Through the sea of promotional yard signs outside of the City-County Building, a teenage girl spends her election day away from school to help campaign for a candidate who is close to her heart; her mother.
Julie Montiel, 15, isn’t able to vote at her age, but she still got involved with the Midterms where she could. To her, it is important that people go out to vote because it is their civic duty.
“I strongly believe that not voting is a vote… If you don’t make the decision, then there will be no change,” said Montiel.
Montiel and all of her siblings attend Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS), so they know firsthand how the results of this election will impact them.
Although she acknowledges the conflict of interest present while campaigning for her own mother, Sacha Sharp, Montiel thinks that her mother displays the characteristics of a good candidate.
“This isn’t [just] a title that she seeks, she very much cares. She cares what happens to… all of the kids who go through this system. It’s really how she is involved with the community— how much she cares about the kids,” said Montiel.
Despite her inability to pencil in her mom’s bubble on the ballot, Montiel shows up in a way that’s still impactful. Mixed with campaigning adults, she held her own as just a young girl fighting for a cause. An absence from school allowed Montiel to show up and be present for both her entire school district and her mother.
-Lauren Hill, TheStatehouseFile.com
Kim Townsend spent Tuesday morning at the polls. The Democrat is running against incumbent Kyle Pierce, R-Anderson, for the House District 36 seat.
“It’s been 11 months of, you know, a lot of work, a lot of hard work, and the morning, a lot of hard work, and just strategy and all kinds of things,” she told TheStatehouseFile.com. “So, I’m relieved that it’s finally here so that we can kind of get things set back on the right track.
“This midterm appears to be extremely important for my district, 36 Madison County, and Indiana, including the United States as a whole. And we’re seeing people coming out. They’re standing in lines that are over an hour long. They’re showing up, and I’m encouraged by it.”
—Olivia O’Neal, TheStatehouseFile.com
Democratic state treasurer candidate Kebe Coumba has been bouncing around the polls and is proud to see how many Hoosiers have shown up for midterm voting, she said. She’ll be working the polls until 6 p.m. and then awaiting results at the Hilton in downtown Indianapolis.
“I’ve never seen anything like this for midterms, and you know, it’s clear that people are crossing the political line to vote for people that they know they can trust will show up and will fight for them,” she said.
The night could be historic if she is victorious against Republican incumbent Daniel Elliott; it would make her the first Black woman to win as state treasurer in Indiana.
“We’ll be setting history in more ways than one. Democrats winning this office for the first time in you know, God, what 40 years? And yes, setting history as being the first Black female treasurer, and it just it would be an honor,” she said.
“You know, Indiana’s history, you know, has its dark moments, and so to be able to, you know, set history in that way and show kids who look like me, who have names that are different like mine, that it doesn’t matter where you come from, what you look like, that you too can be a leader in this state, and you are worthy of being one in this state. And that type of representation in our government is so important, and so it’d be an honor, an amazing moment for Indiana’s history.”
—Olivia O’Neal, TheStatehouseFile.com
Tiffany Stoner of Zionsville will be spending tonight watching election results with her four kids and niece. The Democratic nominee is facing Republican incumbent Becky Cash for the District 25 House seat.
“I feel really grateful. I mean, my headquarters has been filled with volunteers all day. We have volunteers at the polls, and I’m just grateful that so many have participated in this campaign with me. Feels really good, and I feel like we’ve absolutely done everything that we can this cycle to hopefully celebrate tonight. And I think I’m just grateful and excited,” she said.
—Olivia O’Neal, TheStatehouseFile.com
The Indianapolis City-County Building in downtown Indianapolis held a steady line of voters at the polls this afternoon. Many were still dressed for work, in business casual, walking with purpose on the way out to make it back in time for their shift. On the way in, a sheriff greeted each voter with a smile. The sun was shining on the dozens of signs highlighting candidates.
Alexis Street, 30, voted straight-ticket for the democratic party at the City-County Building polls. She became affiliated with the party after her mother passed down her liberal leaning values. Since President Trump’s inauguration, she’s watched her friends and family struggle to afford necessities.
“One of my friends just recently had a baby, that’s affecting the price of formula. They’ve had to cut back a lot,” said Street.
Residing in the city has been helpful for Street, who can walk places to get what she needs. Some of her friends have struggled to afford rising gas and car prices, and have been stuck in difficult financial situations, just trying to hold jobs.
“The state of our country is not the best. I didn’t vote for Donald Trump in 2024, I didn’t vote for him in 2016,” said Street.
By voting democrat across the board, Street would want to see those incumbents— if they made it into office— as a stopgap for Trump’s policies. She hopes more consideration will go into approving his decisions. She said more democratic representation may mean Trump’s decisions are not immediately rubber stamped and approved quickly out of routine.
Isis Saavedra, a Marion County resident, also voted at the Indianapolis City-County Building. Her ticket was more mixed between democratic and republican candidates. She, too, has watched her friends and relatives struggle day to day. Gas prices, food, and even rent have been difficult to make the cut for them.
“There’s low-income parents, especially in this economy. I know a lot of parents are struggling. Some families don’t qualify for free lunches,” Saabera said.
This is the first year Saabera has voted for several years. She said watching those she cared about struggle has pushed her to the polls.
“It’s time to move people that don’t vote,” said Saabera. “It’s time to vote, so we can all see change.”
-Savannah Shotwell, TheStatehouseFile.com
Voters in Martinsville hope to address many issues facing their community on today’s Election Day. Many are concerned with the local school board elections and maintaining integrity within the local courts.
Morgan County Superior Court 1: This race pits two very different candidates against each other: Republican Jerry E. Smith, deputy attorney general for Todd Rokita, and Jarrett Ksenak, a Morgan County public defender running as a conservative from the Libertarian Party.
Smith has experience in handling over 1,000 cases as deputy prosecutor and deputy general. Ksenak’s experience is more relevant to directly handling criminal defense and civil litigation.
Tamara Cheesman, 57, and Roxane Scott, 55, were at Zion Baptist Church before the polls opened Tuesday to campaign for Ksenak because they believe his experience and values in the courtroom are what their community needs.
“He’s about the law,” said Cheesman. “He doesn’t let his personal feelings or religion become involved. That’s what our courtrooms need, to keep personal bias out of the picture.”
School board elections: Martinsville, District 2, is a race between Dan Conway, Republican, and Jordan Scott Terrell, Republican.
Voter John Smith hopes to see local leadership step up.
“I’m hoping to see the leadership stay local and also to stop banning books. I don’t think there’s any need for that,” said Smith.
Dan Conway, 53, was outside the Morgan County offices with his campaigners to address public issues and speak with voters.
“I’m hoping to support the changes in the district and open new facilities and leadership opportunities at the school so we can improve the quality of education in the next four years,” Conway said.
“We’re opening a new school next year, and that’s gonna consolidate a couple of schools that were a little bit older in infrastructure,” said Conway. “It was either going to be putting $30 million into old facilities or build a brand new facility for the next 50 or so years.”
Martinsville School District’s current superintendent, Eric Bowlen, announced his retirement at the end of 2026, and the district will look to hire a new leader in education.
“The main reason the school board is to set policy, adjust the budget and then hire and review a new superintendent,” said Conway.
“I want to support the district as best as I can,” said Conway. “I’ve been in leadership for 35 years, and that’s been my goal: to stay involved and make our district stronger.”
—Tyler Young, TheStatehouseFile.com
Indiana’s current state treasurer, Daniel Elliott, is from Morgan County and is up for reelection against Democratic challenger Coumba Kebe.
Elliott has been pleased with local leadership within Morgan County but wants more transparency.
“I’m not looking for a lot of changes in our local leadership; I think they’ve done, and have been doing, very well. I would like to see more awareness,” said Elliott. “It’s important for our elected officials, whether that be state or local, to be transparent with the people they represent so that they are aware of why decisions are being made and the reasoning behind them.”
—Tyler Young, TheStatehouseFile.com
Outside the Indianapolis City-County Building, two teenagers stood campaigning Tuesday afternoon for Angelia Moore, a Democrat running for the Indianapolis Public Schools Board At-Large.
Ruth, 17, and Carlos, 16, are both Indianapolis natives. They witness the impact every decision the Indianapolis Public Schools’ board makes on students firsthand, and they continuously engage with the board to have some say in what is happening in their schools.
One of Carlos’ life goals is to go to college, but he’s unsure how realistic that goal is.
“We’re out here to spread the news that education is really important,” Carlos said. “I’m really nervous about what’s gonna happen in the future.”
Moore has served on the IPS board since January 2023, and many parents and community members have endorsed her re-election campaign.
“I really am focused on education opportunities, especially as a high-school student,” Ruth said. “Looking at how she expresses expanding access to pre-K, retaining excellent teachers and raising literary rates just means that there are people who are looking forward to improving our education.”
This is the first year school board candidates in Indiana had the option to identify with a party on the ballot. However, straight-ticket voting does not include school board races.
—CJ Vantine, TheStatehouseFile.com
Like many candidates Tuesday morning and afternoon, Coumba Kebe, the Democratic candidate for Indiana state treasurer, was visiting polling places for last-minute conversations with voters.
“You know, I’m feeling optimistic,” she told TheStatehouseFile.com by phone. “And it’s hard not to be when you’re bouncing around poll to poll. I’ve been to a few locations already, talking to voters from, you know, all over the political spectrum, and to see these incredible lines just makes me so proud.
“You know, regardless of how people vote, I’m just thrilled to see Indiana showing up and voting this year, and it’s clear that people are ready for change and want to make sure that their voices are heard.”
—Olivia O’Neal, TheStatehouseFile.com
John Pouder is the polling inspector at the Intelliplex Conference Center voting station in Shelby County for the 2026 Midterm Elections.
“I’m the person that is kind of in charge over everything. We get the machines and set everything up, everybody goes through the oath, and we initiate the voting and open things up,” Pouder said.
While not in his usual position as a polling judge on Election Day, his job is still a major part in making sure voting goes smoothly.
“Being an inspector is not particularly different, other than the fact that you do receive the voting machines and we take the tallies back to the courthouse at the end of the day, where normally as a judge you won’t be involved in that,” Pounder said.
—Lillee Sheckles, TheStatehouseFile.com
TheStatehouseFile.com caught up with Democratic secretary of state candidate Beau Bayh by phone Tuesday morning as he was visiting polling stations in Central Indiana.
“I feel hopeful. I feel excited,” he said. “I feel like it’s been a privilege to actually do what I’ve gotten to do, which is the past 14 moths getting to every county of our state, a lot of them five, six or seven times, and just meeting Hoosiers where they are and talk to them about how this office can better serve them and how we can clean up some of the corruption … that has unfortunately pervaded our state government.”
TSF asked how he was going to pass the time waiting for the polls to close.
“I’m going to go on a nice, long run, and then I’m going to anxiously await the results with my friends and family and just hope for the best,” he said. “We’ve worked as hard as we possibly could. We left it out on the field, and it’s in God’s hands.”
—Olivia O’Neal, TheStatehouseFile.com
The Indiana Citizen and TheStatehouseFile.com are partnering to bring readers live coverage of the 2026 midterm elections, with nearly 20 student journalists reporting from polling places across Marion County and surrounding counties beginning at 6 a.m. They’ll also be reporting from candidate watch parties after polls close at 6 p.m.
A team of Franklin College faculty and alumni is helping coordinate and edit the coverage, with support from publishing partner WFYI.
Follow along throughout the day and into the evening for updates on key races, conversations with voters and candidates, and the latest developments from across Indiana.
11534
