Sec. 10. (a) Except as provided in section 11 of this chapter, a petition of nomination must be submitted to the county voter registration office of each county in which the election district is located.

(b) The petition must be filed during the period beginning on the first date that a declaration of candidacy for a primary election may be filed under IC 3-8-2-4 in the year in which the election will be held and ending at noon June 30 before the election.

(c) The county voter registration office shall certify and file a petition that complies with the requirements of this chapter with the public official authorized to place names on the ballot (and a copy of the petition with the town clerk-treasurer, if the petition of nomination is for a town office) not later than noon July 15.

(d) This subsection applies to a county in which the county voter registration office is a board of registration established under IC 3-7-12. A candidate for a local office is not required to file the candidate's written consent to become a candidate with the circuit court clerk until the petition of nomination for the candidate is filed in accordance with section 12 of this chapter.

(e) Following certification of a petition under this section, the office may, upon the request of a candidate named in the petition, return the original petition to the candidate for filing with the appropriate official in accordance with this subsection. The candidate must file the certified petition with the appropriate official not later than noon July 15.

(f) During a year in which a federal decennial census, federal special census, special tabulation, or corrected population count becomes effective under IC 1-1-3.5, a petition of nomination may be filed for an office that will appear on the primary election ballot that year as a result of the new tabulation of population or corrected population count.

[Pre-1986 Recodification Citation: 3-1-11-1(f) part.]

As added by P.L.5-1986, SEC.4. Amended by P.L.3-1987, SEC.118; P.L.1-1988, SEC.6; P.L.10-1988, SEC.48; P.L.2-1990, SEC.7; P.L.3-1997, SEC.148; P.L.176-1999, SEC.32; P.L.260-2001, SEC.1; P.L.225-2011, SEC.36; P.L.74-2017, SEC.28; P.L.278-2019, SEC.29.