number of terms a senator can serve.
WFYI opened an ongoing voter survey in May, and the most common voting issues were data center policy, affordability, and feeling disempowered.
WFYI contacted each campaign and sent a survey based on voter questions — it asked candidates for their top priorities and their positions on redistricting, affordability and civic health. For candidates who did not respond, information was gathered from websites and social media for a "Top priorities" note. Candidates are listed in alphabetical order.
Joshua Brant
Personal information provided by candidate.
Party: Independent
Website: electjoshuabrant.org
Age: 44
Occupation: Stay-at-home dad
Residence: West Lafayette
Top donors (via Transparency USA):
- Joshua R Brant (self)
- Kayla Brant S Brant
- Amanda R Lair
Brant accepted WFYI's invitation to take a survey. WFYI fact checked statements about publicly available data.
If elected, what are your top policy priorities?
Government transparency & accountability, education reform, and reducing the cost of living are my top three, but opposing unchecked data center development and flock cameras are top priorities as well.
Many voters told us they struggle to afford food, housing and healthcare. If elected, how would you help them address those needs?
If elected, I would help Hoosiers afford food, housing, and healthcare by implementing practical reforms that lower everyday costs. My tax restructuring plan is designed to reduce the financial burden on families while creating an economic reinforcing loop that strengthens existing agricultural markets and opens new ones, helping farmers, small businesses, and consumers alike.
On healthcare, my reform proposal focuses on lowering costs by holding insurance companies accountable, increasing price transparency, and creating a nonprofit public option that expands access. It also spreads the responsibility for fixing our broken healthcare system as thinly as possible so no single group bears the full weight. Together, these reforms aim to make life more affordable and more secure for every Hoosier household, and both of them are fully published on my website so every Hoosier can review the details for themselves.
Many voters told us they don't think today's politicians listen to their constituents. Why do you think that is, and how would you address the concern?
I couldn't agree more. Too many politicians have forgotten who they work for, and that's part of why I'm running: to remind them. I think this disconnect comes from spending too much time listening to party insiders and donors, and not enough time listening to the people they represent. I address that by reaching out to people and communities in my district, publishing my policy plans openly, and making constituent input the foundation of every decision. I'm also not beholden to partisan games as an independent, and have pledged not to take donations from corporate PACs or out-of-state interests. The theme of my campaign and the core of my commitment to Hoosiers is genuine representation.
If the redistricting issue comes up during the next legislative session and you've been elected, how would you vote on it, and why?
I don't support gerrymandering by either party. Politicians should never choose their voters. Voters should choose their politicians. I served my country to protect the rights of Americans, and my Oath of Enlistment didn't come with an expiration. Seeking to take away the voice of other Americans is about the least American thing you can do.
If redistricting comes up, I will vote for a fair, transparent process that keeps communities together and protects every Hoosier's right to representation.
Semper Fidelis.
Spencer Deery
Candidate did not fill out WFYI's survey.
Incumbent
Party: Republican
Website: spencerdeery.com
Age: 43
Occupation: Higher education consulting
Residence: West Lafayette
Top donors (via Transparency USA):
- Senate Majority Campaign Committee
- Indiana Realtors Political Action Committee
- Indiana Business for Responsive Government
- Indiana Multi Family Housing Political Action Committee
- Indiana BANKPAC - State Fund
Top priorities: Deery has previously emphasized the importance of making the state more affordable for Indiana residents as a chief priority. Other issues include education reforms, particularly attracting and retaining high-quality teachers to the state.
David Sanders
Personal information provided by candidate.
Party: Democrat
Website: davidsandersindiana.com
Age: 65
Occupation: Professor of Biological Sciences at Purdue University
Residence: West Lafayette
Top donors (via Transparency USA):
- Brian Leung
- Lisa Tarvin
- Matthew Erickson
- Mariyn Bauchat
- Joseph M Nield
Sanders accepted WFYI's invitation to take a survey. WFYI fact checked statements about publicly available data.
If elected, what are your top policy priorities?
I will continue to work towards greater accountability and transparency from State government, to support home rule and oppose state preemption, to encourage citizen participation in governance, and to defend education against those who wish to undermine it.
I will continue to oppose the corporate welfare that uses our taxpayer money to bribe companies to site data centers, semiconductor plants, and carbon-dioxide storage in communities that do not want them. I will continue to fight for clean water and against large-scale transfers of water. I will advocate for high-quality healthcare, public education, and broadband internet and telephone service for the rural areas of the district. In general, our rural areas have suffered from state neglect, and I will be a proponent for them.
Disastrous Senate Bill 1 simultaneously raised net property taxes for lower-assessed homes and starved schools and municipalities for money. The whole taxation system in Indiana needs to be reconsidered.
Supporting other people's family, marriage, and childbearing decisions.
Safeguarding taxpayer money. Protecting privacy rights, including medical privacy rights, is an issue for which I am known. I also will continue to focus on ensuring that veterans receive the benefits that they have earned.
Many voters told us they struggle to afford food, housing and healthcare. If elected, how would you help them address those needs?
State government should not be contributing to worsening the affordability crisis. Cutting SNAP and Medicaid eligibility and benefits and free school lunches for economically deprived children is unacceptable when there is a 1.9 billion dollar state budget surplus.
The access of women to health care is particularly vulnerable. Indiana has unacceptably high levels of maternal and infant mortality compared to the national average, and state laws have endangered women's health.
We have a new hospital in West Lafayette that will increase access to healthcare, and I have had extensive conversations with its leadership about ensuring cost transparency and affordability. I have also expressed my concerns about the closing of rural hospitals and its consequences, and as State Senator I will work with healthcare advocates to address accessibility issues.
I am a member of a coalition that is working to address homelessness in Tippecanoe County with innovative housing-based approaches and would continue to focus on this issue in the state Senate.
Many voters told us they don't think today's politicians listen to their constituents. Why do you think that is, and how would you address the concern?
I founded the Stop the Water Steal movement in response to the community's concerns about the transfer of up to 100 million gallons of water a day through a multibillion dollar pipeline to the LEAP-Lebanon project from aquifers associated with the Wabash River. We were successful in stopping the transfer because of coalition of groups that spanned the political spectrum. This achievement demonstrated that when people organize and work together across partisan barriers they can defend their communities.
I personally answer every message sent by constituents and meet with every resident who asks for a meeting, including with numerous Republican candidates.
As I go door-to-door throughout the district, I am told how refreshing it is to meet a candidate for state Senate personally. I have learned that people do not feel as if life has improved for them over the past four years.
The public is correct to conclude that many politicians are not listening to them but are merely proxies for their party leadership. The Republican primary in District 23 was a circus of absurd and false accusations and character assassination financed by dark-money Political Action Committees with no accountability to the voters. The advertisements from either of the Republican candidates made no attempt at adhering to ethical standards or the truth. In contrast, I will continue to strive to be the type of candidate for whom I would like to vote.
If the redistricting issue comes up during the next legislative session and you've been elected, how would you vote on it, and why?
It is nearly meaningless to say that one had opposed mid-decade redistricting in the past or would in the future. A truly principled approach would mean that the whole issue of partisan gerrymandering is addressed. I advocate for a ban on mid-decade redistricting. I support reforms that empower Indiana voters and restore confidence in the electoral process. I will sponsor legislation that creates a nonpartisan state redistricting commission that uses the principles of Equal Population, Compactness and Contiguity, and Respect for Existing Political Subdivisions and Communities of Common Interest.
I have been expressing my concerns about partisan redistricting for decades. It doesn't matter which political party is manipulating the process to its advantage. As we see with Senate District 23, gerrymandering leads to arrogance—the belief that nothing more than the outcome of the Republican primary matters. It's up to the voters of District 23 to prove that conclusion wrong.
Finally, the disenfranchisement of Senate District 23 voters has appalled people across the political spectrum. I will support legislation to ensure that there is never a recurrence of this type of assault on the democratic process.
NOTE: The association of David Sanders with Purdue University is included for identification purposes only and does not imply endorsement by Purdue University or any of its administrative units.
