Indiana is one of only seven states that allows people to vote for all the members of a political party with just one mark on their ballot.

Near the top of the ballot, before voters see individual candidates, they’re given a choice: select one political party and automatically vote for almost all the candidates on the rest of the ballot aligned with that party.

If a voter selects the straight party option and then selects a candidate from another party in an individual race, that vote is recorded for that individual candidate. The other races are still selected by political party.

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The "almost all candidates" is important because there are some races on the ballot that straight-ticket voting doesn’t apply to. If a race allows voters to select multiple candidates — such as at-large seats on local boards and councils — the straight-ticket vote won’t work. People will have to choose candidates in those races.

Straight-ticket voting also doesn’t apply to nonpartisan candidates and ballot referendums. This year, that includes school board races, judicial retention questions and approval of a constitutional amendment.

Brandon is our Statehouse bureau chief. Contact him at bsmith@ipbs.org or follow him on Twitter at @brandonjsmith5.