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2026 General Election · Tuesday, November 3, 2026

Indiana House, District 65

Indiana House of Representatives. 2-year term.

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What this office does

Members of the Indiana House of Representatives write and vote on state laws as part of the Indiana General Assembly. The House has 100 members, each representing one district for a two-year term [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
2 years [1]
Term limit
None [1]
Seats
100 [1]
On the 2026 ballot
All 100 [2]
What the law puts in this job (2)
  • Introduces and votes on state legislation as one of the two chambers of the Indiana General Assembly [1].
  • Must be at least 21 years old when taking office and have lived in the district for at least a year [1].

About this race

  • House District 65 covers all of Lawrence County and parts of Jackson, Orange and Washington counties in south-central Indiana, according to the House Republican caucus [3]. (Older news descriptions that place the district in Brown, Monroe or Johnson counties reflect a previous map.)
  • May has held the seat since 2016 and was re-elected without opposition in 2024, according to Wikipedia [11]. WBIW reported in January 2026 that May filed for re-election [12].
  • There is no Democratic nominee; Sean S. Steele appears on the ballot as an independent [2, 13].
  • No debate or forum between the two candidates was found as of October 10, 2026.
  • Steele's campaign site emphasizes affordability, public school funding, rural hospitals, capping assessed-value increases and opposing AI data centers in rural areas; May has not posted a campaign website, according to The Ballot Brief [13, 14].

Candidates on the ballot

Chris D. May

RepublicanIncumbent

Work
Owns Hoosier Tech Properties; has worked in manufacturing management, engineering and design [3]

The Republican incumbent, in the House since 2016 and chair of its Local Government Committee [3].

May's background

  • Has worked in manufacturing management, engineering and design at Ford, Cook, General Motors, Otis Elevator and Whitney Tool Company, and owns Hoosier Tech Properties, a residential housing business, according to the caucus [3].
  • Served three terms as a Lawrence County commissioner and on boards including the Lawrence County Economic Growth Council and Dunn Memorial Hospital [3].
  • Graduated from Bedford North Lawrence High School and Vincennes University; lives in Bedford [3].

May's positions

Housing

  • Said of the 2026 housing law: "Housing affordability starts with availability" [10].

Education

  • Said reducing school regulations "allows teachers and schools to focus on what matters most" [10].

May on the current officeholder

  • Is the current officeholder. No statements by May about his challenger were found [3].

How May got on the ballot

  • Filed for re-election in January 2026 [12]; Wikipedia lists him as the only declared candidate in the May 5, 2026 Republican primary [11].

What we could not find about May

  • No campaign website or 2026 campaign statements found.
  • No public statements explaining his votes on SB 1, the 2025 budget or HB 1032 were found.
  • Final Senate status of HB 1354 (2026) not confirmed.
  • No fundraising totals found.
  • No campaign platform was found; The Ballot Brief reported no campaign website as of Sept. 21, 2026 [14].
  • No endorsements or fundraising totals were found in the sources reviewed.

May's record in office

Indiana House record, District 65 (2023-2026) · compiled from the official record, Oct. 12-13, 2026

Authored
7
1 became law
Co-authored
22
13 became law
Sponsored
8
2 became law
Co-sponsored
3
3 became law

Committees, 2026 session

  • Local Government (Chair)
  • Financial Institutions
  • Roads and Transportation
  • Government, Interim Study Committee on (House Majority Member)
  • Roads and Transportation, Interim Study Committee on (House Majority Member)

Floor votes

  • 2023: Yes 413, No 46, Excused 29, Not voting 3
  • 2024: Yes 256, No 26, Excused 28
  • 2025: Yes 352, No 84, Excused 67, Not voting 7
  • 2026: Yes 259, No 93, Excused 23, Not voting 2
How May voted on 37 selected bills
The 40 bills May carried

  • HB 1331: Plainfield participation in public transit project.

    2023 · Authored · not reported from House committee

    Allows the town of Plainfield to be a part of central Indiana transportation projects without Hendricks County participating.

  • HB 1332: Economic development fees.

    2023 · Authored · not reported from House committee

    Eliminates the $100,000 fee cap for purposes of the formula specifying the amount of the fee paid to the county treasurer by a property owner receiving a property tax abatement.

  • HB 1333: Annexation remonstrance signature requirements.

    2023 · Authored · not reported from House committee

    Provides that an annexation is void (except for an annexation of land located within an economic development project site) if a remonstrance petition is signed by: (1) at least 51% (instead of 65%) of the landowners in the annexation area; or (2) the owners of 60% (instead of 80%) in assessed value of land in the annexation area.

  • HB 1555: Military family occupational licenses.

    2023 · Authored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Provides that a military service applicant who has held an occupational license, certification, registration, or permit (license) in another jurisdiction for at least one year may qualify for an Indiana license.

  • HB 1008: Pension investments.

    2023 · Co-authored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Specifies certain entities, actions taken, or factors considered to which the ESG commitment provisions do not apply.

  • HB 1034: Income tax exemption for military pay.

    2023 · Co-authored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Exempts military pay for members of a reserve component of the armed forces of the United States or the national guard from the individual income tax.

  • HB 1040: Requirements for elected officials.

    2023 · Co-authored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Provides that if an examination of an audited entity is unable to be performed because the audited entity's accounts, records, files, or reports are not properly maintained or reconciled, the entity may be declared unauditable.

  • HB 1063: Town of Hardinsburg.

    2023 · Co-authored · passed the House only; did not pass the Senate (not reported from Senate committee)

    Legalizes the action of the county commissioners of Washington County dissolving the town of Hardinsburg.

  • HB 1081: Residential tax increment financing.

    2023 · Co-authored · reported from House committee; no House third-reading vote

    Removes the threshold conditions that apply to a county or municipality for establishing a residential housing development program and a tax increment allocation area for the program.

  • HB 1157: Residential housing development program.

    2023 · Co-authored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Makes the following changes regarding Marion County redevelopment: (1) Revises allocation area requirements for the redevelopment commission (commission) to establish a housing program.

  • HB 1163: Elimination of local income tax councils.

    2023 · Co-authored · not reported from House committee

    Eliminates local income tax councils beginning July 1, 2024, and instead provides that the county fiscal body is the adopting body in all counties for purposes of the LIT.

  • HB 1315: Home warranties and regulation of residential structures.

    2023 · Co-authored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Allows a builder to disclaim implied warranties for a new home that is first occupied by a person renting the home as a residence from the initial home buyer.

  • HB 1355: Township merger pilot program.

    2023 · Co-authored · passed the House only; did not pass the Senate (not reported from Senate committee)

    Establishes a pilot program that provides for: (1) the merger of townships into a single township government in Blackford County and Switzerland County; and (2) the merger of townships into not more than two township governments in Crawford County.

  • HB 1367: Natural resource entrance fees.

    2023 · Co-authored · not reported from House committee

    Allows counties that meet certain criteria to adopt an ordinance to impose a surcharge of not more than $2 in addition to the fees charged by the department of natural resources (department) for entry into certain state parks and recreation areas.

  • HB 1599: Tourism improvement districts.

    2023 · Co-authored · reported from House committee; no House third-reading vote

    Provides that a person may circulate a petition to create a tourism improvement district (district) within the territory of a county, city, or town.

  • HB 1627: Sale of tax sale properties to nonprofits.

    2023 · Co-authored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Provides that a tax sale statute concerning the sale of real property to eligible nonprofit entities for low or moderate income housing applies to all counties.

  • SB 182: Township mergers.

    2023 · Sponsored · passed the Senate only; did not pass the House (not reported from House committee)

    Allows a township that does not have a township trustee or township board to merge with another township, if identical resolutions approving the merger are adopted by the following: (1) The township trustee and legislative body of the other township.

  • SB 219: Annexation.

    2023 · Sponsored · passed the Senate only; did not pass the House (not reported from House committee)

    With certain exceptions, requires a municipality that initiates an annexation to file with the court an annexation petition approved by the signatures of: (1) at least 51% of the owners of non-tax exempt land in the annexation territory; or (2) the owners of at least 75% in assessed valuation of non-tax exempt land in the annexation territory.

  • SB 317: Contracting and purchasing.

    2023 · Sponsored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Provides that a political subdivision may make advance payments to contractors to enable the contractors to purchase materials needed for a public works project of the political subdivision.

  • SB 349: Overlapping allocation areas.

    2023 · Sponsored · passed the Senate only; did not pass the House (not reported from House committee)

    Permits counties and municipalities in a case in which a municipality annexes an area in the county after the county has established a redevelopment district in that area to approve ordinances regarding the allocation of property tax proceeds derived from the municipality's component of the tax rate applied to the allocation area to be transferred to the redevelopment commission of the annexing mu

  • SB 43: Residency of 911 operators.

    2023 · Sponsored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Provides that a public safety agency may not establish or maintain residency requirements for a public safety telecommunicator employed by a public safety agency.

  • SB 332: Planning and zoning affecting military bases.

    2023 · Co-sponsored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Allows a unit to establish a military impact zoning district for an area adversely impacted by the effects of military operations.

  • SB 350: Professional licensing.

    2023 · Co-sponsored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Provides that a unit may not regulate behavioral health and human services that are: (1) licensed or certified; or (2) exempted from licensure or certification; by the behavioral health and human services licensing board.

  • HB 1001: Education and higher education matters.

    2024 · Co-authored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Amends the definition of "eligible student" to include a sibling of a student with a disability with regards to the education scholarship account program (ESA).

  • HB 1002: Enforcement of equal educational opportunity.

    2024 · Co-authored · passed both chambers; vetoed by the Governor

    Defines "antisemitism", specifies that the public policy of the state is to provide educational opportunities free of religious discrimination, and provides that antisemitism is discrimination on the basis of race, creed, religion, or national origin.

  • HB 1004: Pension matters.

    2024 · Co-authored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Provides that a state employee may affirmatively elect to enroll in the deferred compensation plan prior to the auto enroll date on day 31 of the state employee's employment.

  • HB 1027: Fire department work schedule.

    2024 · Co-authored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Provides that a fire department may deviate from the required maximum work hours for members of the fire department only if authorized by a collective bargaining agreement, memorandum of understanding, or other similar written mutual agreement with an exclusive recognized representative of employees of the fire department.

  • HB 1108: Development restrictions on slopes.

    2024 · Co-authored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Prohibits a unit from preventing development exclusively on the basis of slope, if the predevelopment slope of the site is less than 25%, unless the site is within a watershed area of a reservoir that is a source of a municipality's drinking water.

  • HB 1158: County contracts.

    2024 · Co-authored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Provides that for counties other than Marion County, contracts entered into by the county (including contracts executed by county elected officers) must meet certain requirements.

  • SB 156: Dissolution or name change of town.

    2024 · Sponsored · passed the Senate only; did not pass the House (not reported from House committee)

    Establishes the following procedure for dissolving a town or changing the name of a town: (1) Requires at least 5% of the registered voters of the town to file a petition for town dissolution or name change with the county auditor.

  • SB 157: Landlocked property.

    2024 · Sponsored · passed the Senate only; did not pass the House (not reported from House committee)

    Defines "landlocked property" as real property that has been shut off from all public highways as a result of the vacation of one or more public highways.

  • SB 159: Annexation.

    2024 · Sponsored · passed the Senate only; did not pass the House (not reported from House committee)

    With certain exceptions, requires a municipality that initiates an annexation to file with the court an annexation petition approved by the signatures of: (1) at least 51% of the owners of non-tax exempt land in the annexation territory; or (2) the owners of at least 75% in assessed valuation of non-tax exempt land in the annexation territory.

  • HB 1007: Energy generation resources.

    2025 · Co-authored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Provides a credit against state tax liability for expenses incurred in the manufacture of a small modular nuclear reactor (SMR) in Indiana.

  • HB 1208: Administration of sheriff's commissary fund.

    2025 · Co-authored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Requires the state board of accounts to establish annual or biennial training requirements for a sheriff and the sheriff's designee responsible for the oversight or administration of a jail commissary fund (fund).

  • HB 1618: Designation of persimmon as state fruit.

    2025 · Co-authored · not reported from House committee

    Designates the persimmon as the official state fruit of Indiana.

  • HB 1352: County fire protection.

    2026 · Authored · not reported from House committee

    Requires each county, excluding a county containing a consolidated city or a county that is entirely within a fire protection district, to establish a county fire and emergency service board (board).

  • HB 1353: Bedford food and beverage tax.

    2026 · Authored · not reported from House committee

    Authorizes the city of Bedford to impose a food and beverage tax.

  • HB 1354: Employee health plans for county elected officials.

    2026 · Authored · passed the House only; did not pass the Senate (not reported from Senate committee)

    Requires a county to offer a program of group insurance to each county elected official if the county offers the program of group insurance to county employees and at least one county elected official.

  • HB 1315: Township reorganization.

    2026 · Co-authored · passed the House only; did not pass the Senate (not reported from Senate committee)

    Provides that on January 1, 2028, certain townships are dissolved and their powers, duties, offices, and property are transferred to a municipality or county.

  • SB 92: Community corrections trust funds.

    2026 · Co-sponsored · enacted: signed by the Governor

    Authorizes a county that operates a community corrections program to establish a county community corrections trust fund (fund).

How this record was put together, and what it does not show

What we list: 28 bills chosen by a rule that does not look at topic: both state budgets, four bills named in advance, the 2025-26 redistricting bill, and in each session and chamber the 3 bills whose final-passage vote drew the most “nay” votes.

  • Votes reflect party caucus dynamics. Indiana has Republican supermajorities in both chambers, and many floor votes split along party lines; a single vote says little without the bill and its context.
  • Bills often die for procedural reasons, such as no committee hearing or a deadline, and a bill marked “not reported from committee” may have become law inside another bill.
  • A third-reading vote is on the version in front of the chamber at that time; the final version can be very different.
  • Authoring and co-authoring are different: co-authors sign on, often in large numbers, and usually did not write the bill.
  • Attendance counts roll calls on bills and joint resolutions (about 89% of numbered roll calls). “Excused” is an absence the chamber approved; “not voting” means no vote was recorded.

Where May's record came from

Sources for May

Sean S. Steele

Independent

Work
Teacher and coach for 30 years, currently at Bedford Middle School [13]

Sean Steele, an independent, is a Lawrence County native, attorney and longtime teacher and coach, according to his campaign site [13].

Steele's background

  • Graduated from Bedford North Lawrence High School in 1986 and Indiana University School of Law in 1994, according to his campaign [13].
  • Describes himself as a 30-year educator and coach who has taught at Orleans Jr./Sr. High, Oolitic Middle School and currently Bedford Middle School [13].

Steele's positions

Economy & jobs

  • Wants to promote local businesses and entrepreneurs and increase access to affordable child care, housing and utilities [13].

Education

  • Supports fair and equitable public school funding and vocational training [13].

Health care

  • Wants to keep local hospitals open, pursue affordable coverage, and expand OB and mental health resources [13].

Property taxes

  • Would cap increases in assessed property values so families and farmers are not taxed out of their homes [13].

Data centers

  • Opposes AI data centers and Flock surveillance in rural communities [13].

How Steele would run the office

  • Says he is running as an independent to be "a candidate for ALL of the citizens of our district" [13].

Steele on the current officeholder

  • Does not name May; his site says "our elected leaders seem absent and unconcerned" and pledges to show up, listen and respond to residents [13].

How Steele got on the ballot

  • Appears on the Indiana Election Division's general-election candidate list as an independent [2]. His site says, "I'm an Independent candidate. I will be on the ballot in November." [13]

What we could not find about Steele

  • No news coverage of his campaign was found.
  • How he qualified for the ballot (petition signatures) was not confirmed.
  • No fundraising totals found.
  • No endorsements are listed on his campaign site; his committee is Steele4Indiana [13].

Steele's campaign website

Sources for Steele

Key points

  • House District 65 covers all of Lawrence County and parts of Jackson, Orange and Washington counties in south-central Indiana, according to the House Republican caucus. (Indiana House Republicans)
  • Steele's campaign site emphasizes affordability, public school funding, rural hospitals, capping assessed-value increases and opposing AI data centers in rural areas; May has not posted a campaign website, according to The Ballot Brief. (Steele4Indiana campaign)

Sources

Researched Saturday, October 10, 2026

  1. Indiana House of Representatives (Wikipedia)
  2. 2026 General Election Candidate List (Indiana Election Division)
  3. Chris May — member page (Indiana House Republicans)
  4. Rep. May highlights new state laws taking effect (Indiana House Republicans)
  5. 2026 Indiana House of Representatives election (Wikipedia)
  6. Candidate filings expand for 2026 Primary Election in Lawrence County (WBIW)
  7. Sean Steele for State Representative, District 65 (Steele4Indiana campaign)
  8. Indiana House District 65 (The Ballot Brief)
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.