Marlin Stutzman returned to Congress in 2024 after an eight-year absence. He previously represented IN-03 from 2010 to 2016, then gave up the seat to run for US Senate — a bid he lost in the 2016 Republican primary to Todd Young. When Jim Banks vacated IN-03 to run for Senate in 2024, Stutzman stepped back in and won with 65%.
The district covers Fort Wayne and the surrounding rural northeast corner of the state. At R+17, it is among the most Republican districts in Indiana. Democratic candidates have not come close to competitive margins here in over a decade.
Stutzman is a member of the House Freedom Caucus and one of the more conservative members of the Indiana delegation. His return to Congress after a failed Senate bid and years out of office is itself a commentary on the Republican bench in Indiana: the party reached back to a previous occupant rather than elevating new talent.
