Wabash County Council, District 4

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]

Wabash 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 county's council has no budget lines of its own (department 0061); council pay is probably budgeted under the commissioners or another department.

Also on the record for this office

• SEA 1 estimated county-unit revenue change in 2028 vs prior law: $-98,990 (LSA)
• MUST taskforce (LIT distribution talks): named reps
• wheel tax: adopted
• fiscal consultant named in records: Data Pit Stop

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

• Incumbent Republican Kyle M. Bowman faces Democrat Tammari L. (Tammy) Ingalls. Both were unopposed in the May 5, 2026 primaries: Bowman received 1,145 votes and Ingalls 100 (totals summed from the county's precinct report) ^[25].
• The Wabash County Council is the county's seven-member fiscal body: four members elected by district and three at large. It meets on the third Monday of each month at 6 p.m. at the courthouse, and meetings are streamed on Zoom and posted to the county's YouTube channel ^[22]. Kyle Bowman (District 4) has chaired the council in 2025 and 2026 ^{[23, 24]}.
• Property taxes and SEA 1: in March 2025 the auditor's projections showed the county could lose $2 million to $4.5 million in property tax revenue under early versions of the state property-tax bill, and Bowman said services and staff would need to be cut unless other funding were found ^[26]. At a June 23, 2025 special meeting a consultant briefed the council on the new local income tax (LIT) structure, including a 1.2% county rate, up to 1.2% for cities and towns and up to 0.4% for public safety ^[32]. In August 2026 the council appointed the auditor as its representative on the new municipal unit strategic task force (MUST), which must unanimously agree on how local income tax is distributed ^[31].
• Budget: the council adopted the 2026 budget 6-0 on Sept. 15, 2025, with members noting it remained over the maximum levy ^[33]. For 2027 the Budget Form 4 lists a civil levy of $7,865,441 against an estimated maximum of $7,214,408 (over by $651,033), a $17.07 million general fund and a total county rate of about $0.38; adoption was scheduled for Sept. 21, 2026 ^{[34, 22]}.
• Roads and bridges: in July and August 2025 the council adopted a county wheel tax and vehicle excise surtax (for example, $7.50 per passenger vehicle) so the county stays eligible for direct state road funding that replaced Community Crossings grants; it passed 6-1 (Dillon opposed) and expires Dec. 31, 2028. Bowman said the county has about 150 bridges and aims to repair one or two a year at $1-2 million each ^{[28, 35]}.
• Jail and public safety: a new jail is in operation, and LIT public-safety money covers its debt service every other year ^[29]. In March 2025 the council voted 6-0 to fund a jail services coordinator from opioid settlement money through 2027 ^[26]. In December 2025 it set a new pay structure for merit deputies and jail staff, including years-of-service stipends ^[36].
• Economic development: the council reviews tax-abatement compliance each year. In 2025 a member asked to limit abatements to five years after the auditor reported $640,000 in abatement-related revenue loss across taxing units in 2024, and a revised Grow Wabash County scorecard was presented in July 2025 ^{[37, 28]}. In June 2026 the council at first rejected MPS Egg Farms' compliance filing, then approved it 4-1-1 in July 2026 ^{[30, 38]}.
• Data centers: the Plan Commission voted in March 2026 to pursue a moratorium on data centers, held a hearing Aug. 6, 2026, and on Aug. 31, 2026 the commissioners adopted an 18-month moratorium on permits for data centers in unincorporated areas while zoning rules are written ^{[39, 40, 41]}.
• No candidate forum or debate for the 2026 county council races was found in sources reviewed.

Candidates on the ballot

Key points

• Budget: the council adopted the 2026 budget 6-0 on Sept. 15, 2025, with members noting it remained over the maximum levy. (Wabash County Council)
• Wabash County government adopted a $38.0 million budget for 2026, about $1,236 per resident; that is +30.0% 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 -1.3% versus prior law once fully in effect (2028, since delayed to 2029 by HEA 1210). (Indiana Legislative Services Agency)

Sources