Elkhart County Council, District 2

What this office does

The county council is the county's fiscal body: it sets the county property tax rate, appropriates the money the county spends and fixes the pay and number of county employees ^{[1, 2, 3]}. Most councils have seven members, four elected from districts and three elected countywide (at large), though some larger counties elect all members by district ^{[1, 4]}. The board of commissioners runs county government day to day, while the council controls the money ^{[5, 6]}. Marion County has no separate county council; the 25-member Indianapolis City-County Council serves as the legislative body for the consolidated city-county government ^{[7, 8]}.

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; district seats and at-large seats are filled at alternating general elections ^[9]

Elected

On the partisan general-election ballot; in most counties four members are elected by district voters and three at large by the whole county, while counties of 400,000–700,000 residents elect seven members by district and opt-in counties of 185,000–300,000 elect nine by district ^{[4, 1]}. Every county council race on the 2026 state candidate list is a district seat ^[10]

At-large races

All three at-large seats are filled at the same election, so voters may choose up to three candidates and the top three vote-getters win; straight-ticket votes do not count in these multi-seat races ^{[4, 11]}

Term limit

None stated; the statute that sets the four-year term does not limit how many terms a member may serve ^[9]

Qualifications

Must have lived in the county at least one year, and in the district (for a district seat) 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 ^{[12, 13]}

Pay

Set locally in the council's annual ordinance fixing the compensation of county officers and employees ^{[3, 14]}

On the 2026 ballot

368 races; 147 contested ^[10]

What has changed in this job lately

Changes in the law the next officeholder will work under, most distant first.

1. 2023

   State law gave counties with 185,000 to 300,000 residents until September 1, 2023, to opt in to a nine-member council elected entirely from single-member districts ^{[1, 4, 19]}.

2. April 15, 2025

   Gov. Mike Braun signed Senate Enrolled Act 1, a property tax law he called historic tax relief; Rep. Greg Porter (D-Indianapolis) called it a lose-lose and said it would cost local governments and schools up to $1.8 billion over three years ^[20].

3. 2025

   SEA 1 rewrote county local income taxes: existing rates were set to be replaced by a new structure, local income tax councils were to be eliminated with the county fiscal body becoming the adopting body, the total county expenditure rate was capped at 2.9%, and cities and towns with at least 3,500 residents gained the power to adopt their own rate ^[16].

4. March 12, 2026

   House Enrolled Act 1210 delayed the local income tax overhaul by one year; current ordinances now expire January 1, 2029, the repeal of local income tax councils and the levy freeze is also delayed a year, and counties may form a Municipal Unit Strategic Taskforce with city and town representatives to negotiate revenue sharing ^{[17, 21]}.

5. 2026

   Senate tax committee chair Travis Holdman (R-Markle) said the delay aims for a more streamlined, tailored plan because counties are not all alike, while Amy Krieg of the organization representing cities and towns said the issue will be a multi-year discussion ^[21].

Elkhart 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.

Also on the record for this office

• SEA 1 estimated county-unit revenue change in 2028 vs prior law: $-6,123,740 (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.

About this race

• Open seat: incumbent Randy Yohn is not seeking re-election ^[22].
• In the May 5, 2026 Republican primary, Brian Dickerson won with 1,204 votes (54.5%) over John Perry (567, 25.6%) and Stephen Gray (440, 19.9%), per unofficial results with 99% reporting ^[25]. Democrat John Brewer is the Democratic nominee ^[10].
• Budget and SEA 1: In October 2025 the Elkhart County Council adopted a 2026 budget of about $179 million on a 5-0 vote, cutting more than $10 million from the advertised request by trimming the general, highway, health and election funds. WVPE reported that the council, commissioners and local mayors urged the General Assembly to revisit Senate Enrolled Act 1, the 2025 property- and income-tax law, citing projected revenue losses ^{[24, 23]}.
• Facilities: In early 2026 commissioners were asked to approve $300,000 from the jail's special projects fund for unplanned jail repairs and a $250,000 general-fund transfer for renovations to the Old Historic Goshen Courthouse; the outcome was not reported in reviewed coverage ^[26].
• No candidate forum or debate for this race was found in reviewed coverage.

Who holds this seat now

Randy Yohn (Republican) — not on this ballot.

Republican Randy (Randall) Yohn represents District 2 on the Elkhart County Council and announced he would not seek re-election in 2026, making this an open seat ^[22].

Yohn's record in the job

• 2026: Announced he would not run again ^[22].
• October 2025: The council adopted a 2026 budget of about $179 million on a 5-0 vote after cutting more than $10 million from the request; reviewed coverage did not list individual members' votes ^{[23, 24]}.
• His length of service and individual voting record could not be confirmed from a reviewed source.

Candidates on the ballot

Key points

• Open seat: incumbent Randy Yohn is not seeking re-election. (95.3 MNC)
• Elkhart County government adopted a $179.7 million budget for 2026, about $861 per resident; that is +15.4% compared with 2023. (Indiana Gateway for Government Units)
• Legislative Services Agency estimate: the 2025 property tax law (SEA 1) changes the county government's net property tax levy by -9.8% versus prior law once fully in effect (2028, since delayed to 2029 by HEA 1210). (Indiana Legislative Services Agency)

Sources