Bowling Green, Indiana Public Records

gov, operated by the Indiana Secretary of State. Online registration requires an Indiana driver's license or state ID card. State law mandates registration at least 29 days before an election to be eligible to vote in it. Registration is also available by mail using paper applications from the Clay County Clerk's office, at Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles branches during license transactions, or through voter registration drives. Indiana requires proof of U.S. Citizenship and Indiana residency, and voters must be at least 18 years old by the date of the general or municipal election. The indianavoters. gov portal also lets residents check their registration status, view voting history, find their assigned polling place, see sample ballots, and update their registration after moving within Indiana. As an unincorporated community, Bowling Green holds no municipal elections for mayor or town council since no incorporated municipal government exists. Residents vote in federal elections (President, U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives for Indiana's 8th Congressional District), state elections (Governor, Lieutenant Governor, other statewide constitutional officers, Indiana State Senate and House of Representatives), and Clay County elections (County Council, County Commissioners, County Clerk, County Auditor, County Treasurer, County Recorder, County Sheriff, County Assessor, County Surveyor, County Coroner, and judicial offices). The community sits within Center Township, so residents also vote for Center Township Trustee and Township Board members, offices that oversee fire protection, emergency assistance, and cemetery maintenance. Residents can find their assigned polling place by entering their address at indianavoters. gov or by contacting the Clay County Clerk's Office. Indiana uses a precinct-based polling system, requiring voters to cast ballots at their designated location on Election Day. Polls are open from 6:00 a.m. To 6:00 p.m. Local time on Election Day. State law requires voters to present acceptable photo ID showing their name, photo, and expiration date; acceptable IDs include Indiana driver's licenses, Indiana state ID cards, U.S. Passports, military IDs, and certain other government-issued photo IDs. Presidential election results for Clay County and individual precinct results are published by the Clay County Clerk and are public records available for inspection. At the federal level, Indiana's U.S. Senate seat currently held by Todd Young will be on the ballot in 2026, as Young's term expires that year. All nine of Indiana's U.S. House seats, including the 8th District seat representing Clay County, will also be contested. At the state level, 2026 is not a gubernatorial election year in Indiana (the next Governor's race is 2024), but half of the Indiana State Senate's 50 seats and all 100 Indiana House seats will be on the ballot, including the state legislative districts covering the area. Clay County will also elect several county offices in 2026, as Indiana holds county elections in even-numbered years; specific offices up for election depend on the term schedules established by state law. The Clay County Clerk's Office will publish candidate filings, sample ballots, and information about any local ballot questions as the 2026 primary and general elections approach. Indiana holds primary elections in May of even-numbered years to determine party nominees for the November general election. Indiana election records that are public and accessible include voter registration lists (available for purchase for lawful purposes), campaign finance reports (filed with the Indiana Election Division for state and federal candidates and with the Clay County Clerk for local candidates), candidate declarations and filings, precinct-level election results, poll worker lists, and absentee ballot statistics. These records can be requested from the Clay County Clerk's Office or accessed through the Indiana Secretary of State's Election Division website at www. gov/sos/elections. Indiana offers absentee voting by mail for voters who meet specific criteria: voters who will be absent from the county on Election Day, voters with disabilities, voters over age 65, voters scheduled to work during all hours polls are open, voters confined due to illness or injury, voters who are members of the military or public safety officers, voters who have a religious obligation preventing them from voting in person, voters serving as election workers in a precinct other than their own, or voters who are prevented from voting due to being a victim or witness to a crime. Absentee ballot applications can be submitted online through indianavoters. gov, by mail, or in person at the Clay County Clerk's Office. Indiana requires absentee ballot applications to be received by the Clay County Clerk by 11:59 p.m. On the day before the election (for mail-in ballots) or by noon the day before the election (for in-person absentee voting). Completed absentee ballots must be received by the Clay County Clerk by noon on Election Day to be counted, not just postmarked by that date. Indiana also offers early in-person voting at the Clay County Clerk's office and potentially other designated satellite locations beginning 28 days before an election and continuing through noon the day before Election Day.