Everything you need to know about ranked-choice voting in one spot. Click to learn more!

Indiana's 5th Congressional District election, 2026

From Ballotpedia
Jump to: navigation, search



2024
Indiana's 5th Congressional District
Ballotpedia Election Coverage Badge.png
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: February 6, 2026
Primary: May 5, 2026
General: November 3, 2026
How to vote
Poll times:

6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Voting in Indiana

Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Solid Republican
DDHQ and The Hill: Pending
Inside Elections: Solid Republican
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Republican
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds
U.S. House battlegrounds
Federal and state primary competitiveness
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2026
See also
Indiana's 5th Congressional District
1st2nd3rd4th5th6th7th8th9th
Indiana elections, 2026
U.S. Congress elections, 2026
U.S. Senate elections, 2026
U.S. House elections, 2026

All U.S. House districts, including the 5th Congressional District of Indiana, are holding elections in 2026. The general election is November 3, 2026. To learn more about other elections on the ballot, click here.

Candidates and election results

Note: The following list includes official candidates only. Ballotpedia defines official candidates as people who:

  • Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline
  • Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies

Note: At this time, Ballotpedia is combining all declared candidates for this election into one list under a general election heading. As primary election dates are published, this information will be updated to separate general election candidates from primary candidates as appropriate.

General election

The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.

General election for U.S. House Indiana District 5

Incumbent Victoria Spartz, Samuel Cooper, Jackson Franklin, and Deborah A. Pickett are running in the general election for U.S. House Indiana District 5 on November 3, 2026.


Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Candidate profiles

This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.

Voting information

See also: Voting in Indiana

Ballotpedia will publish the dates and deadlines related to this election as they are made available.

Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses

Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

No candidate in this race has completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Ballotpedia is seeking 100 percent participation so voters can learn more about all the candidates on their ballots.

You can ask candidates in this race to fill out the survey by clicking their names below:

Campaign finance

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
Victoria Spartz Republican Party $743,110 $807,154 $194,006 As of September 30, 2025
Samuel Cooper Democratic Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Jackson Franklin Democratic Party $16,778 $11,872 $4,906 As of September 30, 2025
Deborah A. Pickett Democratic Party $6,645 $8,982 $1,932 As of September 30, 2025

Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2026. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee."
** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election.
*** Candidate either did not report any receipts or disbursements to the FEC, or Ballotpedia did not find an FEC candidate ID.

General election race ratings

See also: Race rating definitions and methods

Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:

  • Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
  • Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
  • Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.[1]
  • Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.

Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.[2][3][4]

Race ratings: Indiana's 5th Congressional District election, 2026
Race trackerRace ratings
10/14/202510/7/20259/30/20259/23/2025
The Cook Political Report with Amy WalterSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid Republican
Decision Desk HQ and The HillPendingPendingPendingPending
Inside Elections with Nathan L. GonzalesSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid Republican
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal BallSafe RepublicanSafe RepublicanSafe RepublicanSafe Republican
Note: Ballotpedia reviews external race ratings every week throughout the election season and posts weekly updates even if the media outlets have not revised their ratings during that week.

Ballot access

This section will contain information on ballot access related to this state's elections when it is available.

District history

The section below details election results for this office in elections dating back to 2020.

2024

See also: Indiana's 5th Congressional District election, 2024

Indiana's 5th Congressional District election, 2024 (May 7 Republican primary)

Indiana's 5th Congressional District election, 2024 (May 7 Democratic primary)

General election

General election for U.S. House Indiana District 5

Incumbent Victoria Spartz defeated Deborah A. Pickett, Robby Slaughter, and Lauri Shillings in the general election for U.S. House Indiana District 5 on November 5, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Victoria Spartz
Victoria Spartz (R)
 
56.6
 
203,293
Image of Deborah A. Pickett
Deborah A. Pickett (D) Candidate Connection
 
38.0
 
136,554
Image of Robby Slaughter
Robby Slaughter (Independent) Candidate Connection
 
2.7
 
9,790
Image of Lauri Shillings
Lauri Shillings (L) Candidate Connection
 
2.7
 
9,567

Total votes: 359,204
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Indiana District 5

Deborah A. Pickett defeated Ryan Pfenninger in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Indiana District 5 on May 7, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Deborah A. Pickett
Deborah A. Pickett Candidate Connection
 
59.5
 
11,858
Image of Ryan Pfenninger
Ryan Pfenninger Candidate Connection
 
40.5
 
8,082

Total votes: 19,940
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Indiana District 5

The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for U.S. House Indiana District 5 on May 7, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Victoria Spartz
Victoria Spartz
 
39.1
 
31,674
Image of Chuck Goodrich
Chuck Goodrich
 
33.2
 
26,865
Image of Max Engling
Max Engling Candidate Connection
 
9.7
 
7,841
Image of Raju Chinthala
Raju Chinthala
 
7.1
 
5,742
Image of Mark Hurt
Mark Hurt Candidate Connection
 
5.5
 
4,431
Larry L. Savage Jr.
 
1.9
 
1,569
Image of Matthew Peiffer
Matthew Peiffer Candidate Connection
 
1.7
 
1,379
Image of Patrick Malayter
Patrick Malayter Candidate Connection
 
1.0
 
800
Image of Lonnie Powell
Lonnie Powell Candidate Connection
 
0.9
 
729

Total votes: 81,030
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

2022

See also: Indiana's 5th Congressional District election, 2022

General election

General election for U.S. House Indiana District 5

Incumbent Victoria Spartz defeated Jeannine Lee Lake in the general election for U.S. House Indiana District 5 on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Victoria Spartz
Victoria Spartz (R)
 
61.1
 
146,575
Image of Jeannine Lee Lake
Jeannine Lee Lake (D) Candidate Connection
 
38.9
 
93,434

Total votes: 240,009
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Indiana District 5

Jeannine Lee Lake defeated Matt Hall in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Indiana District 5 on May 3, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Jeannine Lee Lake
Jeannine Lee Lake Candidate Connection
 
60.0
 
10,192
Image of Matt Hall
Matt Hall Candidate Connection
 
40.0
 
6,799

Total votes: 16,991
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Indiana District 5

Incumbent Victoria Spartz advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Indiana District 5 on May 3, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Victoria Spartz
Victoria Spartz
 
100.0
 
47,128

Total votes: 47,128
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2020

See also: Indiana's 5th Congressional District election, 2020

General election

General election for U.S. House Indiana District 5

Victoria Spartz defeated Christina Hale and Ken Tucker in the general election for U.S. House Indiana District 5 on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Victoria Spartz
Victoria Spartz (R)
 
50.0
 
208,212
Image of Christina Hale
Christina Hale (D)
 
45.9
 
191,226
Image of Ken Tucker
Ken Tucker (L) Candidate Connection
 
4.0
 
16,788

Total votes: 416,226
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Indiana District 5

Christina Hale defeated Dee Thornton, Jennifer Christie, Andy Jacobs, and Ralph Spelbring in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Indiana District 5 on June 2, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Christina Hale
Christina Hale
 
40.8
 
30,123
Image of Dee Thornton
Dee Thornton
 
27.1
 
20,049
Image of Jennifer Christie
Jennifer Christie
 
18.1
 
13,345
Andy Jacobs
 
13.3
 
9,817
Ralph Spelbring
 
0.8
 
575

Total votes: 73,909
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Indiana District 5

The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for U.S. House Indiana District 5 on June 2, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Victoria Spartz
Victoria Spartz
 
39.7
 
34,526
Image of Beth Henderson
Beth Henderson
 
17.6
 
15,343
Image of Micah Beckwith
Micah Beckwith Candidate Connection
 
12.7
 
11,063
Image of Carl Brizzi
Carl Brizzi
 
6.5
 
5,619
Image of Kent Abernathy
Kent Abernathy Candidate Connection
 
5.6
 
4,901
Image of Kelly Mitchell
Kelly Mitchell
 
5.3
 
4,643
Image of Chuck Dietzen
Chuck Dietzen
 
4.7
 
4,071
Image of Matthew Hook
Matthew Hook Candidate Connection
 
2.5
 
2,147
Image of Andrew Bales
Andrew Bales Candidate Connection
 
1.5
 
1,329
Image of Mark Small
Mark Small Candidate Connection
 
1.2
 
1,057
Image of Danny Niederberger
Danny Niederberger Candidate Connection
 
0.8
 
675
Image of Victor Wakley
Victor Wakley Candidate Connection
 
0.5
 
465
Image of Allen Davidson
Allen Davidson
 
0.5
 
411
Image of Russell Stwalley
Russell Stwalley Candidate Connection
 
0.4
 
379
Image of Matthew Hullinger
Matthew Hullinger Candidate Connection
 
0.4
 
333

Total votes: 86,962
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Watch the Candidate Conversation for this race!

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Libertarian convention

Libertarian convention for U.S. House Indiana District 5

Ken Tucker advanced from the Libertarian convention for U.S. House Indiana District 5 on March 7, 2020.

Candidate
Image of Ken Tucker
Ken Tucker (L) Candidate Connection

Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.



District analysis

This section will contain facts and figures related to this district's elections when those are available.

See also

Indiana 2026 primaries 2026 U.S. Congress elections
Seal of Indiana.png
Ballotpedia Election Coverage Badge.png
CongressLogosmall.png
Indiana congressional delegation
Voting in Indiana
Indiana elections:
202620252024202320222021202020192018
Democratic primary battlegrounds
Republican primary battlegrounds
U.S. Senate Democratic primaries
U.S. Senate Republican primaries
U.S. House Democratic primaries
U.S. House Republican primaries
U.S. Congress elections
U.S. Senate elections
U.S. House elections
Special elections
Ballot access

External links

Footnotes

  1. Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
  2. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
  3. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
  4. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018


Senators
Representatives
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
Jim Baird (R)
District 5
District 6
District 7
District 8
District 9
Republican Party (9)
Democratic Party (2)