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2026 General Election · Tuesday, November 3, 2026

Franklin County Sheriff

Voted on across Franklin County. Open seat: Peter Cates is not on the ballot.

Find your exact ballotAll Franklin County races

What this office does

The sheriff is an elected county officer created by the Indiana Constitution who arrests offenders, keeps the peace, serves court papers, keeps order in county courts and runs the county jail [1, 2]. The Indiana Sheriffs' Association describes sheriffs as constitutional officers elected by the people, whose work includes operating jails, serving civil process, providing court security and coordinating emergency response [3]. Every county elects its sheriff in 2026 for a four-year term, and no one may serve as sheriff more than eight years in any twelve-year period [1].

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; the sheriff serves until a successor is elected and qualified [4, 1]
Elected
Countywide by the county's voters on the partisan general election ballot; all county sheriffs are elected in 2026 [1]
Term limit
No more than eight years in any period of twelve years (Indiana Constitution, Article 6, Section 2) [1]
Qualifications
Must have lived in the county for at least one year before the election, be registered to vote in the county by the filing deadline, and file a statement of economic interests; a sheriff who moves out of the county forfeits the office [1, 4]
Pay
A county may pay the sheriff a salary from the county general fund of at least 50% to 100% of the state minimum salary of a full-time prosecuting attorney, depending on county population [5]
On the 2026 ballot
92 races; 26 contested [6]
What the law puts in this job (13)
  • Arrests without a warrant people who commit an offense in the sheriff's view, brings them before a county court, and holds them while the arrest is investigated [2].
  • Suppresses breaches of the peace and pursues and jails felons [2].
  • Takes care of the county jail and the prisoners held there [2, 3].
  • Serves and carries out legal papers (process) directed to the sheriff by courts and the county commissioners [2].
  • Attends and keeps order in all courts of the county, which the Sheriffs' Association describes as providing court security [2, 3].
  • Takes photographs, fingerprints and other identification data from people held for crimes, and DNA samples for felonies [2].
  • Reports twice a year to the Indiana Department of Correction the average daily cost of holding a jail prisoner [2].
  • Holds state prisoners, including people convicted of Level 6 felonies, in the county jail, for which the state reimburses counties at a daily rate set in the state budget [7].
  • Coordinates emergency response and works with local police, prosecutors and community partners [3].
  • In a county whose council creates a sheriff's merit board by ordinance, appoints three of its five members, while the county police officers elect the other two; no more than two sheriff appointees and one elected member may belong to the same party [8].
  • Must report information to federal authorities when a person arrested for a felony or misdemeanor is believed to lack legal immigration status, and, since July 2026, notify the judge setting bail when holding a person subject to an immigration detainer [9, 10].
  • May supervise and inspect businesses such as pawnbrokers and secondhand dealers [2].
  • What the sheriff does not control: the county commissioners must establish and maintain the county jail building [11]; the county makes the appropriation for feeding prisoners and sets the sheriff's salary [5]; the prosecuting attorney decides which crimes to prosecute [12]; and judges decide bail [13].

Franklin 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.

This office's 2026 budget

$1,687,850

6.7% of the county's adopted 2026 budget · 60% more than 2019, before inflation

2019: $1,052,9392020: $1,230,0882021: $1,225,2712022: $1,227,6862023: $1,450,5602024: $1,520,6502025: $1,642,2622026: $1,687,850
2019 $1,052,9392026 $1,687,850
The year-by-year figures

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

  • 2019: $1,052,939
  • 2020: $1,230,088
  • 2021: $1,225,271
  • 2022: $1,227,686
  • 2023: $1,450,560
  • 2024: $1,520,650
  • 2025: $1,642,262
  • 2026: $1,687,850

Budget lines counted: 0005 COUNTY SHERIFF

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

Elected official's pay, 2026 budget line

$110,378

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

Budgeted separately, not included above: jail/detention center (depts 0380, 0381), $1.8 million.

  • Counties budget the jail differently: some put jail costs in the sheriff's department, others in a separate jail department. Compare the sheriff and jail together across counties.

Also on the record for this office

  • rated capacity: 54.0
  • latest jail count: 43
  • count date: 2024 (Vera v3.1)
  • IDOC holds: 8
  • IDOC holds date: 2026-08-01
  • federal (USMS/ICE) housing: not found
  • jail operating budget 2026: 1831807.0
  • sheriff dept actual 2025: 1184532.0
  • jail actual 2025: 1112782.0

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.

Jail cost per inmate-day · 2025 spend / 2024 ADP

$70.90

2025 jail spending divided by the 2024 average daily population times 365.

How much this is the officeholder's to decide: partial: the sheriff runs the jail and staffs it; the council funds it; state jail standards set minimum staffing; courts and prosecutors drive how many people are held

Position 8 of 19 counties with under 25,000 residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source · source

Jail occupancy · 2024 (Vera v3.1)

80.0%

Latest jail count as a share of rated capacity.

How much this is the officeholder's to decide: partial: jail population depends on arrests, charging, bail and sentencing decisions by police, prosecutors and judges; the sheriff manages housing and transfers

Position 4 of 17 counties with under 25,000 residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source · source

Average daily jail population · 2024

43

People held on an average day.

How much this is the officeholder's to decide: partial: jail population depends on arrests, charging, bail and sentencing decisions by police, prosecutors and judges; the sheriff manages housing and transfers

Position 22 of 30 counties with under 25,000 residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source · source

Share of people in jail awaiting trial · 2019

62.0%

People held before trial as a share of the jail population.

How much this is the officeholder's to decide: low to partial for the sheriff: pretrial detention is decided by courts (bail) and prosecutors (charging); the county funds pretrial services

Position 21 of 29 counties with under 25,000 residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source · source

Reported crimes per 1,000 residents · 2025

4.7

Offenses reported by police agencies county-wide (agencies with full-year reporting), not only the sheriff's office.

How much this is the officeholder's to decide: low to partial: the sheriff patrols mainly unincorporated areas; city and town police cover most residents in larger counties

Position 9 of 12 counties with under 25,000 residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source

About this race

  • The Franklin County Sheriff's Office is at 371 Main St., Brookville, the county seat [17].
  • Open seat: Sheriff Peter Cates's term ends Dec. 31, 2026, and he is not a candidate [16, 6].
  • May 5, 2026 Republican primary: Sgt. Adam Henson defeated Chris Maxie, about 68 percent to 31 percent (unofficial) [18, 19].
  • Independent Lucas Dakota Richardson is also on the ballot [6]. No news coverage of his candidacy was found.
  • No candidate forums, debates or detailed platforms were found in fetched sources.

Candidates on the ballot

Adam W Henson

Republican

Republican nominee and sergeant with the Franklin County Sheriff's Office, where he has worked since 1996 [20].

Henson's background

  • Sergeant with the Franklin County Sheriff's Office (promoted 2017); began as a jail officer in 1996 and became a deputy in 1999 [20].
  • Supervises the office's evening shifts and administers the Indiana Traffic Safety Grant (Operation Pull Over); has been a law-enforcement instructor since 2004, a K-9 handler and a field training officer [20].
  • Earlier worked with the Vincennes University Police Department; associate degree in law enforcement from Vincennes University; Indiana Law Enforcement Academy graduate (1999) [20].
  • Received the office's Medal of Valor and Life Saving Award in 2022 [20].

Henson's positions

Staffing & pay

  • Said his supervisory roles gave him "extensive experience in budgeting, scheduling, and officer management" [20].

How Henson got on the ballot

  • Announced his candidacy Dec. 1, 2025 [20].
  • Won the May 5, 2026 Republican primary over Chris Maxie, about 68 percent to 31 percent (unofficial) [18, 19].

What we could not find about Henson

  • No campaign website, questionnaire or detailed positions on the jail, staffing, budget, drugs, school safety or immigration were found.
  • Exact primary vote counts were not found; the results source gave percentages only.
  • No specific plans for the office were found in fetched sources.
  • No public statements about Sheriff Cates's record were found.
  • No endorsements or campaign-finance totals were found in fetched sources.

Sources for Henson

Lucas Dakota Richardson

Independent

Independent candidate on the November ballot [6]. No news coverage, campaign website or public statements were found.

How Richardson got on the ballot

  • Listed as an Independent candidate on the state's 2026 general-election candidate list [6]. Details of how he qualified (filing date, petition) were not found.

What we could not find about Richardson

  • No coverage of this candidate was found in local outlets (WRBI, The Brookville American, 812 Now) or candidate directories searched.
  • Occupation, law-enforcement experience, petition details and positions are unknown.
  • Coverage is far thinner than for the Republican nominee; a direct questionnaire to the candidate is recommended.
  • No background information was found in fetched sources.
  • No plans for the office were found.
  • No public statements about Sheriff Cates's record were found.
  • No endorsements or campaign-finance totals were found.

Sources for Richardson

Key points

  • Open seat: Sheriff Peter Cates's term ends Dec. 31, 2026, and he is not a candidate. (Franklin County, Indiana)
  • Res. 2025-24 (Aug 26, 2025) designated public safety LIT for the 911 center (PSAP) and $8,750 to each of eight volunteer fire departments. The county's public safety LIT rate is 0.25%. (portal.sbsportals.com)

Sources

Researched Sunday, October 11, 2026

  1. 2026 Indiana Candidate Guide (County Offices: County Sheriff) (Indiana Election Division)
  2. Indiana Code 36-2-13-5: Duties of sheriff (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
  3. 2026 ISA President Statement (Jeffrey A. Balon, Porter County Sheriff) (Indiana Sheriffs' Association)
  4. Indiana Code 36-2-13-2: Sheriff residency and term (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
  5. Indiana Code 36-2-13-2.8: Sheriff's salary (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
  6. 2026 General Election Candidate List (Indiana Election Division)
  7. Indiana Department of Correction readies to pay $12 million in jail back payments (Indiana Capital Chronicle (via Inside INdiana Business))
  8. Indiana Code 36-8-10-3: Sheriff's merit board (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
  9. Braun signs bill into law requiring jails to tell ICE about potential immigration violations (Network Indiana (via WMNC 95.3))
  10. Illegally in Indiana: New state law aims at cracking down on illegal immigration (WNDU)
  11. Indiana Code 36-2-2-24: County courthouse, jail and offices (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
  12. Indiana Code 33-39-1-5: Duties of prosecuting attorneys (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
  13. Amendment to deny bail to some offenders moves closer to November ballot (WFYI (via Indiana Public Media))
  14. Franklin County Elected Officials (Franklin County, Indiana)
  15. Sheriff (Franklin County, Indiana)
  16. Franklin County Primary Election results (812 Now)
  17. Franklin County voters decide key races in primary election (The Brookville American)
  18. Henson Announces Candidacy for Franklin County Sheriff (WRBI Radio)
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.