By Marilyn Odendahl
The Indiana Citizen
June 1, 2026
Parties in the recount proceedings for Senate District 15 and Senate District 23 have filed motions asking the Indiana Recount Commission to rule on various disputes before the actual recounting of ballots begins.
Paula Copenhaver, who is challenging her loss in the Republican primary for Senate District 23, has filed an objection to an additional vote that allegedly was added to her opponent’s final tally after the election results had been certified. She ran a hard-fought campaign against incumbent Sen. Spencer Deery of West Lafayette and lost by – officially – three votes.
Also, Copenhaver filed a motion seeking to have three subpoenas held in abeyance because records show those voters do not live in Senate District 23. She had subpoenaed for deposition 14 voters who self-identified on social media that they had crossed over and pulled a Republican ballot during the primary, so they could support Deery. Pointing to state statute that restricts crossover voting, Copenhaver is arguing the voters may have unlawfully cast ballots in the Indiana Senate race.
Meanwhile, Sen. Liz Brown of Fort Wayne, who won the Republican primary for Senate District 15, filed a motion to dismiss one of the claims in the petition for a recount submitted by her challenger, Darren Vogt. She asserts Vogt has failed to plead a legally sufficient contest claim.
The Recount Commission, to date, has not scheduled any meetings or issued any rulings on these filings.
In her objection, Copenhaver is alleging that Parke County Circuit Court Clerk Nicole Collins added another vote to the final tally in the senate race on May 21, three days after the mandatory recertification deadline of May 18 and two days after the Recount Commission ordered the impoundment of the election materials and records.
Shortly after Parke County amended its primary results, giving Deery another vote, the Indiana Election Division changed its tally as well, according to Copenhaver’s objection. The Parke County clerk is said to have explained that provisional ballot information did not get saved when the election results were initially certified, so the final count had to be recertified after the statutory deadline.
Copenhaver is asking the Recount Commission to use Parke County’s May 18 results when the process begins to retally the ballots, which puts her only two votes behind Deery. Also, she wants the Election Division to prepare a written report explaining how the primary results were changed and identifying the individuals who decided to alter the final total after the certification deadline.
In her subpoena motion, Copenhaver says “statewide voter file data” shows those three voters do not live within Indiana Senate District 23. However, she says determining with “absolute certainty” whether those three voters participated in the primary is not possible. She believes the recount process will provide that information, so she wants the three subpoenas for depositions held until more is known.
Brown wants the Recount Commission to toss the contest claim from Vogt’s petition seeking a recount of all the ballots. The primary was decided by 15 votes.
The incumbent said Vogt does not provide a reason for his claim and does not identify each precinct where the alleged mistake or malfunction occurred, as required by state statute. Brown asserts for the contest claim to be legally sufficient, it must point to a problem with ballots, voting equipment, or election workers or highlight a witness or event that would raise questions as to which candidate received the most votes.
“A contest is a serious proceeding,” Brown says in her motion to dismiss. “It opens an evidentiary record and requires the petitioner to prove an irregularity that prevents determination of the candidate who received the highest number of votes. Indiana law does not permit a petitioner to start that proceeding with a conclusory recitation of statutory categories and then search for supporting facts during the hearing.”
Dwight Adams, an editor and writer based in Indianapolis, edited this article. He is a former content editor, copy editor and digital producer at The Indianapolis Star and IndyStar.com, and worked as a planner for other newspapers, including the Louisville Courier Journal.
The Indiana Citizen is a nonpartisan, nonprofit platform dedicated to increasing the number of informed and engaged Hoosier citizens. We are operated by the Indiana Citizen Education Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) public charity. For questions about the story, contact Marilyn Odendahl at marilyn.odendahl@indianacitizen.org
