Daryl Schmitt
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Contact
| Website | indianasenaterepublicans.com/schmitt |
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Snapshot
| Fiscal responsibility | Support |
| Limited government | Mixed |
| Second Amendment | Support |
| Pro-life issues | Support |
| Family values | Support |
Background
Daryl Schmitt was appointed to Senate District 48 (Posey, Vanderburgh, and Gibson counties / Evansville area) by a Republican caucus in September 2024 after incumbent Sen. Mark Messmer vacated the seat upon winning the Republican primary for U.S. House District 8 (Source 1). Schmitt had previously served on the Dubois County Council, where he described himself as an "America First Conservative" (Source 1). He co-authored SB 1 (2026), the Senate Republicans' top Medicaid/SNAP reform priority, and the Freedom Index rates his lifetime score at 50% (Source 3). He stated publicly that he voted in favor of property tax relief legislation in the Senate (Source 9).
Positions
Fiscal responsibility
SupportSchmitt co-authored SB 1 (2026) on Medicaid/SNAP eligibility tightening (38-8 passage) and publicly stated his support for property tax relief legislation (Source 9). Freedom Index lifetime score of 50% reflects a mixed record on broader limited-spending votes (Source 3).
Limited government
MixedCo-authored SB 1 (2026) which expands state verification and enforcement mechanisms for welfare programs; Freedom Index lifetime 50% indicates a roughly split record on constitutional limited-government votes (Source 3)(Source 4).
Second Amendment
SupportVoted YES on HB 1084 (2024, firearms financial-transaction privacy, 39-9 Senate) — confirmed by partisan bill spectrum showing all Republican senators voted yes (Source 10).
Pro-life issues
SupportVoted YES on SB 236 (2026) abortion-medication civil enforcement bill (35-10 Senate) — Schmitt is listed among the 35 YES votes (Source 8).
Voting record
| Bill | Session | Title | Vote | Lens |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HB 1084 | 2024 | Firearms financial-transaction privacy | Yea | Second Amendment |
| HB 1041 | 2025 | Women's college sports eligibility | Yea | Family values |
| SB 143 | 2025 | Parental rights | Yea | Family values |
| SB 236 | 2026 | Abortion-medication civil enforcement | Yea | Pro-life issues |
| SB 1 | 2026 | Medicaid/SNAP welfare eligibility reform (co-authored) | Yea | Fiscal responsibility |
| HB 1032 | 2026 session | Congressional redistricting | Yea | Limited government |
Endorsements
- source ↗President Donald Trump (March 2026, Truth Socialendorsement tied to redistricting support)
Sources
- 1.Yahoo News / Dubois County Free Press — caucus appointment, Sept. 2024https://news.yahoo.com/news/dubois-county-councilman-wins-caucus-131456129.html
- 2.IGA member page (2026 session, via FastDemocracy)https://fastdemocracy.com/bill-search/in/legislators/INL000265/
- 3.Freedom Index (The New American) — lifetime score 50%https://thenewamerican.com/us/politics/trump-endorses-indiana-senators-despite-low-and-mediocre-freedom-scores/
- 4.Freedom Index — Schmitt 2025 scorecard pagehttps://freedomindex.us/legislator/4977/session/124/report/99/
- 5.Freedom Index — Schmitt scorecard PDFhttps://freedomindex.us/legislator/4977/session/124/report/99/pdf/scb/
- 6.Indiana Family Institute 2025 Legislative Scorecardhttps://hoosierfamily.org/news/ifi-releases-2025-legislative-scorecard-20250903/
- 7.Indiana Chamber of Commerce 2025 Legislator Vote Scoreshttps://www.indianachamber.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/LegislatorScorecard2025_VoteScores.pdf
- 8.IGA — SB 236 (2026, abortion medication, Schmitt voted YES)https://fastdemocracy.com/bill-search/in/2026/bills/INB00015433/
- 9.Indiana Senate Republicans — Schmitt on property tax reliefhttps://www.indianasenaterepublicans.com/statehouse-spotlight-with-sen-schmitt-supporting-property-tax-relief
- 10.IGA — HB 1084 (2024, firearms privacy)https://legiscan.com/IN/rollcall/HB1084/id/1406024
- 11.IGA — SB 143 (2025, parental rights)https://legiscan.com/IN/bill/SB0143/2025
- 12.WFYI — Trump endorsements, redistricting (March 2026)https://www.wfyi.org/public-affairs/2026-03-25/trump-issues-endorsements-for-indiana-republicans-who-supported-redistricting