The Race
Indiana's 5th Congressional District covers the northern Indianapolis suburbs -- Hamilton County (Carmel, Fishers, Noblesville, Westfield), Madison County (Anderson), Delaware County (Muncie), Grant County (Marion), and parts of Howard County (Kokomo). Cook PVI is R+8. Victoria Spartz (R) won 56.6% in 2024 -- the narrowest Republican margin in the state. [1]
This page covers the candidates not profiled individually elsewhere on this site. For the two leading candidates, see:
Republican Primary
Scott King
Army veteran, electrical engineer, Noblesville
Scott King is a 55-year-old Noblesville resident, Army veteran, and electrical engineer challenging Spartz from the right. His campaign focuses on cybersecurity, immigration enforcement, and opposition to what he calls "medical tyranny." [2]
King has run for office before without success. He has not reported any fundraising to the FEC. [3] Spartz holds the Trump endorsement and over $1 million in campaign funds; King is a significant underdog.
Democratic Primary
Seven Democrats filed for this primary. J.D. Ford, the former state senator, is the clear frontrunner with elected-office experience, institutional endorsements, and a proven fundraising record. The six candidates below are running against long odds in a field where the non-Ford vote is badly fragmented.
Jackson Franklin
Combat medic, Indiana National Guard, Muncie
Jackson Franklin, 25, is a Staff Sergeant in the Indiana Army National Guard who has served since 2019, including a deployment to Kosovo in 2023. He is a nationally registered paramedic trained through the Army and serves on an instructor team teaching combat medicine. He grew up in Muncie and attended Monroe Central Junior-Senior High School. [4]
Franklin is running the most ideologically progressive campaign in the field. His platform includes Medicare for All, a $25 minimum wage, abolishing ICE, the Green New Deal, halting all new data center construction until renewable energy processes are in place, cannabis legalization, and ending U.S. support for what he calls "genocide ongoing in Palestine." He describes himself as "the younger, angrier Bernie Sanders of Indiana." He accepts no corporate donations. [5]
Fundraising (through Dec 31, 2025): $32,738 raised, virtually all from individual contributions. Cash on hand: $10,398. This is the highest disclosed fundraising total among non-Ford Democratic candidates and notably is almost entirely grassroots-funded. [6]
Endorsements: Central Indiana DSA, Track AIPAC / Citizens Against AIPAC Corruption, Money Out Of Politics, Beyond The Ballot, Hoosier Progressive Academy, Students for Justice in Palestine, United Front Muncie, Muncie People For Bernie Sanders, Rogue DNC, Citizens Impeachment. [7]
Franklin has held more town halls across the district's six counties than any other candidate, including Spartz herself. [8] His grassroots operation is the most organized of any non-Ford challenger, though his Muncie base is geographically distant from the Hamilton County suburbs where most primary voters reside.
Deborah A. Pickett
2024 Democratic nominee, Army Reserve veteran, Carmel
Deborah Pickett was the Democratic nominee for this seat in 2024, losing to Spartz 38.0% to 56.6%. She is a Carmel resident, Army Reserve veteran (1984-1989, 55th Medical Detachment and 21st Support Command), and community advocate. She holds a B.A. from Skidmore College (1981) and has worked as a researcher at the Center for Integrative Development and on staff at the Hudson Institute studying international trade and economics. [9]
Her platform centers on defending democracy and constitutional rights, codifying Roe v. Wade, universal healthcare with automatic enrollment, immigration reform with more immigration judges, AI/technology regulation, low tariffs and trade partnerships, and strong support for Israel and Ukraine aid. She cites Lee Hamilton as her model statesman. [10]
Fundraising (through Dec 31, 2025): $8,925 raised -- of which $8,630 (97%) is self-funded. Cash on hand: $1,517. [6]
Endorsements: None identified.
Phil Goss
Serial candidate, self-funded, farmer/educator
Phil Goss is running his fourth campaign in three cycles. He lost the 2024 Democratic primary for IN-03 (37.2%), lost the 2024 general for Indiana House District 85 (25.6%), and originally filed for IN-03 again in 2026 before withdrawing to run in IN-05. He was raised in Evansville, holds a B.A. from Wabash College and an MBA from the University of Strathclyde (Scotland), and manages a 46-acre family farm near Fort Wayne with over 400 iris varieties. His professional background spans teaching, radio hosting, State Department Fascell Fellowship, and language instruction. [11]
His platform includes a public healthcare option, protecting abortion access, "Farms First" tax policy, federal cannabis legalization, DACA protections, rural broadband expansion, right-to-repair legislation, and term limits. [12]
Fundraising (through Dec 31, 2025): $76,566 raised -- 100% self-funded through candidate loans. Zero individual contributions. Cash on hand: $2,685. Total campaign debt: $326,866 across cycles. [6]
Endorsements: None identified.
Tara Nelson
IT executive, former IN-04 primary winner, Carmel
Tara Nelson is an IT director in the finance sector with 20+ years in business transformation and corporate leadership. She grew up in Lafayette, holds an Executive MBA from Purdue University with international study in Malaysia and Singapore, and holds PMP, Agile, Lean, and Six Sigma certifications. She previously spearheaded Indiana's Tax Amnesty 2015 program, which generated $200 million in state revenue while working for the Indiana Department of Revenue. She has also held roles with pharmaceutical companies and the Indiana Department of Child Services. [13]
Nelson won the 2012 Democratic primary for IN-04 with 58.3% before losing the general to Republican Todd Rokita 34.2% to 62%. She now lives in Carmel. Her 2026 platform leads with impeaching Trump and holding his cabinet accountable, immigration process reform, and reducing healthcare costs. [14]
Fundraising: $0 reported to the FEC. [6]
Endorsements: None identified.
Dylan McKenna
Technology sales executive, three-time Jeopardy! champion, Westfield
Dylan McKenna, approximately 56, is a technology sales executive and business owner from Westfield in Hamilton County. He graduated from Cathedral High School and the University of Notre Dame. He grew up in Madison, Indiana, where both parents were high school teachers and his father coached varsity basketball. He is a three-time Jeopardy! champion. [15]
McKenna was motivated to run by two specific events: attending a March 2025 Spartz town hall where he was "shocked at the way she talked to her constituents," and the January 2026 fatal shooting of Renee Good by an ICE officer in Minneapolis. His platform focuses on wage stagnation (arguing inflation-adjusted wages have risen only 10% in 50 years while productivity grew 250%), restoring congressional authority over tariffs, and government ethics reforms including blind trusts for presidential assets and banning congressional stock trading. [16]
Fundraising: $0 reported to the FEC. [6]
Endorsements: None identified.
Steven Avitabile
Chiropractor, Carmel
Steven Avitabile (also listed as Steve Avit in some filings) is a chiropractor who relocated to Carmel from the Raleigh, North Carolina area, where he owned Morrisville Chiropractic for 15 years. He graduated from Logan College of Chiropractic in 2003. He is married with two young sons. [17]
His platform centers on protecting Social Security without cuts ("Workers pay into Social Security on every dollar they earn. Billionaires don't"), lowering costs for groceries, housing, healthcare, and energy, and "practical solutions that deliver results -- not partisan games." [18]
Fundraising: Not yet reported to the FEC. [6]
Endorsements: None identified.
Primary Dynamics
Ford is the overwhelming favorite. He is the only candidate with elected-office experience, institutional endorsements, name recognition in the district's population center, and a proven ability to win in Republican-leaning territory. The six-candidate field splitting the non-Ford vote mathematically ensures no challenger can consolidate enough support to threaten him. [19]
Among the challengers, Franklin is the most organized with the highest grassroots fundraising and most endorsements, though his very progressive platform limits his ceiling in an R+8 district. Pickett brings 2024 nominee name recognition but negligible fundraising. Nelson has genuine professional credentials and a past primary win but no campaign resources. Goss, McKenna, and Avitabile are minor candidates with no fundraising and limited public profiles.
No public polling exists for this primary. [20]