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HB 1218

Straight ticket voting.

2026 Regular Session Introduced by Wendy Dant Chesser and 3 co-sponsors

HB 1218 eliminates straight ticket voting in Indiana, requiring voters to choose individual candidates for each office in general and municipal elections starting July 1, 2026.

Representative Criswell added as coauthor
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Bill Summary · HB 1218

HB 1218 (Indiana, 2026) – Summary

Purpose and intent
- Main goal: Eliminate straight ticket voting in general and municipal elections. The bill removes the option for voters to cast a single vote for all candidates of one party or an independent ticket and repeals superseded statutes related to straight ticket voting.
- Effective date: July 1, 2026.

Key provisions and changes

1) Straight ticket voting eliminated (primary change)
- Removes the ability to vote a straight party ticket in general or municipal elections.
- Requires voters to cast individual votes for each office, even if they vote for multiple candidates from the same party.

2) Revisions to ballot design and instructions
- Ballots, ballot labels, and ballot instructions must reflect the removal of straight ticket voting.
- When listing offices and candidates, ballots must clearly show instructions that a straight party vote is not available, and voters must vote for each office separately.

3) Voting systems and ballot layout
- Ballot card and electronic voting system sections are updated to ensure no option exists to cast a straight party ticket.
- Repeals or amends sections that previously allowed straight party voting, and requires that ballots be structured so that voters select individual candidates (and, for school boards or multi-member offices, vote for the needed number of candidates).

4) School boards and multi-member offices
- For offices where more than one candidate may be elected (e.g., at-large county or city council seats, school board seats), voters must vote for the appropriate number of candidates, with no straight-party shortcut counting toward those offices.
- Straight party voting will not count toward any school board candidate.

5) Ballot labeling and party/device formatting
- The bill preserves some existing structure for party devices and ballot layout but removes the straight-ticket voting mechanism.
- Instructions must clearly state that a straight party vote will not count for the specified offices and that voters must mark individual candidates.

6) Voting system testing and certification
- Maintains existing testing and certification requirements for optical scan and electronic systems, with adjustments to ensure machines correctly count votes when straight-ticket voting is not available.
- Includes provisions for random testing of a subset of machines prior to elections and procedures if discrepancies arise.

Affected entities and scope

  • State level: Indiana Election Division (administrative updates, instructional materials, and certification processes).
  • Local level: County election boards and county clerks (implementation, ballot production, and voter education).
  • Voters: General and municipal election voters will no longer have the straight ticket option and must cast votes for individual offices.

Procedural/timeline considerations

  • Introduction and status: Introduced in January 2026, referred to the Elections and Apportionment Committee.
  • Implementation timeline: Changes take effect July 1, 2026, aligning with the effective date of the statute amendments.
  • Transitional considerations: Ballot production vendors and election administrators will need to adjust ballot formats, voting system configurations, and instructional materials in advance of the 2026 elections.

Fiscal and operational impact (as analyzed in the fiscal note)

  • State: Minor costs to revise instructional materials; expected to be manageable within current resources.
  • Local: Potentially small increases in ballot production costs and programming for optical-scan and direct-record electronic (DRE) systems; costs depend on vendor contracts and existing capabilities.
  • Overall: Most impact is on ballot design, system programming, and voter education rather than large-scale fiscal outlays.

Bottom line
HB 1218 would remove straight ticket voting in Indiana, requiring voters to select individual candidates for each office in general and municipal elections, with accompanying updates to ballots, instructions, and voting-system configurations. Effective July 1, 2026, the measure aims to ensure each vote is cast for specific offices, including school boards and multi-member offices.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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