Indiana
Two-step filing, wet ink only, no statewide initiative
Indiana's defining feature is that signatures must be certified by the county voter registration office before they can be filed with the state — two steps, two deadlines, roughly two weeks apart. Miss the county deadline and the state deadline is meaningless. The threshold is 2% of the last Secretary of State vote: 36,943 valid signatures statewide for 2026.
Signature Requirements
| Office / Measure | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Major party, U.S. Senate and statewide primary | 4,500 signatures, at least 500 from each of the 9 congressional districts |
| Major party, U.S. House and legislative | No signatures — Declaration of Candidacy (CAN-2) only |
| Independent / minor party, statewide | 2% of the votes cast for Secretary of State statewide at the last such election — 36,943 for 2026 (2022 base) |
| Independent / minor party, district and local | 2% of the votes cast for Secretary of State within that election district at the last such election |
| Party retention | A party whose Secretary of State candidate receives at least 2% keeps automatic general-election access for four years |
| Filing fees | None — Indiana charges no candidate filing fee |
| Petition and remonstrance (local bonds and leases) | Filed in a window opening 30 days and closing 60 days after published notice; the side with more valid signatures prevails |
| Local public question referenda | Thresholds set by statute per project type, administered through county voter registration offices |
The Two-Step Deadline Is the Whole Structure
Petitions must first go to the county voter registration office for certification of each signer; only certified pages may then be filed with the Indiana Election Division, along with the candidate consent (CAN-20) and statement of economic interests. In 2026 county certification closed at noon on June 30 and state filing at noon on July 15, with circulation permitted from January 7. Campaigns that treat the July date as the operative deadline have already lost.
Wet Ink Only
The Election Division is explicit that photocopied, electronic, digital, and digitized signatures are not accepted — every signature must be an original in ink on an original page. That forecloses app-based collection entirely and turns chain of custody across 92 counties into a real logistical problem.
Petition Carrier Affirmation
Every circulator must complete a signed affirmation stating they have no reason to believe any signer is ineligible, with printed name, address, and date of birth. Indiana law does not otherwise specify circulator residency or registration. Critically, the carrier cannot sign the affirmation or add identifying information after the filing deadline — a page arriving with an unsigned affirmation is not fixable.
Full County-by-County Verification
County officials compare each signer against the registration file for the district; there is no random sample and no percentage band. Because certification is distributed, throughput varies enormously — a large county may take days to return a stack a small one clears the same afternoon. Schedule submissions around the slowest offices.
Challenges and Cure
Challenges to a candidate's qualifications are filed with the appropriate election board on the statutory form, and the election calendar sets tiered post-election recount and contest windows with separate deadlines for candidates and party chairs. There is no cure period for signatures once the county certification deadline passes.
Ballot Measures in Indiana
Indiana has no statewide citizen initiative and no statewide veto referendum — citizens cannot place a statute or amendment on the ballot by petition, and amendments must pass two separately elected General Assemblies before going to voters. What Indiana does have is a substantial local petition regime centered on public finance. The petition and remonstrance process under IC 6-1.1-20 lets property owners and registered voters both petition for and remonstrate against bonds or leases for controlled projects, with forms issued by the county voter registration office and a window opening 30 days and closing 60 days after published notice; whichever side files more valid signatures prevails. Larger projects trigger a local public question referendum instead. With school referenda run through the same offices, that is where most ongoing Indiana petition volume sits.
What Trips Campaigns Up in Indiana
We've Worked This Ground
Indiana Ballot Access FAQ
What is the statewide requirement for independents?
2% of the total votes cast for Secretary of State at the last such election. For 2026 that was 36,943 valid signatures, recalculated every four years.
Why are there two deadlines?
County voter registration offices must certify signatures before the petition is filed with the state. In 2026 county certification closed at noon on June 30 and state filing at noon on July 15.
Can we collect signatures electronically?
No. Indiana requires original wet-ink signatures on original petition pages; photocopied, electronic, digital, and digitized signatures are all rejected.
Does Indiana have citizen initiatives?
Not at the state level. Petition rights exist locally, most notably petition and remonstrance for bonds and leases on controlled projects and local public question referenda.
Running a Campaign in This State?
Signature requirements are the easy part. Hitting them on deadline is the job.