2026 General Election · Tuesday, November 3, 2026

Madison County Sheriff

Voted on across Madison County.

Find your exact ballot All Madison 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].

Madison 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

$10,027,500

11.6% of the county's adopted 2026 budget · 34% more than 2019, before inflation

2019 $7,503,7882026 $10,027,500

The year-by-year figures

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

2019: $7,503,788
2020: $7,791,101
2021: $7,944,457
2022: $8,427,781
2023: $8,848,033
2024: $8,575,002
2025: $8,934,266
2026: $10,027,500

Budget lines counted: 0005 COUNTY SHERIFF; fund 9502 Sheriff Fire Dispatch

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

Elected official's pay, 2026 budget line

$165,161

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), $6.1 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.
Includes $3.7 million in funds named for the office (for example a commissary or perpetuation fund) that are not coded to its department.

Also on the record for this office

rated capacity: 207.0
latest jail count: 270
count date: 2025 average (WFYI, May 11, 2026); 30-50 at a time awaiting IDOC transfer
IDOC holds: 44
IDOC holds date: 2026-08-01
federal (USMS/ICE) housing: not found
jail operating budget 2026: 6207734.0
sheriff dept actual 2025: 4579666.0
jail actual 2025: 4532118.0
jail project: New 525-bed jail: $80M bonds + $7M ARPA, ~$100M total, due late 2026; 104-bed addition ~$400,000 under $7.3M estimate (IPR, Jul 2026); 0.2% correctional LIT ~$5.4M/yr
dispatch/records systems: AI used for non-emergency 911 calls (per Delaware County 911 director, IPR Aug. 2026) [https://indianapublicradio.org/news/2026/08/delaware-county-911-to-use-ai-to-answer-non-emergency-calls/]

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

$50.68

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 5 of 9 counties with 50,000 to 150,000 residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source · source

Jail occupancy · 2025 average (WFYI, May 11, 2026); 30-50 at a time awaiting IDOC transfer

130.0%

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 2 of 10 counties with 50,000 to 150,000 residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source · source

Average daily jail population · 2024

245

People held on an average day.

Position 13 of 17 counties with 50,000 to 150,000 residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source · source

Share of people in jail awaiting trial · 2023

67.0%

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 11 of 16 counties with 50,000 to 150,000 residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source · source

Reported crimes per 1,000 residents · 2025

12.4

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 7 of 16 counties with 50,000 to 150,000 residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source

About this race

Madison County (Anderson) elects its sheriff to four-year terms; Sheriff John Beeman, first elected in 2022, is running for a second consecutive term, so this is not an open seat ^{[16, 18]}.
In the May 5, 2026 Republican primary, official county results show Beeman with 3,991 votes (about 43%), Brian K. Bell 2,298, Kimberly Stigall 1,504 and Jonathan Culp 1,384 ^[17].
In the Democratic primary, Anderson Police Assistant Chief Norman Rayford Jr. received 3,701 votes (about 54%) to Dennis Watson's 3,171 ^[17].
WLBC reported that a Beeman win would make him the first Republican to win two consecutive terms as Madison County sheriff since John Gunter, elected in 1970 and 1974 ^[18].
Issues for the office include the move from the 1984 jail (rated for 207) to a new jail, jail staffing and pay, and the county budget; Beeman's campaign says it expects falling county tax revenue in 2027 ^{[19, 21, 24]}.
Both nominees are career law-enforcement officers: Beeman in federal service before becoming sheriff, Rayford with the Anderson Police Department for more than 23 years ^{[16, 25]}.
No general-election candidate forum or debate for this race was found in the sources reviewed.

Candidates on the ballot

John L Beeman

RepublicanIncumbent

John Beeman is the Republican incumbent sheriff, in office since December 2022, after a 30-year career with the U.S. Marshals Service; he won a four-way Republican primary in May 2026 ^{[16, 17]}.

Beeman's background

Madison County sheriff since December 31, 2022 ^[16].
His campaign says he served in the U.S. Army from 1984 to 1988, graduated from Ball State University, and spent 30 years with the U.S. Marshals Service, including as supervisory inspector over the Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force in Indianapolis from 2007 ^[16].
Co-owner of Gunslingers, a gun shop in Anderson ^[26].

Beeman's positions

Jail & corrections

Says his federal experience in jail operations, judicial security and prisoner operations will help ensure a safe transition to the new jail; plans to consolidate and streamline jail operations and repurpose the community corrections work-release center ^[21].
Lists opioid-settlement-funded mental-health and addiction treatment in the jail and 24-hour jail medical coverage among his first-term steps ^[22].

Staffing & pay

Says he will keep pressing to make pay competitive so trained jail staff and experienced merit deputies are not lost to nearby cities and counties that pay more ^[24].
Cites support for raises of 21% (merit deputies) and 22% (jail staff) and moving jail staff to 12-hour shifts to reduce overtime ^[22].

Budget

Says he will prepare for expected falling county tax revenue in 2027 and keep urging the county council to prioritize public-safety funding ^[24].
Says 'every dollar of the Sheriff's budget is voted on and approved by the County Council' ^[23].

Immigration enforcement

Said people are not held in the county jail solely for immigration status; ICE is contacted before release only when someone is listed as wanted for immigration violations ^[20].

School safety

Lists adding a school resource officer for East Elementary School ^[22].

How Beeman would run the office

Finish modernizing the department, carry out the plan for the new jail once completed, and continue consolidating jail staff ^{[24, 21]}.

Beeman on the current officeholder

Is the current officeholder.
His campaign refers to 'a two-year crime surge from 2018 to 2022 during the previous Sheriff's administration'; it does not cite figures ^[23].

How Beeman got on the ballot

Won the Republican nomination in the May 5, 2026 primary with 3,991 votes, ahead of Brian K. Bell (2,298), Kimberly Stigall (1,504) and Jonathan Culp (1,384) ^[17].

Beeman's endorsements and funding

His campaign says his endorsements 'come from all walks of life' but does not name endorsers ^[27].

What we could not find about Beeman

No campaign finance totals were found; Madison County's website does not post candidate finance reports.
Beeman's About page describes him as the first Republican sheriff since 1982, while WLBC frames his candidacy as a bid to be the first Republican to win consecutive terms since 1970/1974; the two descriptions were not reconciled ^{[16, 18]}.
The current status of the new jail (opening date, final bed count) could not be confirmed from freely available sources.
No 287(g) agreement was found in the sources reviewed.
His 2022 general-election vote totals were not retrieved.
Local coverage (The Herald Bulletin) could not be reviewed for this profile.
No statements by Beeman about his general-election opponent were found.

Beeman's campaign website

Sources for Beeman

About Sheriff Beeman (Committee to Elect John Beeman (campaign))

Norman Rayford, Jr

Democratic

Norman Rayford Jr. is assistant chief of the Anderson Police Department, where he has served for more than two decades; he won the Democratic nomination in May 2026 over Dennis Watson ^{[25, 17]}.

Rayford's background

Assistant chief (Uniform Division) of the Anderson Police Department since April 4, 2022, overseeing patrol personnel, the crash team, K9 units and SWAT ^[25].
Has served with the Anderson Police Department for more than 23 years, with assignments in community policing, the traffic division, the criminal investigation division and as a shift sergeant; named Law Enforcement Officer of the Year in 2017 ^[25].

How Rayford got on the ballot

Won the Democratic nomination in the May 5, 2026 primary with 3,701 votes to Dennis Watson's 3,171 ^[17].
Told the Oldies 101 program 'Anderson Talks' that he had bipartisan encouragement to enter the primary ^[28].

What we could not find about Rayford

Coverage of Rayford's platform is thin in free sources; no campaign website or statement of positions was found.
His positions on the jail, staffing and the sheriff's budget could not be confirmed from freely available sources.
The 'Anderson Talks' interview audio (about March 30, 2026) was not reviewed.
Local coverage (The Herald Bulletin) could not be reviewed for this profile.
No campaign finance totals were found; Madison County's website does not post candidate finance reports.
No statements by Rayford about Sheriff Beeman's record were found in the free sources reviewed.
No endorsements or campaign finance reports were found.

Sources for Rayford

Executive Staff (City of Anderson Police Department)

Key points

Both nominees are career law-enforcement officers: Beeman in federal service before becoming sheriff, Rayford with the Anderson Police Department for more than 23 years. (Committee to Elect John Beeman (campaign))
The new jail was financed with about $80 million in bonds plus $7 million in ARPA money (about $100 million total) and is due late 2026. The old 1984 jail is rated for 207 and averaged 270 people in 2025. (indianapublicradio.org)

Sources

Researched Sunday, October 11, 2026

2026 Indiana Candidate Guide (County Offices: County Sheriff) (Indiana Election Division)
Indiana Code 36-2-13-5: Duties of sheriff (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
2026 ISA President Statement (Jeffrey A. Balon, Porter County Sheriff) (Indiana Sheriffs' Association)
Indiana Code 36-2-13-2: Sheriff residency and term (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
Indiana Code 36-2-13-2.8: Sheriff's salary (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
2026 General Election Candidate List (Indiana Election Division)
Indiana Department of Correction readies to pay $12 million in jail back payments (Indiana Capital Chronicle (via Inside INdiana Business))
Indiana Code 36-8-10-3: Sheriff's merit board (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
Braun signs bill into law requiring jails to tell ICE about potential immigration violations (Network Indiana (via WMNC 95.3))
Illegally in Indiana: New state law aims at cracking down on illegal immigration (WNDU)
Indiana Code 36-2-2-24: County courthouse, jail and offices (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
Indiana Code 33-39-1-5: Duties of prosecuting attorneys (FindLaw (Indiana Code, current as of 2026-01-01))
Amendment to deny bail to some offenders moves closer to November ballot (WFYI (via Indiana Public Media))
About Sheriff Beeman (Committee to Elect John Beeman (campaign))
Summary Results Report, Primary Election, May 5, 2026 (Official Results) (Madison County, Indiana)
Indiana Primary Results, and More Local Impact News, 05/06/26 (WLBC (Woof Boom Radio))
Sheriff's Office (Madison County Sheriff's Department)
Madison County Jail ICE Detainees (Woof Boom Radio News)
Continuity of Service (Committee to Elect John Beeman (campaign))
First-Term Accomplishments (Committee to Elect John Beeman (campaign))
Safer with Beeman (Committee to Elect John Beeman (campaign))
Let's Finish the Job (Committee to Elect John Beeman (campaign))
Executive Staff (City of Anderson Police Department)
Driver Crashes Into Gun Store Owned By Sheriff In Apparent Attempted Robbery (Woof Boom Radio News)
My Greatest Endorsement (Committee to Elect John Beeman (campaign))
Woof Boom Radio News local news page (Rayford on 'Anderson Talks') (Woof Boom Radio News)

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.