Indiana's 8th congressional district
Indiana's 8th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Indiana. Based in southwest and west central Indiana, the district is anchored in Evansville and also includes Jasper, Princeton, Terre Haute, Vincennes, and Washington.
| Indiana's 8th congressional district | |
|---|---|
Indiana's 8th congressional district - since January 3, 2023. | |
| Representative | |
| Area | 7,041.64 sq mi (18,237.8 km2) |
| Distribution |
|
| Population (2022) | 752,244 |
| Median household income | $61,601[1] |
| Ethnicity |
|
| Cook PVI | R+19[2] |
Previously referred to as "The Bloody Eighth" at the local (and sometimes national) levels (see below for explanation), it was formerly a notorious swing district. However, due to a political realignment, it has in recent elections become a safe Republican district. With a Cook Partisan Voting Index rating of R+19, it is one of the most Republican districts in Indiana.[2]
Election results from presidential races edit
| Year | Office | Results |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | President | George W. Bush 57% - Al Gore 42% |
| 2004 | President | George W. Bush 62% - John Kerry 38% |
| 2008 | President | John McCain 50.6% - Barack Obama 48.1% |
| 2012 | President | Mitt Romney 58.4% - Barack Obama 39.6% |
| 2016 | President | Donald Trump 64.6% - Hillary Clinton 30.9% |
| 2020 | President | Donald Trump 65.1% - Joe Biden 33.1% |
Composition edit
| # | County | Seat | Population |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Clay | Brazil | 26,556 |
| 13 | Crawford | English | 10,713 |
| 14 | Daviess | Greenfield | 30,726 |
| 19 | Dubois | Jasper | 41,889 |
| 23 | Fountain | Covington | 16,351 |
| 26 | Gibson | Princeton | 39,750 |
| 28 | Greene | Bloomfield | 33,750 |
| 42 | Knox | Vincennes | 38,920 |
| 51 | Martin | Shoals | 10,370 |
| 59 | Orange | Paoli | 19,867 |
| 60 | Owen | Spencer | 21,790 |
| 61 | Parke | Rockville | 17,250 |
| 62 | Perry | Tell City | 19,332 |
| 63 | Pike | Petersburg | 12,845 |
| 65 | Posey | Mt. Vernon | 27,500 |
| 74 | Spencer | Rockport | 20,952 |
| 77 | Sullivan | Sullivan | 21,750 |
| 82 | Vanderburgh | Evansville | 191,220 |
| 83 | Vermillion | Newport | 16,790 |
| 84 | Vigo | Terre Haute | 105,900 |
| 87 | Warrick | Boonville | 59,700 |
As of 2023, Indiana's 8th congressional district is located in southwest and west central Indiana. It includes Clay, Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Gibson, Greene, Knox, Martin, Orange, Owen, Parke, Perry, Pike, Posey, Spencer, Sullivan, Vanderburgh, Vermillion, Vigo, and Warrick Counties, and half of Fountain.
Fountain County is split between this district and the 4th district. They are partitioned on the western border by Indiana State Rt 32, East Prairie Chapel Rd, and South New Liberty Rd, and on the southeastern border by North Sandhill Rd, Indiana West 260N, North Portland Arch Rd, West County Home Rd, and Indiana West 450N. The 8th district takes in the 5 townships of Fulton, Jackson, Millcreek, Van Buren, and Wabash, as well as most of the township of Troy and part of the township of Cain.
Cities of 10,000 or more people edit
(2010 Census)
- Evansville - 117,429
- Terre Haute - 60,785
- Vincennes - 18,423
- Jasper - 15,038
- Washington - 11,509
2,500 - 10,000 people edit
(2010 Census)
- Princeton - 8,644
- Brazil - 7,912
- Tell City - 7,272
- Mt. Vernon - 6,687
- Boonville - 6,246
- Linton - 5,413
- Clinton - 4,893
- North Terre Haute - 4,305
- Sullivan - 4,249
- Newburgh - 3,325
- Fort Branch - 2,771
- Bicknell - 2,892
History edit
Based in Evansville, the 8th Congressional District was widened when Indiana lost a seat after the 2000 U.S. Census to include much of the former 5th and 7th Congressional Districts. At that time, Bloomington (the home of former U.S. Representative Frank McCloskey) was moved into the 9th Congressional District, while the 8th Congressional District was extended northward to include much of the former 7th Congressional District in west-central Indiana, including Terre Haute. As a result of this expansion, the district is the largest in area in Indiana with all or part of 18 counties.
The district has been nicknamed "The Bloody Eighth" because of a series of hard-fought campaigns and political reversals. Unlike most other districts in the state, which tend to give their representatives long tenures in Washington, the 8th Congressional District has a reputation for frequently ousting incumbents from both parties.[3] Since 1983, no one has held the seat or its predecessors for longer than 12 years. Voters in the district ousted six incumbents from 1966 to 1982. The election in 1984 was so close that the House of Representatives itself determined which of two candidates to seat, accepting the recommendation of the Democratic-controlled House task force sent to Indiana to count the ballots. Democratic incumbent Frank McCloskey ultimately won by a margin of four votes out of 233,000 cast.[4] After that, McCloskey was reelected four more times before losing to Republican John Hostettler in 1994, amid the Republican Revolution. Hostettler represented the district for six terms before being defeated in a landslide by moderate Democrat Brad Ellsworth in 2006. It was the first district picked up by the Democrats that year, and was one of thirty nationwide that they gained while regaining control of the House.[5] Ellsworth ran unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate in 2010 and was succeeded by Republican Larry Bucshon in the same election cycle and has since become the first representative of the district to surpass six terms. Although Southern Indiana is ancestrally Democratic, the Democrats in this area are nowhere near as liberal as their counterparts in the rest of the state. Historically, it had a character similar to Yellow Dog Democrat districts in neighboring Kentucky. The district also has a strong tint of social conservatism.
In 2000, a New York Times reporter said of the district: "With a populist streak and a conservative bent, this district does not cotton to country club Republicans or to social-engineering liberals," and also said, "More than 95 percent white and about 41 percent rural, the region shares much of the flavor of the Bible Belt."[6]
In 2013, the district shifted and was pushed southward toward Evansville, losing Fountain and Warren Counties, and gaining Dubois, Perry, and Spencer Counties, and a portion of Crawford County, uniting southwestern Indiana under one district.
In 2023, the district regained some its former territory, pushing back into Fountain County, but also gained the remainder of Crawford County and the entirety of Orange County from the 9th District.
List of members representing the district edit
Election results edit
2002 edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | John Hostettler* | 98,952 | 51.31 | |
| Democratic | Bryan Hartke | 88,763 | 46.02 | |
| Libertarian | Pam Williams | 5,150 | 2.67 | |
| Total votes | 192,865 | 100.00 | ||
| Turnout | ||||
| Republican hold | ||||
2004 edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | John Hostettler* | 145,576 | 53.37 | |
| Democratic | Jon Jennings | 121,522 | 44.55 | |
| Libertarian | Mark Garvin | 5,680 | 2.08 | |
| Total votes | 272,778 | 100.00 | ||
| Turnout | ||||
| Republican hold | ||||
2006 edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Brad Ellsworth | 131,019 | 61.02 | |||
| Republican | John Hostettler* | 83,704 | 38.98 | |||
| Total votes | 214,723 | 100.00 | ||||
| Turnout | ||||||
| Democratic gain from Republican | ||||||
2008 edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Brad Ellsworth* | 189,109 | 64.75 | |
| Republican | Greg Goode | 102,940 | 35.25 | |
| Total votes | 292,049 | 100.00 | ||
| Turnout | ||||
| Democratic hold | ||||
2010 edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Larry Bucshon | 117,259 | 57.55 | |||
| Democratic | Trent Van Haaften | 76,265 | 37.43 | |||
| Libertarian | John Cunningham | 10,240 | 5.03 | |||
| Total votes | 203,764 | 100.00 | ||||
| Turnout | ||||||
| Republican gain from Democratic | ||||||
2012 edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Larry Bucshon* | 151,533 | 53.36 | |
| Democratic | Dave Crooks | 122,325 | 43.07 | |
| Libertarian | Bart Gadau | 10,134 | 3.57 | |
| Total votes | 283,992 | 100.00 | ||
| Turnout | ||||
| Republican hold | ||||
2014 edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Larry Bucshon (Incumbent) | 103,344 | 60.32 | |
| Democratic | Tom Spangler | 61,384 | 35.83 | |
| Libertarian | Andrew Horning | 6,587 | 3.84 | |
| Total votes | 171,315 | 100 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
2016 edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Larry Bucshon (Incumbent) | 187,702 | 63.69 | |
| Democratic | Ronald L. Drake | 93,356 | 31.68 | |
| Libertarian | Andrew Horning | 13,655 | 4.63 | |
| Total votes | 294,713 | 100 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
2018 edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Larry Bucshon (Incumbent) | 157,396 | 64.4 | |
| Democratic | William Tanoos | 86,895 | 35.6 | |
| Total votes | 244,291 | 100 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
2020 edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Larry Bucshon (incumbent) | 214,643 | 66.9 | |
| Democratic | Thomasina Marsili | 95,691 | 29.8 | |
| Libertarian | James D. Rodenberger | 10,283 | 3.2 | |
| Total votes | 320,617 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
Historical district boundaries edit
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "Congressional District 8, IN - Profile data". Census Reporter. Retrieved October 5, 2023.
- ^ a b "2022 Cook PVI: District Map and List". Cook Political Report. Retrieved January 10, 2023.
- ^ Brush, Silla (January 8, 2006). . U.S. News & World Report. Archived from the original on April 6, 2012. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
- ^ Risen, James (October 29, 1986). . Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 22, 2020. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
- ^ "Democrats pick up key House seat in Indiana". CNN.com. Retrieved January 7, 2007.
- ^ Dirk Johnson, "The 2000 Campaign: An Indiana Race; Conservatives Face Off in Quirky Populist District", New York Times, October 10, 2000
- ^ "Indiana Election Results November 3, 2020". Indiana Election Division. Retrieved November 26, 2020.
- Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
- Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.