Winning an election in Bloomington is one thing. Winning the rest of the county? That’s where the math gets messy. If you spent election night 2024 watching the Monroe County Indiana election results trickling in, you probably saw a familiar blue wave. But honestly, the "Blue Island" narrative is starting to show some interesting cracks, especially when you look at how the early vote differs from the folks who show up on Tuesday morning.
Most people assume Monroe is a lock for Democrats because of Indiana University. While that's mostly true for the big-ticket items, the 2024 cycle proved that local dynamics—like the never-ending drama over Bloomington’s annexation efforts—are actually moving the needle more than national politics in some precincts.
The 2024 Breakdown: Top of the Ticket vs. Local Reality
In the race for the White House, the county did what it usually does. Kamala Harris pulled in roughly 37,180 votes. Donald Trump hovered around 21,200. It looks like a blowout, right? But the nuance is in the "under-performance."
Take the County Commissioner District 2 race. Julie Thomas, an incumbent Democrat, won her seat. But it wasn't a coronation. She actually out-polled Harris in some of the more conservative rural pockets. Why? Because she’s been a vocal opponent of the city’s annexation plans. Voters who would never dream of voting for a Democrat for President were willing to check her name because she’s fighting the same local battles they are.
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On the flip side, we saw some real drama in the State Representative District 62 race. Thomas Horrocks (D) carried Monroe County with a solid 56% majority (about 14,401 votes). But Monroe isn't a world unto itself. Once you factored in the numbers from Brown and Jackson counties, Dave Hall (R) took the seat by a slim 2-point margin. It’s a classic example of how Monroe's voting power can be diluted when the lines stretch into the surrounding "Red Wall."
The "Red" Election Day and the "Blue" Early Vote
Here is a weird stat for you: If we only counted votes cast on Election Day, Joe Van Deventer (R) would have likely won the District 3 County Commissioner seat. He actually led Jody Madeira (D) among Tuesday-only voters with about 50.1% of that specific tally.
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But Madeira crushed the early voting and absentee categories. Because Monroe County residents—especially those in the city—tend to vote early at much higher rates, the Election Day "red shift" wasn't enough to save the GOP candidates. Madeira ended up with a comfortable 59% of the total vote.
Key Winners in the 2024 General Election:
- County Commissioner District 2: Julie Thomas (D)
- County Commissioner District 3: Jody Madeira (D)
- County Council At-Large: Trent Deckard (D), Cheryl Munson (D), and David Henry (D)
- Circuit Court Clerk: Nicole Browne (D) continued her influence, though her efforts were largely focused on turnout.
- County Coroner: Jeff Hall (D) - Unopposed.
- County Surveyor: Trohn Enright-Randolph (D) - Unopposed.
Why 2026 Could Look Very Different (Redistricting)
If you think the Monroe County Indiana election results are predictable, you've gotta look at what’s happening in the Statehouse right now. There is a massive push for redistricting heading into the 2026 midterms.
Currently, Monroe is the anchor of the 9th Congressional District, represented by Erin Houchin (R). However, new maps proposed in late 2025 aim to shift Monroe into District 8. This would group Bloomington with more of Southwest Indiana. Essentially, the goal of the GOP-led General Assembly is to "crack" the Democratic stronghold of Monroe so its impact on a single district is minimized.
IU professor Paul Helmke has been pretty vocal about this, calling it a move to "choose the voters" rather than letting the voters choose the reps. If these maps hold, your 2026 ballot is going to look wildly different.
The Student ID Problem
There's another hurdle that just popped up. A new Indiana law, effective July 1, 2025, officially tossed out student IDs as an acceptable form of identification for voting.
Think about that. In the 2024 election, roughly two-thirds of student voters at IU used their Crimson Cards to vote. Without that option, the 2026 turnout in precincts 1 through 10 (the campus core) could plummet unless there is a massive push for state-issued IDs or passports. This is a huge "limitation" on the Democratic base in Monroe County that most pundits are ignoring.
Practical Steps for Monroe County Voters
If you want to make sense of the Monroe County Indiana election results and stay ahead of the 2026 shift, you need to do more than just show up in November.
- Check your status by July 2026: With the redistricting chaos, your precinct or district might change. Don't wait for a mailer that might not come. Use the Indiana Voters Portal to see exactly who will be on your next ballot.
- Get a Real ID now: If you're a student or someone who relies on non-standard ID, go to the BMV before the 2026 rush. The "no student ID" rule is a hard line.
- Watch the County Council meetings: Local results show that "annexation" and "justice center" spending are the two things that actually flip voters from Red to Blue or vice-versa. The big national news is a distraction from the stuff that changes your property tax bill.
- Volunteer for the Election Board: Monroe County often needs poll workers, especially in the rural townships like Bean Blossom and Polk where the GOP presence is stronger and the logistics are harder.
The 2024 results proved that while the county is "Blue," it’s not a monolith. The gap between city and rural voting patterns is widening, and with the 2026 redistricting on the horizon, the political geography of Monroe is about to get a whole lot more complicated.