Sen. Deery’s 3-vote margin holds; county prepares for recount in Trump-driven primary
Deery: ‘It feels good to have it official.’ Attorney for Copenhaver’s campaign sends instructions to clerks telling them to hold onto everything ‘anticipating the likelihood’ of a recount.
Two Tippecanoe County provisional ballots – the final ones left to consider in the slim margin in Indiana Senate District 23 after the May 5 primary – were deemed invalid by the county election board and not counted Friday afternoon, leaving state Sen. Spencer Deery’s victory over Republican challenger Paula Copenhaver at three votes.
County election officials said they anticipated and were preparing for a call for a recount – already walking through with Indiana State Police how ballot readers have been stored and locked and fielding correspondence from Copenhaver’s side “anticipating the likelihood” that a review would be requested.
The final tally, after a week of election board hearings across six counties to shore up provisional ballots and signature questions on mail-in ballots before final results were certified by a 3 p.m. Friday deadline, was 6,337-6,334 in Deery’s favor. Copenhaver won in five of the six counties in Senate District 23.
The race took on a national profile, as one of seven Indiana Senate primaries that featured incumbents targeted by President Donald Trump and his allies for not backing a White House push to redraw Indiana’s congressional maps to boost Republican chances to pick up seats in the U.S. House. Deery had been particularly outspoken in his opposition to mid-decade redistricting. Copenhaver picked up a Trump endorsement and the support of millions of dollars in dark money trying to pull Deery down.
If Deery’s win survives a recount, he would be one of two incumbent senators who survived that Trump-fueled pressure. Five others were beaten soundly in their primaries.
Also if Deery’s win holds up, it would be the second consecutive Senate District 23 primary that he beat Copenhaver. Copenhaver, the former Fountain County clerk and current Fountain County Republican Party chair, finished third in a four-candidate primary in 2022.
“It feels good to have it official, and I hope every supporter takes pride in knowing that the hours they volunteered, the donations they made, and the votes they cast truly made a difference in pushing back against outside influence in our state elections,” Deery said Friday afternoon, after the Tippecanoe County Election Board certified results.
“But to everything there is a season, and now is the time to heal, to move forward together, and to focus on the issues voters care most about — from the cost of energy and childcare to the challenges facing our educational system,” Deery said. “I am ready to continue making the case that I am the candidate with the experience, temperament and opportunity to best help our communities address these issues and move our state forward.”
Copenhaver, who had predicted on Election Night that provisional ballots counted after May 5 would tip the final numbers her way, did not immediately respond Friday about whether or when she plans to file for a recount.
But letter sent two days after the primary by William Bock III, with the Indianapolis-based firm Kroger Gardis & Regas, to county clerks across the district – obtained by Based in Lafayette – requested that they “retain and preserve all documents, data and communications related to the 2026 Primary Election in your county.” The law firm has been retained by Copenhaver’s campaign.
