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In a 31-18 vote, the Indiana Senate has passed another resolution calling for an Article V Convention. (Photo/file)

By Marilyn Odendahl
The Indiana Citizen
January 29, 2025

Despite warnings from some Republicans about term limits and about tinkering with the U.S. Constitution, state senators passed a resolution Monday that would add Indiana to the states calling for an Article V Convention to limit the number of terms people could serve in  Congress.

Senate Joint Resolution 21, co-authored by Republican Sens. Andy Zay, of Huntington, and Mike Young, of Indianapolis, passed the Indiana Senate on a 31-18 vote. All nine Democratic senators present were joined by nine Republican senators in opposing the measure.

Zay advocated for the joint resolution by contrasting what he said was the will of the people in supporting term limits with the lawmakers who spent decades on Capitol Hill, such as the late Sen. Strom Thurmond, R-South Carolina, who served just shy of 50 years and former Rep. Charles Rangel, D- New York, who served for over 45 years. Zay said 84% of Hoosiers are in favor of term limits for congressional members, although he didn’t cite the source of that information.

“I’m not saying they’re not qualified,” Zay said. “I’m not saying they shouldn’t have served, but after 51 years as a legislator, maybe there was somebody else in the state of West Virginia that could have replaced (the late Democratic Sen.) Robert Byrd.” Byrd served as a U.S. senator from that state from 1959 until his death in 2010, and before that served six years as a U.S. representative.

However, senators who were against SJR 21 talked about the risks of an Article V Convention and questioned why Indiana legislators wanted  to impose term limits on their congressional colleagues when they, themselves, can run for reelection as many times as they want. They warned that placing term limits on Congress could have unintended consequences and that delegates to a constitutional convention could upend the process by making radical changes to the U.S. Constitution.

Sen. Sue Glick, R-LaGrange, noted the country’s divisiveness and political discord would infect a gathering seeking to amend the Constitution.

“I think we need to consider the dangers of an Article V Convention in our political atmosphere that we exist in today,” Glick said. “This is not a vacuum. Do you think the First Amendment is going to survive? Do you think the Second Amendment is going to survive? Do you think you will have the same freedoms that were guaranteed to you? I don’t see all the same kind of intellects who will be attending this convention that attended the first one.”

SJR 21 invokes Article V of the U.S. Constitution to call upon Congress to convene a convention for the purpose of crafting an amendment imposing term limits on members of the U.S. House and U.S. Senate. If two-thirds of the states pass similar resolutions or bills, then Article V mandates that Capitol Hill call a convention.

Currently, Zay said, nine states have already passed measures advocating for an Article V Convention to write a term-limit amendment. Also, the senator tried to temper the opposition’s fears by asserting an actual convention would probably not take place, because Congress would be pressured into taking action on its own as more states add their names to the Article V Convention list.

“History has shown any time that this begins to gain traction that the federal legislators act and take care of the issue,” Zay said of past movements to hold Article V Conventions. “This isn’t a dark horse. This isn’t the end of our democracy.”

Republican Sens. Aaron Freeman, of Indianapolis, and Jim Tomes, of Wadesville, said terms limits and even just the call for a constitutional convention could bring unforeseen repercussions.

Freeman said the “swamp” on Capitol Hill will get “a whole lot swampier,” because the power will shift to the lobbyists and congressional staff members – who are not accountable to the voters – since they will benefit from the longevity of working in Washington, D.C., while congressional members cycle through. Tomes raised the specter of Capitol Hill retaliating by cutting funding to Indiana for roads and schools if the General Assembly passes the joint resolution.

Sen. Fady Qaddoura, D-Indianapolis, echoed several of his colleagues in the Senate when he pointed out that term limits would infringe on the ability of voters to decide whether to keep or remove a lawmaker from office. He said state legislators should broaden the debate to include redistricting standards and expanded early voting in order to improve voters’ power at the ballot box.

“If we are to have a comprehensive discussion on elections, on voting rights, on standards for redistricting, on term limits, then let’s have an honest, comprehensive, systematic discussion on the topic,” Qaddoura said. “And let’s not pick and choose to impose term limits on people who are not in this body.”

Sen. Travis Holdman, R-Markle, downplayed the potential for a runaway convention. He referred to Senate Enrolled Act 225, passed in 2013, which requires Indiana delegates to any Article V Convention to stick to the agenda. Also, he highlighted his own Senate Bill 450, which passed the Senate Elections Committee on Tuesday, as including provisions to prevent delegates from becoming unruly by automatically removing them and charging them with a Level 6 felony if they do not stick to the agenda approved by the legislature.

Glick did not see SB 450 as a solution. She said pulling Indiana delegates if they discuss more than the term-limit amendment at the Article V Convention could actually hurt the Hoosier state.

“We can bring them home, and 49 other states are going to laugh, because they get to decide what the Constitution of the United States looks like, because Indiana took its tinker toys and went home,” Glick said. “We can’t control it. It’s beyond our capabilities.”

SJR 21 has been sent to the Indiana House, where Republican Reps. Mike Karickhoff, of Kokomo, Chris Jeter, of Fishers, and Democratic Rep. Kyle Miller, of Fort Wayne, are the co-sponsors.

Dwight Adams, an editor and writer based in Indianapolis, edited this article. He is a former content editor, copy editor and digital producer at The Indianapolis Star and IndyStar.com, and worked as a planner for other newspapers, including the Louisville Courier Journal.

The Indiana Citizen is a nonpartisan, nonprofit platform dedicated to increasing the number of informed and engaged Hoosier citizens. We are operated by the Indiana Citizen Education Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) public charity. For questions about the story, contact Marilyn Odendahl at marilyn.odendahl@indianacitizen.org.

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