Gay Indiana State Sen. J.D. Ford Wins Congressional Primary
Indiana State Sen. J.D. Ford (D-Carmel) won the Democratic nomination for Indiana’s 5th Congressional District in the May 5 primary election.
Ford, the first openly gay person elected to the Indiana General Assembly, will face Republican U.S. Rep. Victoria Spartz in the general election. In 2019, he proposed a bill to protect minors from conversion therapy. A year later, he introduced legislation to prohibit schools that discriminate against LGBTQ people or other protected groups from receiving taxpayer-funded school vouchers.
The 5th Congressional District is rated R+8, meaning it typically votes about eight points more Republican than the national average. It is generally considered a “safe” Republican district.
However, the suburban district also has a relatively high level of educational attainment — a metric often seen as favorable for Democrats, as college-educated voters have increasingly backed Democratic candidates during the Trump era.
In the Republican-friendly election cycl…