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Judicial retention · Tuesday, November 3, 2026

Retain Paul A. Felix? (Fifth District)

Court of Appeals, Fifth District. On every Indiana ballot. First retention vote. On every Indiana ballot.

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On the ballot

COURT OF APPEALS JUDICIAL RETENTION - FIFTH DISTRICT Shall Judge Paul A. Felix be retained in office?

What a vote means

A yes vote
Judge Felix stays on the Court of Appeals for a new 10-year term. The same question returns in 2036.
A no vote
If most voters say no, the judge is removed once the result is certified and the seat becomes vacant. The 7-member Judicial Nominating Commission then interviews applicants and sends three names to the governor, who appoints one. Voters do not choose the replacement.

About the court

Indiana's appellate judges are appointed by the governor from three nominees chosen by the seven-member Judicial Nominating Commission, then face a yes/no retention vote at the first general election after two full years in office and every 10 years after that [3][4].

If retained
New 10-year term [3]
Who votes
Statewide (every Indiana voter) [1][2]
To keep the seat
A majority of "yes" votes on the question [3]
Campaigning
Judges up for retention may not campaign or raise money unless there is organized opposition [3]

Sources

Researched Sunday, October 11, 2026

  1. Who's on My Ballot (precinct ballots pulled 2026-10-11: Marion PE063, St. Joseph 110005, Grant Franklin 7, Allen 554) (Indiana Election Division)
  2. Press release: 2026 Judicial Retention (Indiana Judicial Branch)
  3. Indiana's Judicial Retention System (Indiana Judicial Branch)
  4. Indiana Code Title 33 (2026): IC 33-25-2 (Court of Appeals retention), IC 33-26-2 (Tax Court), IC 33-27-3 (Judicial Nominating Commission) (Indiana General Assembly)
  5. Judicial Retention (judge biographies, opinion links, link to the state bar survey) (Indiana Judicial Branch)
  6. Judge Paul A. Felix (official biography) (Court of Appeals of Indiana)
  7. Felix, Joven, and Kenworthy nominees for Court of Appeals vacancy (Indiana Judicial Branch (for the Judicial Nominating Commission))
  8. Interview times set for Court of Appeals applicants (Indiana Judicial Branch (for the Judicial Nominating Commission))
  9. Bibbs, Felix, and Forkner nominees for Court of Appeals vacancy (Indiana Judicial Branch (for the Judicial Nominating Commission))
  10. Court of Appeals of Indiana 2023 Annual Report, PDF p. 6 (appointment June 29, 2023; service from July 28, 2023) (Court of Appeals of Indiana)
  11. Court of Appeals of Indiana 2025 Annual Report (PDF p. 8 court summary; p. 11 opinions issued; p. 14 oral arguments) (Court of Appeals of Indiana)
  12. Court of Appeals of Indiana 2024 Annual Report (PDF p. 8 court summary; p. 11 opinions issued) (Court of Appeals of Indiana)
  13. Court of Appeals of Indiana 2023 Annual Report (PDF p. 8 court summary; p. 11 opinions issued) (Court of Appeals of Indiana)
  14. Indiana Appellate Decisions: decision search (all courts, monthly windows Dec. 2022 to Oct. 11, 2026) and opinion PDFs; judge list at ?j=106858 (Indiana Judicial Branch)
  15. Indiana Supreme Court opinions on transfer or review (same decision search; each linked in notable_opinions) (Indiana Supreme Court)
  16. Supreme Court transfer dispositions (the only list posted; actions dated Apr. 23, 2026) (Indiana Supreme Court)
  17. Judicial Disciplinary Opinions (list of Supreme Court opinions and orders) (Office of Judicial and Attorney Regulation)
  18. Public Commission Admonitions (Office of Judicial and Attorney Regulation)
  19. Legal Insights appellate records study: method, data files and caveats (research/judicial_2026/appellate_study.md and data/) (Legal Insights (internal))
  20. Bar members say 'yes' to judges up for retention next month (2026 Judicial Retention Poll) (Indiana State Bar Association)

What's included: the U.S. House, statewide offices, the state legislature (by district, in the app), 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.

Local races (county, city, school board, judges) and anything else on your ballot are on your official sample ballot: IndianaVoters.in.gov.

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

Candidate lists as of Wednesday, October 14, 2026.

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