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Indiana's 9th Congressional District election, 2026 (May 5 Democratic primary)

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← 2024
Indiana's 9th Congressional District
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Democratic primary
Republican primary
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 9th Congressional District
1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th • 7th • 8th • 9th
Indiana elections, 2026
U.S. Congress elections, 2026
U.S. Senate elections, 2026
U.S. House elections, 2026

A Democratic Party primary takes place on May 5, 2026, in Indiana's 9th Congressional District to determine which Democratic candidate will run in the district's general election on November 3, 2026.

Candidate filing deadline Primary election General election
February 6, 2026
May 5, 2026
November 3, 2026



A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Indiana law requires a closed primary, where a voter must be affiliated with a party to vote in that party's primary. This includes if they voted for a majority of that party’s candidates in the last general election or plan to in the upcoming election. However, it is possible for any voter to vote in any party's primary so long as they meet this criteria.[1]

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

This page focuses on Indiana's 9th Congressional District Democratic primary. For more in-depth information on the district's Republican primary and the general election, see the following pages:

Candidates and election results

Democratic primary

The candidate list in this election may not be complete.

Democratic primary for U.S. House Indiana District 9

Jim Graham (D), Brad Meyer (D), Timothy Peck (D), and Keil Roark (D) are running in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Indiana District 9 on May 5, 2026.

Candidate
Image of Jim Graham
Jim Graham  Candidate Connection
Image of Brad Meyer
Brad Meyer
Image of Timothy Peck
Timothy Peck
Image of Keil Roark
Keil Roark

There are no incumbents in this race.

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.

Jim Graham

Image of Jim Graham

WebsiteFacebookX

Party: Democratic Party

Incumbent: No

Submitted Biography:  "I grew up on small farms in Martin and Monroe Counties in Indiana. I studied engineering at Rose-Hulman and Purdue. I worked for General Motors for several years and then taught engineering at Purdue, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and the University of Louisville. I earned an Executive Certificate in Management and Leadership from MIT and I was co-founder and CEO of the cybersecurity startup company, True Secure SCADA, LLC. Throughout my life, I have done many different things and filled many different roles. At a moment of unprecedented challenge to the principles of democracy set out by our Founders in the US Constitution, I think it is time for non-traditional politicians, like myself, to stand up and be counted in the effort to address the many contentious problems that currently face our nation. I have demonstrated leadership in many activities from leading engineering projects, to serving as Chairman of an academic department, to forming a start-up company, to volunteer positions. I will fight every day for the Hoosiers of the Indiana Ninth District - THAT'S A PROMISE!"

Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.

Before I decided to enter this race, I traveled extensively in the eighteen counties that make up the Indiana Ninth Congressional District. I visited with Hoosiers at diners, sporting events, festivals and county fairs. The common denominator in all these conversations was the prevalence of concern over "pocketbook issues" from the people I met. Many are having to choose between going to the dentist (or doctor) and putting food on the table for their family. Service jobs don't pay much and much of the industry which was once common in this area has now downsized or left completely. Improving economic prospects for Hoosiers through education and jobs development will be a priority for me!

The Gospel of Matthew records these words of Jesus, "For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me" (Matt. 25-35). My Christian faith compels me to protest our current treatment of immigrants by ICE as WRONG and SHAMEFUL. Indiscriminately rounding up individuals, separating children from their parents, and placing law abiding people in cruel detention centers IS NOT AMERICA and should not be condoned.

I AM convinced that a more balanced and compassionate approach will eventually prevail in our country and we WILL be able to work out our problems in a rational manner. There will always be areas for respectful disagreement, but there are many more areas we can work together to find "win-win" policies that make life better for the American people. Engineers are trained to carefully define problems, find a set of solutions that may work, and then analyze and find the best solution. I would try my very best to bring these skills to bear on the problems that current confront our nation.

Voting information

See also: Voting in Indiana

Election information in Indiana: May 5, 2026, election.

What is the voter registration deadline?

  • In-person: April 6, 2026
  • By mail: Postmarked by April 6, 2026
  • Online: April 6, 2026

Is absentee/mail-in voting available to all voters?

No

What is the absentee/mail-in ballot request deadline?

  • In-person: April 23, 2026
  • By mail: Received by April 23, 2026
  • Online: April 23, 2026

What is the absentee/mail-in ballot return deadline?

  • In-person: May 5, 2026
  • By mail: Received by May 5, 2026

Is early voting available to all voters?

Yes

What are the early voting start and end dates?

April 7, 2026 to May 4, 2026

Are all voters required to present ID at the polls? If so, is a photo or non-photo ID required?

N/A

When are polls open on Election Day?

6:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. (ET/CT)

Campaign finance

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
Jim Graham Democratic Party $122,547 $117,666 $4,882 As of December 31, 2025
Brad Meyer Democratic Party $39,824 $27,345 $8,835 As of December 31, 2025
Timothy Peck Democratic Party $106,519 $105,061 $2,246 As of December 31, 2025
Keil Roark Democratic Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***

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.

District analysis

Click the tabs below to view information about voter composition, past elections, and demographics in both the district and the state.

  • District map - A map of the district in place for the election.
  • Competitiveness - Information about the competitiveness of 2026 U.S. House elections in the state.
  • Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the district and the state.
  • State party control - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.


Below is the district map in place for this election. Click the map below to enlarge it.

2023_01_03_in_congressional_district_09.jpg
See also: Primary election competitiveness in state and federal government, 2026
Information about competitiveness will be added here as it becomes available.

Partisan Voter Index

See also: The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index

Heading into the 2026 elections, based on results from the 2024 and 2020 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district is R+15. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 15 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made Indiana's 9th the 75th most Republican district nationally.[2]

2024 presidential election results

The table below shows what the vote in the 2024 presidential election was in this district. The presidential election data was compiled by The Downballot.

2024 presidential results in Indiana's 9th Congressional District
Kamala Harris Democratic PartyDonald Trump Republican Party
34.0%64.0%

Presidential voting history

See also: Presidential election in Indiana, 2024

Indiana presidential election results (1900-2024)

  • 5 Democratic wins
  • 27 Republican wins
Year 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024
Winning Party R R R D R R R R D D R R R R R R D R R R R R R R R R R D R R R R
See also: Party control of Indiana state government

Congressional delegation

The table below displays the partisan composition of Indiana's congressional delegation as of October 2025.

Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Indiana
Party U.S. Senate U.S. House Total
Democratic 0 2 2
Republican 2 7 9
Independent 0 0 0
Vacancies 0 0 0
Total 2 9 11

State executive

The table below displays the officeholders in Indiana's top four state executive offices as of October 2025.

State executive officials in Indiana, October 2025
OfficeOfficeholder
GovernorRepublican Party Mike Braun
Lieutenant GovernorRepublican Party Micah Beckwith
Secretary of StateRepublican Party Diego Morales
Attorney GeneralRepublican Party Todd Rokita

State legislature

Indiana State Senate

Party As of February 2026
     Democratic Party 10
     Republican Party 40
     Other 0
     Vacancies 0
Total 50

Indiana House of Representatives

Party As of February 2026
     Democratic Party 30
     Republican Party 70
     Other 0
     Vacancies 0
Total 100

Trifecta control

Indiana Party Control: 1992-2025
No Democratic trifectas  •  Seventeen years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Governor D D D D D D D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R
Senate R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R
House D D D R R D D D D D D D D R R D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R

Ballot access

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. House candidates in Indiana in the 2026 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Indiana, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. House candidates, 2026
State Office Party Signatures required Filing fee Filing deadline Source
Indiana U.S. House Ballot-qualified party N/A (only declaration of candidacy required) N/A 2/6/2026 Source
Indiana U.S. House Unaffiliated 2% of total votes cast for the secretary of state in the district in the last election N/A 7/15/2026 Source

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Indiana General Assembly, "Ind. Code § 3–10–1–6," accessed March 11, 2026
  2. ↑ Cook Political Report, "2025 Cook PVI℠: District Map and List (119th Congress)," accessed July 1, 2025


Indiana's current delegation to the United States Congress
Senators
Jim Banks (R)
Todd Young (R)
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)


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