(Greensburg, IN) – Decatur County REMC has certified the ballot for the 2026 Board of Directors election.
Results will be announced at the Annual Members Meeting on Friday, June 12 at Greensburg Elementary School.
The member event will be held from 4 to 6:30 p.m., followed by the business meeting at 7 p.m.
Election packets will be mailed to all members on May 6. Voting will open at 8 a.m. on May 6 and close on June 10 at 11:59 p.m.
Members may cast their vote online, by mail or through SmartHub. Each member is entitled to one vote and may only utilize one voting method. There will be no on-site voting at the annual meeting.
The following candidates have been certified for the 2026 ballot:
Director Candidates*
District 3:
Truitt Daeger
Steve Nobbe (Incumbent)
District 4:
Steve AmRhein (Incumbent)
District 7:
Jason Barnhorst (Incumbent)
*Candidates were identified and approved by the nominating committee.
Nominating Committee Candidates
District 1:
Erin Arnold
Courtney Crowe
District 2:
Phil Bennett
Chad Evans
District 5:
Deric Hudson
The Decatur County REMC Board say it is committed to ensuring that the annual election process is conducted with the highest standards of fairness, transparency, and integrity. Pursuant to Section 3.07 of the cooperative’s bylaws, the four members of the Board of Directors not standing for election in 2026 conducted a review of three nomination petitions that raised questions of eligibility.
Following that review, three petitions were determined to be ineligible. The grounds for each determination are as follows:
Petition 1 — Litigation Against the REMC
“This petition was found ineligible under Section 4.03(c)(5) of the bylaws, which requires that a member, during the one year immediately before becoming a Director, not be a party in a mediation, arbitration, lawsuit, or other legal action against or by the REMC,” reads a statement from the electric cooperative.
Petition 2 — Late Submission
This petition was submitted after the established deadline.
Petition 3 — Failure to Meet Conduct Policy Requirements
“This petition was found ineligible under Section 4.03(a)(8) of the bylaws, which includes the Candidate and Director Conduct policy. Decatur County REMC has several conduct policies related to promoting and safeguarding the best interests of the REMC and matters of confidentiality. These policies establish qualifications for candidates and directors, including Policies 1-05, 1-07, 1-10, and 1-16. This petitioner was determined to have violated those standards,” the co-op said.
DCREMC says the eligibility review process exists to protect the interests of all members and to ensure that candidates for the Board of Directors meet the qualifications necessary to serve effectively and ethically. The Board’s decisions regarding candidate eligibility are made in strict accordance with the Bylaws and applicable policies, without exception.
The electric cooperative adds member elections are a cornerstone of the cooperative principles upon which Decatur County REMC was founded — they ensure that the organization remains democratically controlled by the members it serves. Officials add free and fair elections are fundamental to the cooperative model and to the trust that members place in their elected representatives.
For more information about the 2026 Annual Meeting or the election process, please contact Decatur County REMC or visit www.dcremc.com.
