Indiana U.S. Rep. Victoria Spartz’s town hall in Muncie met with protests
U.S. Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-Indiana) held a series of town halls this weekend, the only Republican House member in the country to do so after GOP leadership suggested House members not hold them. As IPR’s Thomas Ouellette reports, her arrival in Muncie on Saturday was met with loud protests.
Hundreds of protestors gathered outside of Muncie City Hall, chanting”Do your job!” yelling “USA!” and holding signs saying “Fire Elon” and “No kings.”
Inside the city auditorium, Spartz faced much booing and jeering from the crowd after stating she blames political division in government on Democrats.
“There is no bipartisanship right now because of President Trump. Democrats don’t want to work with us. That is sad, that’s a sad reality,” she said.
Spartz also supports the actions of the Elon Musk-led “Department of Government Efficiency,” saying, “I love them and they’re very good, and doing a good job for you, and someday you will appreciate.”
Protestors gather outside of Muncie City Hall, where U.S. Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-Indiana) was holding a town hall. (Thomas Ouellette / IPR)
One member of the audience interrupted Spartz and continued to be disruptive even after being warned by security. After attempting to stand on one of the tables next to Spartz, the attendee was subdued by several officers and escorted out of the building.
The audience brought up many topics, including the Ukrainian congresswoman’s stance on the war in her native country. They said, “I just wonder why you don’t support your own people.”
Spartz answered the question by stating that while she may be from Ukraine, her priority as an American congresswoman is American interests.
“I want us to be stronger, I want NATO to be strong, but the Europeans need to be stronger too,” Spartz said. “Now NATO allies need to step up to Americans.”
Spartz was also questioned about the future of the state’s education services, as the Trump administration has taken steps to downsize and practically dismantle the US Department of Education. A student with autism from Pendleton Heights High School told Spartz he was worried about losing access to his Individualized Education Program, and asked her what she would do to deliver results to students like him.
Spartz said she believes the current education system is broken and that she supports President Trump’s actions.
“Education has to become better for everyone and the states need to do a better job. ” Spartz said. “So I fully support what President Trump is doing to actually eliminate federal bureaucracy and send money back to kids, to schools and to teachers to educate children better.”
Some town hall attendees like Uther Henderson felt underwhelmed by the congresswoman’s responses.
“We had a lot of questions about healthcare, a lot of questions about social security, and she really just dodged a lot of those questions. It was really disappointing to see from an elected official.”
An audience member is removed from the meeting for being disruptive, after attempting to stand on a table near the front. (Thomas Ouellette / IPR)
Spartz is so far the only GOP House member to hold a town hall after House Speaker Mike Johnson encouraged GOP members to skip town halls, calling attendees “professional protesters.”
On Friday night, Spartz held another town hall in Westfield. There, she was also met with a full room of attendees and hundreds protesting outside.
Spartz did not see such large crowds with her 2024 series of town halls, even after her arrest at Washington Dulles International airport for the unloaded handgun she had in a carry-on bag.
Spartz was first elected to the 5th District that covers parts of Hamilton, Delaware and Madison counties in 2020. Before that, Spartz served in the Indiana Senate.
Thomas Ouellette is our reporter and producer. Contact him at [email protected]
