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2026 General Election · Tuesday, November 3, 2026

Allen County Commissioner, District 2

Voted on across Allen County, in district 2. Open seat: Therese Brown is not on the ballot.

Find your exact ballotAll Allen County races

Who votes on this seat: Commissioners must live in their district, but every voter in the county votes for this seat. Indiana Code 36-2-2-5

What this office does

In 91 of Indiana's 92 counties, a three-member board of commissioners is the county executive and conducts the county's business in the board's name [1, 2]. Commissioners administer county government affairs that state law does not assign to a separately elected officer, while the county council, a separate elected body, controls budgets, tax rates and salaries [2, 3, 4]. Marion County is the exception: under the consolidated Indianapolis–Marion County government (Unigov), the mayor holds most executive power, and the elected county assessor, auditor and treasurer serve as the county commissioners, with duties that mostly concern county finances [5, 2, 6].

The job in full — the duties the Indiana Code puts in it, the term, what it pays and who sets that, and what to ask a candidate.

Term
4 years, starting January 1 after the election; seats are staggered, so one or two of the three seats are filled at each general election [7]
Elected
On the partisan general-election ballot; each commissioner represents a district and must live in it, but in every county except Lake and St. Joseph the whole county votes on every commissioner seat; in Lake and St. Joseph counties only the district's voters choose [8, 9]
Term limit
None stated; the statute that sets the four-year term does not limit how many terms a commissioner may serve [7]
Qualifications
Must have lived in the county at least one year and in the commissioner district at least six months before the election, and be registered to vote in the election district; a county employee who is elected must leave that county job on taking office [10, 9]
Pay
Set locally: the county council fixes the compensation of county officers in its annual salary ordinance [4, 11]
On the 2026 ballot
94 races; 41 contested [12]
What the law puts in this job (13)
  • Acts as the county executive and transacts county business under the name of the board of commissioners [1].
  • Runs the day-to-day administration of county government affairs that the state has not given to a separately elected county officer [2].
  • Serves as the county's legislative body, passing ordinances and resolutions, in every county except Lake, Marion and St. Joseph, where that power belongs to the county council [2].
  • Controls, maintains and supervises county property such as the courthouse, the jail building and county offices [13].
  • Oversees county roads and bridges, highway records, speed limits and stop signs [13].
  • Audits and approves claims for payment, takes bids and authorizes county contracts [13].
  • Prepares the commissioners' part of the county budget and recommends salaries to the county council, which must consider the executive's recommendations before adopting the salary ordinance [13, 11].
  • Handles zoning, planning, building regulation and economic development matters, and in many counties casts the final vote on rezoning requests such as proposed data centers [13, 14].
  • Sets voting precincts and polling places and appoints members of many county boards [13].
  • Establishes and maintains the county health department and can declare a local disaster emergency [2].
  • Draws the three commissioner districts and the county council districts, outside the largest counties where a commission or the council draws them [15, 16].
  • Does not set the county budget, property tax rate or salaries; those decisions belong to the county council, and no money leaves the county treasury without a council appropriation except as otherwise provided by law [3, 4, 11].
  • Does not run the offices of other elected county officials such as the sheriff, auditor or treasurer, which are separately elected [2].

Allen County's numbers for this office

Legal Insights county office research (Oct. 13, 2026): Indiana Gateway budgets 2019-2026 and the indicator sources linked on each line.

Commissioners' department (code 0068), 2026 adopted budget

$43,005,057

7% less than 2019, before inflation

2019: $46,150,5982020: $44,014,6832021: $30,466,9362022: $42,211,3102023: $44,831,4412024: $54,493,6602025: $114,947,6182026: $43,005,057
2019 $46,150,5982026 $43,005,057
The year-by-year figures

Adopted budget, all funds, 2019-2026 (not adjusted for inflation)

  • 2019: $46,150,598
  • 2020: $44,014,683
  • 2021: $30,466,936
  • 2022: $42,211,310
  • 2023: $44,831,441
  • 2024: $54,493,660
  • 2025: $114,947,618
  • 2026: $43,005,057

Budget lines counted: 0068 COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

Adopted 2026 county budget (Form 1 line items, Form 4B) and earlier years' budgets

All members combined, 2026 budget lines (presidents are often paid more)

$296,640

From the county budget; verify against the county's 2026 salary ordinance. A line can include longevity pay or a second role.

  • In most counties this department also holds countywide costs such as group and liability insurance, contracts and some capital projects. It is the department total, not the cost of the board of commissioners.

Also on the record for this office

  • SEA 1 estimated county-unit revenue change in 2028 vs prior law: $-10,061,720 (LSA)
  • MUST taskforce (LIT distribution talks): none found
  • wheel tax: none found
  • fiscal consultant named in records: none found

Measured, for this county

A position compares this county with counties of similar size. It is not a grade: for most measures a higher or lower number is neither good nor bad on its own.

General Fund cash, in days of spending · 2025

123 days

End-of-2025 General Fund cash divided by a year's disbursements, times 365.

How much this is the officeholder's to decide: high (council and commissioners jointly): spending and appropriation decisions

Position 9 of 10 counties with 150,000 or more residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source · source

Share of the 2025 General Fund budget spent · 2025

103.0%

Actual General Fund spending divided by the certified budget.

How much this is the officeholder's to decide: high (council appropriates; commissioners and officers spend)

Position 3 of 11 counties with 150,000 or more residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source · source

County debt per resident · 2025

$21.19

Debt outstanding at the end of 2025 (annual financial report).

How much this is the officeholder's to decide: high (council authorizes borrowing; commissioners initiate many projects)

Position 11 of 11 counties with 150,000 or more residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source · source

Budget growth, 2023 to 2026 · 2023-2026

+12.6%

Adopted budget, all funds, not adjusted for inflation.

How much this is the officeholder's to decide: high (council adopts the budget)

Position 8 of 10 counties with 150,000 or more residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source · source

SEA 1 estimate for 2028 · 2028 (LSA estimate)

-8.5%

Legislative Services Agency estimate of the county government's revenue change under the 2025 property tax law, compared with prior law.

How much this is the officeholder's to decide: low: set by state law (SEA 1-2025); local rate choices from 2028 change the outcome

Position 4 of 10 counties with 150,000 or more residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source

Property tax cap credits · 2026

8.8%

Tax-cap (circuit breaker) credits as a share of the 2026 levy: revenue the county does not collect because of the caps.

How much this is the officeholder's to decide: low: set mainly by the constitutional caps and the combined rates of all units in the county

Position 7 of 11 counties with 150,000 or more residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source · source

County bridges rated poor · 2025

11.1%

Share of county-owned bridges in poor condition (2025 inventory).

How much this is the officeholder's to decide: partial: commissioners set road and bridge priorities and local match; projects take years and depend on grants

Position 4 of 10 counties with 150,000 or more residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source

Highway spending per lane-mile · 2025

$8,453

2025 county highway spending per lane-mile of county road.

How much this is the officeholder's to decide: high (commissioners direct the highway department; council appropriates)

Position 9 of 10 counties with 150,000 or more residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source · source

Meeting minutes online · 2026-10

Not checked (the site blocked the check)

Whether the council's or commissioners' minutes are posted online (the better of the two), checked Oct. 2026.

How much this is the officeholder's to decide: high (commissioners and council decide what they post)

About this race

  • Open seat: Commissioner Therese Brown (Republican) is retiring at the end of her term [23].
  • How the seat is elected: Allen County's three commissioners are elected countywide by the whole county [27]; candidates must live in their district [8].
  • Two of the three commissioner seats are open in 2026: Therese Brown (District 2) and Richard Beck (District 3) both announced they would retire at the end of their terms [28].
  • Jail: in early 2025 the commissioners approved a hard construction cost of nearly $268 million for a new county jail on the former International Harvester site, which the county committed to build in response to a federal court order over safety and overcrowding at the downtown jail; construction must be finished by November 2027, and the project has drawn opposition over its necessity, location and cost [26].
  • Data centers and zoning: in December 2023 the commissioners voted 3-0 to approve annexation of 728 acres near East Paulding and Adams Center roads for the 'Project Zodiac' data center over objections from nearby homeowners [25].
  • Other 2026 local issues raised in coverage: a proposed quarry in southwest Allen County, and a binding casino referendum on the Nov. 3 ballot [29, 30].
  • May 5, 2026 primary: Ozzie Mitson (Republican, 18,174 votes) and Kate Conner (Democratic, 14,309 votes) were each unopposed for their party's nomination [31, 32].
  • Conner's site stresses limiting tax abatements, stronger zoning protections for farm and residential areas, and openness about major projects; Mitson's site stresses infrastructure, public safety, economic development, fiscal restraint and less red tape [33, 34].
  • No candidate forum or debate coverage for this race was found.

Candidates on the ballot

Kate Conner

Democratic

Democratic nominee and Fort Wayne native who works in the financial industry; her campaign calls for reducing reliance on tax abatements, stronger zoning protections for agricultural and residential areas, and more transparency about major projects [33].

Conner's background

  • According to her campaign site: born and raised in Fort Wayne; 2011 Northrop High School graduate; studied at Anthis Career Center, the University of Saint Francis, Ivy Tech and Rudae's; worked in the restaurant industry from age 15 into her thirties and, since 2021, in the private financial industry [33].

Conner's positions

Economic development

  • Criticizes cutting red tape for large developers and big tech companies, saying such deals raise living costs; supports projects that create "long-term, permanent jobs" and local business creation [33].
  • Would work with the County Council to reduce the county's reliance on tax abatements: "Push back against the idea that corporations will not come to Allen County without incentives or tax breaks" [33].

Zoning & land use

  • Says the county ordinance sets only minimum safety requirements and the board can require more; wants stronger zoning to protect agricultural and residential areas: "Local government should demand more to preserve our resources, our land, and our families" [33].

Transparency

  • Wants plain-language explanations of commissioner decisions, regular public updates and resident input; opposes "any project that would require non-disclosure agreements that hide major projects from the public" [33].

How Conner would run the office

  • Stated goals on her site: a "Hoosier First" economy favoring permanent jobs and local business, less reliance on tax abatements, stronger zoning protections and more transparent decision-making [33].

Conner on the current officeholder

  • Open seat. No statements about Commissioner Brown's record were found.

How Conner got on the ballot

  • Unopposed in the May 5, 2026 Democratic primary (14,309 votes) [31].
  • Listed by the Allen County Democratic Party as its District 2 commissioner candidate [35].

Conner's endorsements and funding

  • Endorsements listed on her site: Northeast Indiana AFL-CIO, National Democratic County Officials, Democratic Women's Club of Allen County, Democratic Socialists of America (Fort Wayne & NE Indiana chapter), Gun Sense Voters and the Allen County Democratic Party [33].

What we could not find about Conner

  • Employer and specific role in the financial industry not stated.
  • No positions found on the jail, the county budget or SEA 1, the casino referendum or the southwest quarry.
  • Local newspaper coverage of this race (The Journal Gazette), including its candidate questionnaire, could not be reviewed for this profile.
  • No campaign-finance totals were found.

Conner's campaign website

Sources for Conner

Ozzie Mitson

Republican

Republican nominee and director of government affairs for IU Health Fort Wayne whose campaign priorities are infrastructure, economic development, fiscal responsibility, public safety and streamlined government [34].

Mitson's background

  • According to his campaign site: lifelong Allen County resident living in Fort Wayne; Carroll High School graduate who studied communications at IPFW; director of government affairs for IU Health Fort Wayne [34].
  • Previous roles listed on his site: district staff for U.S. Rep. Mark Souder; director of government affairs for the Greater Fort Wayne Chamber of Commerce; public information officer and business and government liaison for the City of Fort Wayne; government-affairs work for Lutheran Health Network [34].
  • Civic roles listed on his site: member of the City of Fort Wayne Ethics Board; president of the Alcoholic Beverage Commission of Allen County; board member of Fort Wayne Trails and the Embassy Theatre, among others [34].

Mitson's positions

Roads & infrastructure

  • Wants roads, bridges and drainage that are "safe, reliable, and built to support long term growth" while protecting taxpayer dollars [34].

Economic development

  • Would strengthen the business climate, attract investment and create quality jobs while working to "preserve the character of our neighborhoods and farmland" [34].

Budget & taxes

  • Promises to "demand transparency, cut waste, and keep government lean" and keep taxes low [34].

Public safety & jail

  • Describes himself as "a trusted ally of law enforcement and first responders" and supports the resources and facilities they need [34].

Transparency

  • Would "reduce red tape, improve coordination between city and county entities" and make local government more responsive [34].

How Mitson would run the office

  • Stated goals on his site: infrastructure investment, business growth that protects neighborhoods and farmland, lean budgeting, support for public safety and less red tape [34].

Mitson on the current officeholder

  • Open seat. No statements about Commissioner Brown's record were found.

How Mitson got on the ballot

  • Unopposed in the May 5, 2026 Republican primary (18,174 votes) [31, 32].

What we could not find about Mitson

  • No positions found on the jail project, SEA 1 or local income taxes, data centers, the casino referendum or the southwest quarry.
  • Local newspaper coverage of this race (The Journal Gazette), including his announcement and its candidate questionnaire, could not be reviewed for this profile.
  • No endorsements are listed on his campaign site; no campaign-finance totals were found [34].

Mitson's campaign website

Sources for Mitson

Key points

  • Open seat: Commissioner Therese Brown (Republican) is retiring at the end of her term. (WPTA 21Alive)
  • Google's ~892-acre campus was annexed and approved by Fort Wayne (2023-24) with a 10-year, 50% real-property abatement. Fort Wayne's council delayed a moratorium vote to Oct 13, 2026. No county data-center ordinance was found. (wfyi.org)
  • Allen County government adopted a $361.6 million budget for 2026, about $899 per resident; that is +12.6% compared with 2023. (Indiana Gateway for Government Units)

Sources

Researched Sunday, October 11, 2026

  1. Indiana Code 36-2-2-2: Board of commissioners as county executive (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
  2. County Government Overview: Indiana (National Association of Counties (NACo))
  3. Indiana Code 36-2-5-2: Tax rates and appropriations (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
  4. Indiana Code 36-2-5-3: Compensation of officers and employees (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
  5. Indiana Code 36-2-2-1: Application of chapter (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
  6. Marion County Commissioners (Encyclopedia of Indianapolis (Thomas C. Kennedy))
  7. Indiana Code 36-2-2-3: Election and term of executive (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
  8. Indiana Code 36-2-2-5: Qualifications and residency of members; district or countywide election (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
  9. 2026 Indiana Candidate Guide (Indiana Election Division)
  10. Indiana Code 3-8-1-21: Candidates for county commissioner (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
  11. Indiana Code 36-2-5-11: Annual budget, tax rate and salary ordinances (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
  12. 2026 General Election Candidate List (Indiana Election Division)
  13. Commissioners Responsibilities (Boone County, Indiana)
  14. Indiana state officials want to attract data centers. Local communities are beginning to push back (Indianapolis Business Journal via Inside INdiana Business (Marek Mazurek))
  15. Indiana Code 36-2-2-4: Commissioner districts (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
  16. Indiana Code 36-2-3-4: Council districts and at-large members (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
  17. Allen County Commissioner Therese Brown announces retirement (WPTA 21Alive)
  18. Allen County Commissioners approve 'Project Zodiac' annexation (WPTA 21Alive)
  19. Allen County Commissioners settle on 'hard cost' number for jail project (WBOI)
  20. Jorge Fernandez announces third campaign for Allen County Commissioner (WANE 15)
  21. Allen County Commissioner Richard Beck announces retirement (WPTA 21Alive)
  22. Connolly vs. Moss for GOP Allen County commissioner nominee (WANE 15)
  23. Republican primary heats up for Allen County commissioner seat (WPTA 21Alive)
  24. 2026 Primary Election Results (certified) (Indiana Election Division)
  25. Primary prep: What to know about Allen County's vote centers, key races + more (The Local FW)
  26. Kate Conner for Allen County Commissioner (campaign website) (Committee to Elect Conner for Commissioner)
  27. Ozzie Mitson for Allen County Commissioner (campaign website) (Mitson campaign)
  28. Candidates (Allen County Democratic Party)
What's included
the U.S. House, statewide offices, every Indiana House and Senate district on the ballot, Indiana's statewide public questions and judicial retention questions, and county, township, city, town and school board races from the Indiana Election Division's candidate list.
Everything else
Local races (county, city, school board, judges) and anything else on your ballot are on your official sample ballot: IndianaVoters.in.gov.
Candidate lists
As of Sunday, October 18, 2026.
At the polls
Indiana law lets you bring a list of candidates and public questions into the polling place, including one stored on your phone, as long as you don't electioneer. IC 3-11-8-18.5

This is not an official ballot. Confirm your registration, polling place and ballot with your election office through vote.gov.