Johnson 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]

Johnson 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: $-2,547,980 (LSA)
• MUST taskforce (LIT distribution talks): discussed
• wheel tax: none found
• fiscal consultant named in records: Peters Franklin

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 John Ditmars is not on the 2026 primary or general-election candidate lists for any council seat ^{[25, 31]}.
• May 5, 2026 Republican primary: Norm Gabehart 1,116 votes (44.13%), Ron Deer 773 (30.57%), Brian L. Moore 640 (25.31%). Democrat Amanda Stevenson-Holmes was unopposed with 884 votes ^[32]. Deer, a former council member, died before the July 13, 2026 council meeting ^[33].
• The Johnson County Council has seven members: four elected from districts and three at-large, each serving four-year terms. The county describes it as responsible for setting salaries, the annual budget and special spending, with limited authority to impose local taxes such as income, food-and-beverage or innkeeper's taxes ^[22].
• State property-tax changes (SEA 1 of 2025) dominate the council's fiscal planning. At a May 20, 2026 joint meeting, the county's financial advisor projected a 5% drop in net assessed value for 2027 as the supplemental homestead deduction rises from 40% in 2026 to 66.7% by 2031, said local income tax (LIT) restructuring decisions are now due before Oct. 1, 2028 for 2029, described the new Municipal Unit Strategic Taskforce (MUST), and modeled a roughly 9% county tax-rate increase for 2027 ^[30]. In June 2025 he told the council the county currently levies a 1.0% LIT expenditure rate, a 0.2% jail rate and a 0.2% EDIT rate ^[34].
• For the 2027 budget the council in July 2026 adopted guidelines that include a hiring freeze for new positions (except statutory requirements), a 'hiring pause' on refilling vacancies without council review, a $1,500 cost-of-living adjustment and salary ranges based on the 2025 WIS job-classification study; it also adopted a pay philosophy and dropped longevity pay for 2027 ^[33]. Adoption of the 2027 budgets, the 2027 salary ordinance and a $7,835,000 general obligation bond for vehicles, equipment and improvements were on the Oct. 12, 2026 agenda ^[35].
• The council also acts as the approving body for bonds and additional appropriations of appointed fire protection districts; in 2026 it approved Nineveh Fire Protection District financing for a new station, and in May 2026 it tabled Bargersville and White River fire district requests pending more information ^{[27, 29]}.
• On Feb. 23, 2026 the Board of Commissioners' consent agenda included Ordinance 2026-O-2, amending the 2022 ordinance that established the county council districts ^[36]. The effect on district boundaries was not reviewed for this profile.
• No candidate forums or debates for this race were found in sources reviewed.

Candidates on the ballot

Key points

• Open seat: incumbent John Ditmars is not on the 2026 primary or general-election candidate lists for any council seat. (Johnson County Election Board)
• Johnson County government adopted a $104.3 million budget for 2026, about $599 per resident; that is +12.6% 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 -6.7% versus prior law once fully in effect (2028, since delayed to 2029 by HEA 1210). (Indiana Legislative Services Agency)

Sources