The Indiana Supreme Court on Thursday overturned a 3-vote victory by Trump-backed candidate Paula Copenhaver and declared RINO incumbent Spencer Deery the winner of the state senate primary race.
Earlier this year, President Trump targeted Spencer Deery as part of his ‘RINO Revenge Tour’ after the Indiana Republican blocked a redraw of the state’s congressional map amid the redistricting wars.
Spencer Deery initially won by three votes; however, Copenhaver challenged several absentee ballots.
Last month, the Indiana Recount Commission tossed out six absentee ballots cast for Deery because they were missing mandatory county clerk initials.
Paula Copenhaver was declared the winner by three votes in Indiana’s 23rd Senate District after the recount commission’s decision.
Deery appealed the recount commission’s decision, and the Indiana Supreme Court ultimately vacated its order.
WFYI reported:
The Indiana Supreme Court has declared incumbent Senator Spencer Deery the winner of his primary race against Trump-backed Paula Copenhaver.
When reached for comment, Deery said the court’s decision made him proud.
“This was a lot bigger than me,” he said. “It says that Indiana is a place where if you do everything right as a voter: you vote, you check all the boxes, you show your ID, you register, your vote should count.”
Paula Copenhaver did not respond to WFYI’s request for comment.
The decision ends a months-long legal battle over who is the rightful winner in Indiana’s 23rd Senate District. The initial count in the close race ended with Deery just three votes ahead of Copenhaver.
Copenhaver quickly called for a recount, challenging ballots and calling for voters to be subpoenaed; she claimed they had crossed over and voted for Deery despite being long-time Democrats.
Spencer Deery celebrated the Indiana Supreme Court’s decision.
I am so proud to be a Hoosier and am obviously very pleased by the Indiana Supreme Court’s decision today, but this case was bigger than any of us who were involved with it.
We could never have secure elections in our state if our votes could be invalidated by government error… pic.twitter.com/6AlukjHm6P
— Spencer Deery (@SpencerDeery) September 10, 2026
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