Indiana's 1st congressional district is an

electoral district An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other poli ...

for the U.S. Congress in Northwestern

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...

. The district is based in Gary and its surrounding

suburbs A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separa ...

and

exurbs An exurb (or alternately: exurban area) is an area outside the typically denser inner suburban area, at the edge of a metropolitan area, which has some economic and commuting connection to the metro area, low housing density, and growth. It sh ...

. It consists of all of

Lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

and

Porter Porter may refer to: Companies * Porter Airlines, Canadian regional airline based in Toronto * Porter Chemical Company, a defunct U.S. toy manufacturer of chemistry sets * Porter Motor Company, defunct U.S. car manufacturer * H.K. Porter, Inc., ...

counties, as well as most of the western part La Porte County, on the border with Michigan. Redistricting passed by the Indiana General Assembly in 2011 shifted the district's boundaries, effective January 2013, to include all of Lake and Porter counties and the western and northwestern townships of La Porte County, while moving Benton, Jasper and Newton counties out of the district. The district is currently represented by Democrat Frank J. Mrvan. He was sworn in on January 3, 2021. The district's character is very different from the rest of Indiana. It includes almost all of the Indiana side of the

Chicago metropolitan area The Chicago metropolitan area, also colloquially referred to as Chicagoland, is a metropolitan area in the Midwestern United States. Encompassing 10,286 sq mi (28,120 km2), the metropolitan area includes the city of Chicago, its suburbs and hin ...

. While Porter and LaPorte are swing counties, Lake County is heavily Democratic. Lake County contains two-thirds of the district's population, which is enough to make the 1st a relatively safe Democratic seat. The district has not elected a Republican to Congress in 94 years, making it one of the longest continuously Democratic districts in the nation. Among Indiana's congressional districts, only the

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

-based 7th District is more Democratic.

Election results from presidential races

List of members representing the district

Composition

* 91 LaPorte County exists in both the 1st and 2nd Congressional districts. One city, La Porte, exists in the 1st and 2nd congressional districts, and two cities, Michigan City and New Durham, exist in the 1st congressional district. Five townships, Clinton, Clinton, Dewey, New Durham, and Springfield exists in the 1st congressional district, and eleven townships, Hanna, Hudson,

Johnson Johnson is a surname of Anglo-Norman origin meaning "Son of John". It is the second most common in the United States and 154th most common in the world. As a common family name in Scotland, Johnson is occasionally a variation of ''Johnston'', a ...

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincol ...

, Noble, Pleasant,

Prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...

, Scipio, Union,

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

, and Wills exist in the 2nd congressional district. As of 2021, Indiana's 1st congressional district is composed of

(pop. 496,005) and

(pop. 164,343) counties as well as part of LaPorte County (pop. 111,467), which is also partly within Indiana's 2nd district. Michigan City and five townships ( Clinton, Coolspring, Dewey, New Durham, and Springfield) exist entirely in the 1st district. La Porte and eleven townships ( Hanna, Hudson,

, Noble, Pleasant,

, Scipio, Union,

, and Wills) are split between the 1st and 2nd districts by Indiana West 500N and Indiana South/North 600W.

Cities of 10,000 or more people

* Hammond - 80,830 * Gary - 80,294 *

Portage Portage or portaging (Canada: ; ) is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a ...

- 36,828 * Valparaiso - 31,730 * Michigan City - 31,479 * Crown Point - 27,317 *

East Chicago East Chicago is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 29,698 at the 2010 census. The city is home of the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal, an artificial freshwater harbor characterized by industrial and manufacturing act ...

- 29,698 *

Hobart Hobart ( ; Nuennonne/ Palawa kani: ''nipaluna'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-small ...

- 29,059 * Lake Station - 12,572

Towns of 10,000 or more people

* Cedar Lake - 11,560 * Dyer - 16,390 * Griffith - 16,893 *

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...

- 23,727 *

Merrillville Merrillville is a town in Ross Township, Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 35,246 at the 2010 census. Merrillville is in east-central Lake County, in the Chicago metropolitan area. On January 1, 2015, Merrillville became th ...

- 35,246 *

Munster Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following t ...

- 23,603 * Schererville - 29,243 * St. John-14,850 * Chesterton - 13,068

2,500 - 10,000 people

* Lowell - 9,276 *

Winfield Winfield may refer to: Places Canada * Winfield, Alberta * Winfield, British Columbia United States * Winfield, Alabama * Winfield, Arkansas * Winfield, Georgia * Winfield, Illinois * Winfield, Indiana * Winfield, Iowa * Winfield, Kansas * W ...

- 4,383 *

Hebron Hebron ( ar, الخليل or ; he, חֶבְרוֹן ) is a Palestinian. city in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Nestled in the Judaean Mountains, it lies above sea level. The second-largest city in the West Bank (after Eas ...

- 3,724 *

- 4,858 * Westville - 5,853 * Whiting - 4,997

Election results

2002

2004

2006

2008

2010

Recent elections

2012

2014

2016

2018

2020

2022

Notes

References

* *
Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present
*

External links

Congressman Pete Visclosky
official U.S. House website {{USCongDistStateIN 01 Benton County, Indiana Jasper County, Indiana Lake County, Indiana Newton County, Indiana Porter County, Indiana Constituencies established in 1823 1823 establishments in Indiana