Voter Turnout Doubled, 40,000+ Doors Knocked, and What Comes Next

Wednesday, May 6, 2026

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Indianapolis, IN — The 2026 Democratic primary in Indiana's 7th Congressional District produced the largest contested primary turnout in the district's recent history, the result of fourteen months of sustained grassroots organizing that began long before any other campaign in this race was active.

 

Not yet counting provisional and military ballots and with 100% of precincts reporting, 71,628 Democratic ballots were cast for Tuesday's primary which is more than double the 33,891 cast in 2024 and nearly double any recent midterm primary cycle.

 

The Number That Matters Most

Taken together, the three challengers received approximately 38 percent of the Democratic primary vote against an 18-year incumbent with every institutional advantage. In a head-to-head race, that is a fundamentally different result. The combined anti-incumbent signal from Tuesday's primary is the clearest indication in two decades that this district is ready for something different.

 

Rep. André Carson won Tuesday's primary with approximately 62 percent of the vote, 29-point and 31 point drops, respectively from his 2024 and 2022 primaries where he faced nominal opposition. 

 

What Drove the Surge

Marion County early in-person voting reached 19,857 ballots before Election Day which is nearly equal to the combined early vote totals of 2022 and 2024. Approximately 90 percent were on the Democratic side.

 

The congressional race drew more Democratic votes than any other race on the Marion County ballot, including the countywide Clerk and Sheriff races, which cover the full county rather than just the nine townships within Indiana's 7th District. Those countywide races were announced months before Election Day. The Hornedo campaign had been organizing for fourteen months.

 

No other race on Tuesday's Marion County Democratic ballot had this level of sustained year-round organizing behind it. The township trustee races, state senate races, and countywide races that also appeared on the ballot were largely announced months ago with limited field infrastructure. The congressional race was the only one with a full-cycle ground operation behind it.

 

Over fourteen months, the Hornedo campaign knocked more than 40,000 doors, made more than 1.7 million voter outreach attempts, had more than 16,000 direct one-on-one conversations with district residents, deployed nearly 2,000 signs across the district, and sent five rounds of texts to a universe of roughly 100,000 registered voters. All of this was funded entirely by individual donors with no corporate PAC money—$269,000 raised against Rep. Carson's $792,000.

 

The Hornedo campaign set the narrative on issues of community concern—from opposing new data centers to abolishing ICE—moving opponents including Congressman Carson to publicly reverse positions. Both reversals are documented and on the record.

 

In George's Words

"When you knock 40,000 doors and have 16,000 real conversations, you don't just ask people to vote for you. You remind them that their voice matters. Some of those people voted for me. More of them voted for someone else. But nearly 72,000 people showed up to a Democratic primary in a district that has been told for years that showing up doesn't matter. That’s what this campaign was always about. We built something real. I’m not going anywhere. We’re not done."

 

Community Voices

Overnight and this morning, the campaign has received heartfelt testimonials about the impact on the Hornedo campaign on them and their communities. Examples include:

 

• “We voted for you over in Lawrence! We believe in your message so deeply and are relieved to see someone like you finally being the voice of our concerns, thoughts, and morals. This is just the beginning! I look forward to see what you will do in time. It’s kinda silly, but Cherie Devaux’s story from the Kentucky Derby sticks out to me with her tenacity compared to you. I’m from Kentucky so bear with me lol and now she’s the first woman trainer to have won the derby because she never gave up. I hope you know how many people you have shaped here in Indy just by running this year alone. A lot of us have felt unrepresented, unheard, unvalued. Think of the continued impact as you keep going and the validation you bring to people’s spirit big and small, especially in this time. Thank you for being a true voice of the people here in our city!!!”

 

• “I know what it’s like to be on the ballot and not like the results, but I appreciate you being so authentic and forthcoming about the way you thought about the election throughout the process. It helped me to read about it. Being a candidate can be an act of love, and your love is never wasted.”

 

• “Solid fight! I would support you any day because I have seen how hard you would work for your people. In a genuine and hopeful nature. We are behind the next climb (whether you want to go for it or not).”

 

Looking Ahead

The redistricting landscape in Indiana has shifted materially following Tuesday's state senate results, in which five of seven Trump-backed challengers defeated Republican incumbents which dramatically reshapes redistricting decisions in the state legislature. Combined with a recent Supreme Court ruling on the Voting Rights Act, the likelihood of another redistricting effort targeting Indiana's 7th District has increased.

 

Hornedo has already begun conversations about the organizational infrastructure needed to protect the district and expand Democratic power in Indiana ahead of the 2028 cycle. The work of rebuilding civic participation in this community doesn’t begin and end with one election cycle.