David Shelton (Indiana)

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David Shelton

Republican Party

Candidate, Indiana Secretary of State

Elections and appointments

Last convention

June 18, 2022

Next convention

June 20, 2026

Personal

Birthplace

Indianapolis, IN

Profession

Knox County Clerk

David Shelton (Republican Party) is running for election for Indiana Secretary of State. Shelton declared candidacy for the Republican convention scheduled on June 20, 2026.^[source]

Biography

David Shelton was born in Indianapolis, Indiana. He was elected Knox County Clerk in 2018. Shelton’s career experience includes working as a private investigator and the owner of an upholstery shop.

Elections

2026

See also: Indiana Secretary of State election, 2026

General election

The primary will occur on June 20, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.

Democratic convention

Democratic convention for Indiana Secretary of State

Beau Bayh (D) and Blythe Potter (D) are running in the Democratic convention for Indiana Secretary of State on June 6, 2026.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Beau Bayh
		Blythe Potter

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	There are no incumbents in this race.
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Republican convention

Republican convention for Indiana Secretary of State

David Shelton (R) is running in the Republican convention for Indiana Secretary of State on June 20, 2026.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	David Shelton

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	There are no incumbents in this race.
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Endorsements

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2022

See also: Indiana Secretary of State election, 2022

General election

General election for Indiana Secretary of State

Diego Morales defeated Destiny Scott Wells, Jeff Maurer, David Wetterer, and Andrew Straw in the general election for Indiana Secretary of State on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Diego Morales (R)	54.1	999,893
		Destiny Scott Wells (D)	40.2	742,624
		Jeff Maurer (L)	5.7	104,519
	Submit photo	David Wetterer (G) (Write-in)	0.0	107
		Andrew Straw (Disability Party) (Write-in)	0.0	36

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,847,179
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic convention

Democratic convention for Indiana Secretary of State

Destiny Scott Wells advanced from the Democratic convention for Indiana Secretary of State on June 18, 2022.

		Candidate
✔		Destiny Scott Wells (D)

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican convention

Republican convention for Indiana Secretary of State

Diego Morales defeated incumbent Holli Sullivan and David Shelton in the Republican convention for Indiana Secretary of State on June 18, 2022.

		Candidate
		Holli Sullivan (R)
✔		Diego Morales (R)
	Submit photo	David Shelton (R)

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Kyle Conrad (R)
• Paul Hager (R)

Libertarian convention

Libertarian convention for Indiana Secretary of State

Jeff Maurer advanced from the Libertarian convention for Indiana Secretary of State on March 5, 2022.

		Candidate
✔		Jeff Maurer (L)

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Campaign themes

2026

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

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2022

David Shelton completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Shelton's responses.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am currently the Knox County Clerk. I am an election administrator. Election integrity is not a catch phrase to me, as I live and breath it every single day. I am also a member of the Knox County Public Defender Board and also serve as the Chairman of the Board of Commissioners of the Knox County Housing Authority.

I solved Knox County's record storage issue by moving, sorting, and organizing over 500,000 pounds of County Records. I identified over 75,000 pounds as non-permanent records and properly disposed of them. I vacated over 10,000 square feet of county space in the process

I have been a Private Investigator for over 20 years, currently licensed in Indiana, Illinois, and Kentucky.

I am married to my wife Rachel and we are raising our five children, with our oldest graduating high school May, 2022.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• Election Administration Experience- Only candidate with hands on election experience
• Professional background allows for overall qualifications for the other departments of the office
• Financial Conservative, always remembering a small part of tax dollars spent comes from my own pocket.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Election Security

Election Administration Proficiency.

What qualities does this office possess that makes it a unique and important part of the state government and legal system?

It oversees elections in the State of Indiana, the very foundation of our representative form of government. It also oversees auto dealerships, security fraud investigations, and business entity filings.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Remember where you came from. Listen to, and understand concerns and complaints from people.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

Investigative eye, actual election experience, and the drive, determination, and ability to effect positive change. I'm not afraid to work and get my hands dirty.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

Ensure Election integrity, safety, and make sure every legal vote is counted.

What legacy would you like to leave?

Of course, I want to be the best Secretary of State in the history of Indiana.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

Marine barracks bombing in Lebanon, I was almost 12.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

My first job was as a lifeguard and swim instructor.

What responsibilities of this office do you personally consider the most important?

While all are important, the election side of the office, to me, is the most important. As a current County Clerk, I oversee and run my local elections. There are 92 ways of running elections in Indiana. Proper training of the County Clerks is of the upmost importance. County Clerks are the first and last line of defense when it comes to our elections.

Are there any little-known powers or responsibilities held by this office that you believe more people should be aware of?

The Secretary of State oversee Security Fraud Investigations. This role is very important to Hoosiers as it protects them from all kinds of scams.

Do you believe that it's beneficial for holders of this office to have previous experience in government or politics?

Absolutely, as the only candidate with hands-on election administration experience, there is no substitute for that. As a County Clerk, I know first hand the struggles counties have in finding poll workers, obtaining funding, and how things are done on a County level.

What kind of skills or expertise do you believe would be the most helpful for the holders of this office to possess?

Experience, experience, and experience. I have the election experience lacking in the other candidates. I also have professional experience as a Private Investigator, licensed in three States. This investigative eye will allow me to easily acclimate to, and evaluate all divisions of the office.

Tell us your favorite joke.

Do you know why cannibals don't eat clowns?


Because they taste funny.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

Campaign finance summary

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Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

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David Shelton campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2022	Indiana Secretary of State	Lost convention	$33,889	$33,889
Grand total			$33,889	$33,889
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Election Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

See also

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