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2026 General Election · Tuesday, November 3, 2026

Spencer County Coroner

Voted on across Spencer County.

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What this office does

The county coroner is an elected county officer created by the Indiana Constitution. The coroner investigates deaths that occur in the county under the circumstances set out in state law and determines the cause, manner and mechanism of death [1, 2].

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 [1]
Term limit
No more than eight years in any twelve-year period (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 [3]
Pay and staff
Set by the county council, which also fixes the number of deputies and employees; the officer files a budget estimate each summer [4, 5]
On the 2026 ballot
22 counties; 3 contested (more candidates, including write-ins, than seats) [6]
What the law puts in this job (3)
  • Investigates deaths reported to the office, determines the cause, manner and mechanism of death, and signs the verdict and report [2, 7].
  • Controls autopsy records under state law [7].
  • Must complete training required by the coroners training board; the commissioners withhold pay if training is not certified [8].

Spencer 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

$82,124

0.4% of the county's adopted 2026 budget · 67% more than 2019, before inflation

2019: $49,3102020: $44,2902021: $42,8892022: $45,6422023: $57,1392024: $59,5102025: $70,8852026: $82,124
2019 $49,3102026 $82,124
The year-by-year figures

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

  • 2019: $49,310
  • 2020: $44,290
  • 2021: $42,889
  • 2022: $45,642
  • 2023: $57,139
  • 2024: $59,510
  • 2025: $70,885
  • 2026: $82,124

Budget lines counted: 0007 COUNTY CORONER

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

Elected official's pay, 2026 budget line

$18,590

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

Measured, for this county

These are health context figures, not a measure of the coroner's work. 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.

Drug overdose deaths per 100,000 residents · CHR 2025 (2020-22)

16.7

2020-22 deaths, County Health Rankings; context for the coroner's caseload.

How much this is the officeholder's to decide: low: context for the coroner's caseload, not a measure of the coroner's work

Position 20 of 20 counties with under 25,000 residents that have this figure (1 = highest value)

source

Premature death · CHR 2025 (2020-22)

9,001

Years of potential life lost before 75, per 100,000 people (County Health Rankings).

How much this is the officeholder's to decide: low: context only

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

source

About this race

  • The current officeholder, Layla Thayer (Republican), is on the ballot for another term [9, 6].
  • Only one candidate is on the ballot for this office [6].

Candidates on the ballot

Layla C Thayer

RepublicanIncumbent

Layla C Thayer (Republican) is the current officeholder, according to the county [9].

Thayer's background

  • Listed by the county as the current officeholder [9].

How Thayer got on the ballot

  • Won the May 5, 2026 Republican primary unopposed, with 1,050 votes [10].

What we could not find about Thayer

  • No campaign website, candidate questionnaire or interview stating plans for the office was found in free sources as of Oct. 13, 2026.

Sources for Thayer

Key points

Sources

Researched Tuesday, October 13, 2026

  1. Constitution of the State of Indiana, Article 6, Section 2 (quoted in the 2026 Candidate Guide) (Indiana Election Division)
  2. Indiana Code 36-2-14-6: Coroner; investigations (Indiana General Assembly (2026 Indiana Code))
  3. 2026 Indiana Candidate Guide (County Offices) (Indiana Election Division)
  4. Indiana Code 36-2-5-3: County fiscal body; compensation and positions (Indiana General Assembly (2026 Indiana Code))
  5. Indiana Code 36-2-5-5: Officers' budget estimates (Indiana General Assembly (2026 Indiana Code))
  6. 2026 General Election Candidate List (Indiana Election Division)
  7. Indiana Code 36-2-14-10: Coroner; verdict and records (Indiana General Assembly (2026 Indiana Code))
  8. Indiana Code 36-2-14-23: Coroner; training (Indiana General Assembly (2026 Indiana Code))
  9. Coroner (Spencer County, Indiana)
  10. 2026 Primary Election results (certified), Indiana Election Night Reporting (Indiana Election Division)
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.