Republicans’ hopes of winning control of the House include a bid to flip an Indiana seat in an unlikely place.

Northwest Indiana’s First District hasn’t elected a Republican in nearly a century — the party hasn’t even come within 12 points since 1956. First-term Congressman Frank J. Mrvan continued that streak last election, winning by 16 points. But his 57-percent of the vote was Democrats’ lowest percentage in 26 years — and Joe Biden ran three points behind that, continuing a shrinking Democratic performance over the last decade. Both parties and independent analysts list the district as one of the battlegrounds which will determine the next House majority.

Air Force veteran Jennifer-Ruth Green won the nomination on Tuesday to face Mrvan, defeating former LaPorte Mayor Blair Milo by 25 points. Green credits the gradual reddening of the district to an influx of new residents, including people disgruntled with policies in neighboring Illinois. She suggests she’s uniquely positioned to push it the rest of the way. If elected, Green would be the first African-American Republican to represent Indiana in Congress — she says she can deliver Republicans’ message more successfully to the district’s high concentration of Black and Hispanic residents.

That message, Green says, is one of a country that was in better shape before Biden’s defeat of Donald Trump 18 months ago. She points to soaring inflation, and contends the U-S’s word means less on the world stage than when Trump was president.

And while Green calls Mrvan “a good man,” she says he’s voted in lockstep with the Democratic party line in the House, accusing him of projecting a moderate appearance while taking positions “more socialistic in nature.”

The district covers Lake and Porter Counties. Redistricting slightly altered the parts of LaPorte County included in the district, nudging the district another baby step toward Republicans.