Indiana's Secretary of State oversees how 4.7 million Hoosiers vote—and the people running for it don't reach the ballot the way you might think. An independent former mayor and a Libertarian are already on the November ballot; the major-party nominees are chosen at June conventions, not by you in a primary. Here's what's actually in front of you.
The Secretary of State is Indiana's chief election officer. The office certifies elections, oversees the statewide voter file, regulates campaign and business filings, and sits at the center of how every Hoosier's vote is counted. It is also, historically, a partisan office: Indiana Secretaries of State have endorsed, fundraised for, and donated to candidates who appear on the very ballots they oversee. In 2026, that arrangement is itself one of the questions on the ballot—because at least one candidate is running specifically to change it. Most voters never think about this office until something goes wrong. This is the year to look at it before that happens.
The Secretary of State is Indiana's chief election officer. The office certifies elections, oversees the statewide voter file, regulates campaign and business filings, and sits at the center of how every Hoosier's vote is counted.
The Secretary of State doesn't write laws on the issues that dominate the headlines. What it controls is quieter and arguably more fundamental: whether your election runs cleanly, who gets onto the ballot, and whether you can trust the count. Here's what's genuinely at stake.
The Secretary of State also oversees business registrations, securities regulation, and notaries—the administrative plumbing of Indiana's economy.
Indiana voters across the spectrum say they want government they can audit. This office sets how openly election data, certifications, and campaign filings are reported.
Maintaining the statewide voter file, securing election systems, and keeping registration rolls both accurate and accessible all run through this office.
This office sits at the center of ballot-access rules—including why a major-party nominee is chosen at a convention while an independent must gather tens of thousands of signatures.
The central question of this race: whether the official who administers elections should also endorse, fundraise for, and donate to candidates on the ballots they oversee.
The Secretary of State is Indiana's chief election officer, overseeing how votes are cast, counted, and certified in all 92 counties. This is the office on the ballot.
Indiana doesn't register voters by party. There's no box on your registration that says Democrat or Republican. All 4.7 million registered Hoosiers are, in the state's own records, independent.
Indiana doesn't register voters by party. There's no box on your registration that ties you to one. All 4.7 million registered Hoosiers are, in the records, independent—and in this district, nearly two-thirds are classified as persuadable. That's not a technicality; it's a description of who actually decides elections here. You are not locked into a team. You can look at every candidate on this ballot on the merits and decide for yourself. That's exactly what this page is built to help you do. Independent Center Voice exists for voters like you. We poll independent voters so their views get counted. We educate independent voters about their options. And we push for the structural reforms—open primaries, fair ballot access, transparent administration—that keep unaffiliated voters at the center of American democracy.
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