With the window opening on Jan. 7 for Republican and Democratic candidates to file for the 2026 elections, an Indiana nonpartisan nonprofit is offering a suggestion for engaging voters and making elected officials more responsive to their constituents: fill the ballot with people who do not belong to either party.

Leaders of an Indiana group aimed at supporting independent political candidates say the state’s time in the national congressional redistricting spotlight gives them hope that the Legislature will advance election reforms.

INDIANAPOLIS — An initiative aimed at promoting independent candidates in Indiana released a new study on Monday, one that the organization hopes to help Indiana out of a period of what they call “sustained political stagnation.”

A comprehensive new study from Independent Indiana provides an in-depth, illuminating examination of the issues negatively affecting Indiana elections – as well as some bold, achievable recommendations on how to make them more competitive and accessible.

Over the past few months, Independent Indiana, the nonpartisan organization I lead, has been conducting a study on how to restore competition to Indiana’s elections. To understand the landscape clearly, we sought frank assessments of both major parties. We interviewed two sitting members of the Indiana General Assembly—one Republican and one Democrat—along with a Republican mayor, granting each anonymity in exchange for their candor.

A recent poll reveals that 41% of Hoosiers now identify as independents, making them the state's largest political bloc, yet not a single one holds a seat in Washington or the Indiana Statehouse.

Discover the surprising history behind these laws—which 67% of voters deem unfair—and why they were rooted in petty political revenge.

In response to Governor Mike Braun’s call for a special legislative session to redraw Indiana’s Congressional maps, Independent Indiana executive director Nathan Gotsch releases statement.

WTHR's Crossroad Politics covers Independent Indiana's recent polling data.

Recent polling from Independent Indiana shows discontent and low approval ratings for Republicans. Independent Indiana's Nathan Gotsch discusses the polling data, and what it means for politics in Indiana.

New polling shows dissatisfaction with Indiana's political leadership and direction. Nathan Gotsch joins the Kendall & Casey Show to discuss.

A new statewide survey of Indiana registered voters finds deep dissatisfaction with the state’s political leadership and direction, with many Hoosiers — including a quarter of Republicans — saying Indiana is headed in the wrong direction.

A majority of Hoosiers think redistricting in Indiana right now is the wrong way to go.

Another poll concluded that a majority of Hoosiers oppose a GOP effort to redraw congressional maps ahead of the 2026 midterms, a move that would potentially eliminate two seats held by Democrats.

A new statewide poll shows Hoosier voters overwhelmingly oppose redrawing Indiana’s Congressional districts in 2025—less than five years after the most recent redistricting—and instead want lawmakers to focus on reforms that make elections fairer and more competitive.

A new survey of Indiana voters finds broad concern with current election rules—majorities oppose mid-decade redistricting, view the signature burden on independents as unfair, and see straight-ticket voting as harmful. The memo from Whit Ayres and Dan Judy summarizes these sentiments from a statewide sample conducted in early October 2025.

Noted political author and former Republican congressional nominee Sheila Kennedy turns her attention to a growing movement challenging Indiana's one-party rule. Citing the success of local leaders like Huntington Mayor Richard Strick, Kennedy explores how a new organization is betting on Independent candidates to give voters a real choice at the polls.

Today marks the four-week anniversary of Independent Indiana.

In just under a month, we’ve already seen incredible momentum, including multiple Hoosiers who've reached out to us to say they want to run for office next year as independents.

Independent Indiana works to support and connect independent candidates across the state.

The leader of a new organization focused on independent candidates said voters need to know they have options besides the Republican and Democratic parties.

On Monday, September 22nd, Independent Indiana hosted a panel discussion with three Independent elected officials in Indiana.

Read the transcript and watch the video!

Will Conway, who has helped build independent movements across the country, has signed on as the group’s new director of operations. He arrives in Indiana just hours before Independent Indiana hosts its first in-person event tonight in Indianapolis.

In the August edition of Forefront, Bill Taft wrote about his fear that Indianapolis was in a “civic leadership recession.” His column generated significant conversation in the circles I’m privileged to move in—I think because he put into words what so many people have been feeling.

On Thursday, September 18th, Independent Indiana hosted a panel discussion with two national leaders in the independent movement.

Read the transcript and watch the video!

Former congressional candidate Nathan Gotsch is now leading Independent Indiana, a new group working to boost visibility for independents.

Huntington Mayor Richard Strick talks with WOWO’s Kayla Blakeslee.

Meredith Hacker from WRTV reports on Independent Indiana, a new group looking to make Indiana elections more competitive.

Independent Indiana is working to turn down the temperature on political disagreement by getting more independent candidates on the ballot, its leaders say.

Host Brandon Smith leads a discussion of the launch of Independent Indiana on the September 14 episode of Indiana Week in Review, a statewide program broadcast on PBS stations.

A new group aimed at encouraging independent candidates in Indiana will launch a statewide ad campaign.

Independent Indiana's ad is meant to highlight the appeal of nonpartisan leaders.

Independent Indiana is launching a new statewide TV ad campaign to highlight the impact of independent leadership.

The 30-second ad, airing next week, features Huntington residents sharing their experiences under independent Mayor Richard Strick.

Independent Indiana is building on the momentum of its launch last week with a new statewide television ad campaign showcasing what it looks like when communities elect independent leaders.

13News anchor Dustin Grove talked with Nathan Gotsch, who founded Independent Indiana after years of conversations with voters and elected officials across the state.

It’s not every day you share political info with a longtime party insider—in this case, a former Indiana Republican State Party chair—that genuinely shocks them. But that’s exactly what I experienced earlier this year.

Nathan Gotsch talks with WOWO’s Kayla Blakeslee about Independent Indiana.

A nonpartisan initiative looking to make Indiana elections more competitive is trying to boost independent candidates with a billboard campaign advertising a little-known fact: in the past two years, they won more of their races than Democrats.

A new initiative — Independent Indiana — launched Tuesday to help spotlight and provide resources to Hoosiers who are running, and winning, as independents.

The idea began when Executive Director Nathan Gotsch, himself a 2022 independent candidate for Congress, dug into election results across the state.

Indiana has become a one-party state, where most elections are effectively decided in the primary. A new initiative, Independent Indiana, is launching today to help change that by spotlighting and providing resources to the surprisingly large number of Hoosiers who are running — and winning — as independents.

The board of directors of the Center for Independent and Effective Government recently voted to hire Nathan Gotsch as the new executive director of Independent Indiana, the statewide initiative focused on empowering independent leaders and restoring competitive elections to the state.

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