Was Alexandra Wilson Bribed to Exit the Senate 38 Primary Race?

Let’s get to the big news of the day. This came down on Friday. We touched on it very briefly because the story broke right before we were about to go on the air. Over the weekend, it remained a huge story, and that is the potential act of what a reasonable person might think is a bribe from the White House, the governor’s office, and potentially the lieutenant governor’s office, over trying to get Alexandra Wilson out of the Senate District 38 race. NBC News had the story. Abdul had it. The Capital Chronicle had it. A number of media outlets have covered this. We’re going to work off the reporting from the Indiana Capital Chronicle. Let me read you the opening of this. As the Chronicle reported, in text messages and phone call recordings released to news outlets Friday by Alexandra Wilson, close Trump staffers and others suggested she would be in line for political appointments if she dropped out of the Republican primary.

A Reset of the Story

Let me briefly reset what’s going on. I know most of you are familiar with the story, but we have new people joining all the time. Senate District 38 includes Sullivan, Vigo, and Clay counties in the western part of the state. The Republican primary features Greg Goode, who was appointed mid-term and is now running for election for the first time. He voted against redistricting last December, which angered Trump and Turning Point USA. They said they would find someone to run against him, but they struggled to recruit a candidate and were turned down by multiple people. Eventually, they landed on Brenda Wilson, a member of the Vigo County Council. After that, a third candidate, Alexandra Wilson, entered the race. As soon as she did, Trump and Turning Point USA allies objected, pointing out that two candidates shared the same last name. They framed it as suspicious, though no evidence has shown coordination or wrongdoing. At this point, it appears to be a woman choosing to run for office. According to the Capital Chronicle, the phone calls, texts, and voicemails came from White House Deputy Chief of Staff James Blair and Trump political affairs director Matt Brasseaux. These communications happened in the lead-up to the February 13 filing deadline, the last day candidates could withdraw from the ballot.

The Phone Call

In a 22-minute phone call, Blair asked Wilson about her motivations for running and warned her about attention from national pro-redistricting groups. At the same time, Wilson was facing a legal challenge over a past charge from when she was 19. She has said she pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor, not a felony, and the matter was from 15 or 16 years ago. Efforts to remove her from the ballot through the election commission and courts have so far failed, even as early voting has already begun. Blair also referenced that past issue, noting she could face attacks over it. The conviction had been expunged from her record. He told her things could get ugly and suggested that having two candidates with the same last name worked against their goals. In a separate 12-minute call, Brasseaux asked what he described as a “point blank question,” whether there was a pathway for her to consider another way to make an impact in her community. He said he was trying to think “outside the box” so that she could still affect change while also helping achieve the goal of defeating Greg Goode. Text messages added another layer. Brasseaux said he had spoken with Joshua Kelley, the governor’s chief of staff, and that there could be opportunities for state board appointments. The governor’s office later said it receives many referrals from people interested in serving and follows up as a standard practice. However, Wilson had already indicated she was not interested in such a position.

More Attempts to Contact Wilson

The outreach did not stop there. Kelley also attempted to contact Wilson directly. Additionally, Lieutenant Governor Micah Beckwith left a voicemail asking to speak with her. Altogether, this involved multiple high-ranking officials at both the state and national level contacting a candidate in a state Senate race. The situation raises several issues at once. There is the use of a past incident from her youth as leverage, the suggestion of political appointments if she withdrew, and the level of coordination among officials. At the same time, the broader context remains a primary race tied to a disagreement over redistricting, rather than policy issues like taxes, infrastructure, or utilities. As it stands, Wilson remains on the ballot, early voting is underway, and the legal challenges have not removed her from the race. The controversy centers on whether the outreach described crosses ethical or legal lines, and what it says about how political influence is being used in a state-level election.