Same face, different vote

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LINDSAY MAST, HOST: Today is Wednesday, January 21st. Thank you for turning to WORLD Radio to help start your day.

Good morning. I’m Lindsay Mast.

NICK EICHER, HOST: And I’m Nick Eicher.

Coming next on The World and Everything in It: identical faces but contrary politics.

MAST: A nationwide debate over redistricting hit home recently for one family in Indianapolis. And social media drew attention to some surprises. 

WORLD’s Carolina Lumetta has the story.

CAROLINA LUMETTA: In December, an Indiana House panel heard contentious arguments on statewide redistricting before the 2026 midterm elections. Indianapolis City-Councilor Nick Roberts took to the floor:

NICK: For the first time as a councilor, I’m coming to speak about this bill as one against it, for a lot of obvious reasons.

The 25-year-old Democrat is one of the youngest elected officials in the state. Later that day observers were surprised the blond-haired young man wearing a red tie appeared at the podium again. This time to say something completely opposite:

NATHAN: I’m a lifelong Hoosier, and I’m a deeply concerned citizen. I’m 100% in favor of the new congressional maps. And I think Republican politicians need to take a strong stand on this issue to add fairness and deliver for President Trump and everyday Hoosiers...

So Nick posted a video on social media to explain:

NICK: So my identical twin brother Nate has recently decided to get involved in Republican politics. And yes, I promise this is real and not a joke.

Nick is a Democrat and local politician. Nate is a staunch conservative and has founded a statewide nonprofit to oppose mass immigration. The brothers say they’re best friends.

NICK: I would say partially he and I are just, like, I am a very chill person. My brother, not as much, he can be a little more of a rabble rouser, but in general, 

NATHAN: No, what? no! 

NICK: I get along with pretty much everybody and okay, you have to agree with that, you don't get along with everybody as well as I do.

The twins disagree on pretty much everything. Nate supports the president’s tariffs, and Nick thinks Republican policies hurt the working class. Nick is an atheist, and Nate's a Lutheran. They started watching videos about politics on YouTube around the same time–as young teenagers. And then their viewpoints diverged. Here’s Nate:

NATHAN: I've been kind of Republican conservative really ever since then. I never really had a phase of anything different. The moment Trump came down the golden escalators in 2016, I fell in love, as the saying goes.

Nick had a different reaction:

NICK: When Trump went down the golden escalator, I was like, "man, this guy's crazy. Who'd ever vote for him?"

You might think the holidays get tense in the Roberts household. But Nick and Nate say things stay civil. Polite, even.

NICK: Well, I would say, go ahead. No, go ahead.

NATHAN: Would say probably... No, no, you can go ahead. Go ahead, no, no.

The Roberts’ extended family spans the entire political spectrum, and they were never raised to believe politics is ultimate.

NATHAN: We've never really even had a discussion, I don't think, that's even gotten to that point of getting heated. And I think that's probably honestly more of a personality thing than anything else. He is like the only person in the world that can genuinely make me boil with rage, and it's always about dumb stuff, like especially when in high school was stuff like chores, but it's like never politics.

The twins have had to figure out how to keep the peace–they live in the same house in Indianapolis. In November, an anonymous caller made a false police report sending squads to the home. It’s an illegal practice called swatting. And it coincided with the week that Nick publicly opposed redistricting. He said he blames President Trump for politically-motivated violence.

NICK: So I try to lead with empathy and respect from my vantage point as a local elected official. But I hate to say it, until we have a president who is really going to value respectful dialogue and being kind to others, it's going to be very hard to see it go down.

But Nate says he’s seen the same danger from Democrats, especially after conservative activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated last year.

NATHAN: I've gotten so many death threats on my Twitter account through DMs of people just sending the picture of Charlie Kirk and being like, "you're next."

One thing both brothers agree on: something must be done to tone down political rhetoric, especially online. For his official government accounts, Nick says he tries to keep the tone non-confrontational. Nate adds that seeing the humanity in political opponents is essential.

NATHAN: You almost never see me personally attack anybody. I never get down talking about these people are evil, all this stuff. I think I'm pretty kind of policy-driven and all that stuff. So I think more people should look at it like that. They should stop assuming that the other side is fundamentally evil and they should probably assume the best of intentions of the people that they disagree with.

When the brothers do talk issues, they keep it respectful:

NICK: You know, there's always been that sense of camaraderie and that even if we disagree, we're still family.

Family that keeps the relationship the priority over their politics.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Carolina Lumetta.

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