Loretta Rush is the Chief Justice of the Indiana Supreme Court. She was the first woman to hold this position in Indiana, having been appointed in 2014.
Republican Governor Mitch Daniels appointed her to the state’s highest court in 2012, which was the start of her career as a judge.
Voters have kept her in office in both the 2014 and 2024 elections. Before joining the Supreme Court, Rush was a private practice lawyer and a judge in Tippecanoe Superior Court, where she was elected three times.
Rush graduated from Purdue University and the Indiana University Maurer School of Law.
Her work goes beyond the state level. She has worked on national judicial projects, including being co-chair of the National Judicial Opioid Task Force, a member of the Conference of Chief Justices, and being appointed to the Judicial Conference Committee on Federal-State Jurisdiction by U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts.
Key Takeaways
- Loretta Rush is Indiana’s first female Chief Justice, appointed in 2014.
- Retained by voters twice, in 2014 and 2024.
- Appointed by Republican Governor Mitch Daniels, reflecting GOP alignment in selection.
- Known for judicial independence and efforts to keep courts free from political influence.
- Has ruled on key issues like abortion rights and ballot access, often taking balanced positions.
- Actively promotes reforms related to mental health, opioid response, and access to justice.
Loretta Rush Political Affiliation
A Republican governor chose Rush, which makes her similar to the GOP-appointed justices on the Indiana Supreme Court.
But the state uses a merit-based selection system and then holds nonpartisan retention elections, which protects judges from direct political pressure.
Ballotpedia says that Rush has a “somewhat conservative” lean because of things like the party of the governor who appointed him and how politics work in the state.
There are still no public records that show her political donations or party registration. It’s important to note that she has never run for office or campaigned for a political party, which strengthens her reputation as a fair and professional judge.
Judicial Philosophy And Views
Rush always talks about how important it is for judges to be independent and fair, and he warns against tying a judge’s job to their decisions.
In an interview in 2024, she said that focusing on political backgrounds hurts people’s trust:
“People have paid too much attention to who chose justices and what they think politically… The courts in Indiana have done a good job of staying out of politics.
She thinks that the judicial process should be based on merit rather than politics. She warns that decisions made based on public opinion could make the justice system weaker.
Rush’s record in court shows that he was mostly concerned with constitutional limits and how to read laws.
Her approach often favors practical changes, like making it easier for people to get legal help, lowering transportation costs, and dealing with mental health issues in court.
Even though there are a lot of Republican-appointed justices on Indiana’s Supreme Court, legal experts say it is in the middle.
Rush often takes what some people call a “flaming moderate” stance: he is conservative on legal issues but open to fairness and change.
In 2023, Rush voted with three other judges to uphold Indiana’s near-total abortion ban, saying that the legislature had the power to do so.
In 2024, she disagreed with a case about ballot access, saying that limiting third-party candidates went against “the fundamental principle of representative democracy.”
Loretta Rush Public And Recent Opinions (As Of October 2025)
Rush’s popularity peaked during the 2024 retention vote, when abortion rights groups criticized her for her vote in the abortion ban case.
Groups like MADVoters told people to vote against her retention, seeing the vote as a symbolic referendum.
At the same time, a group of lawyers and former justices from both parties, including some who were appointed by Republicans, publicly backed her, saying that the court was “fair and impartial.”
Responses on social media sites like X (formerly Twitter) were mixed but not very many:
Critics, mostly progressive users, said she should not have been kept because of her political bias.
Supporters, such as the Indiana Chamber of Commerce and other business groups, backed her because of her strong ethics as a judge and her experience with juvenile law.
After the election, there were fewer public discussions, and as of October 2025, there were no major trends.
Most people think of Rush as a nonpartisan leader who cares about the integrity of the courts, but there are still strong opinions on both sides of the abortion issue.
