I am Amy Rolfes, and I am seeking reelection as your county clerk, and I ask you for your vote.
I have a bachelor’s and master’s degree in education, and have taught in both private and Catholic schools, and regular and special ed. I then spent eight years as executive director of a nonprofit that provided free tutoring services to children from low-income families, helping to bridge the achievement gap. After my children grew up, I moved to South Africa for a year and a half, serving as the director of an orphanage, taking care of 57 children and serving as principal of the orphanage home school.
I then retired from teaching, and ran for clerk as a new way of providing service to the community. I have loved my four years as clerk, and would be honored to serve you for another four years.
Upon becoming clerk, I enrolled in the Ball State CEATS (Certification in Election Administration Technology and Security), a nationally recognized program. I am the first clerk in county history to receive this certification. I then put this training to use in the administration of our county elections.
I promised to make your elections fair and secure, and I have fulfilled that promise. In 2024, in the first-ever post-election audit on the presidential election in St. Joseph County, we received the highest possible score.
Elections can be fair and secure only if you pay attention to detail at every step along the process. An election is only as strong as its weakest link. For example, previously, the mail-in ballots were picked up at the post office by a single person. Now it is picked up by a two person team, one Republican and one Democrat, to ensure that both parties are present every time a ballot is handled.
No longer are there any secret duplicate keys to the ballot room. Security cameras are now inside the ballot room, and everywhere that ballots are handled to ensure accountability and verification exist at every step.
The Indiana Election Code is our guide. All team members are trained in procedures that comply with the Election Code, and it is used to faithfully guide us in all steps of our process.
Our processes are all bipartisan, and it always warms my heart when both Republicans and Democrats compliment my team on its professionalism and fairness.
I have developed an “Elections 101” program that teaches the community about the elections process, and received an award from the U.S. Elections Assistance Commission for Voter Education. This group invited me to Washington D.C. to present on how the post-election audit improved the confidence of our citizens in the integrity of the election process. I have also released a video series called “The Voting Minute” to inform the public on how elections are administered. I have also been a guest on “Politically Speaking” to explain the voting process.
Election fraud is not a conspiracy theory in St. Joseph County ― it is real. In 2024, my team detected irregularities in the ballot petition process, and this resulted in a 2025 felony conviction. Four others were convicted of election fraud in 2013. Keeping your election secure requires vigilance to detect cheaters, and my team has done that.
I have been recognized by my peers for my efforts, and have been elected president of the Northern District Clerk Association. We gather together regularly to share experiences and best practices, and these ideas help us all to be better clerks. My office has been awarded over $140,000 in grants to improve the security of our elections.
I love serving as your county clerk, and I hope you agree that my efforts deserve your support for re-election.
Please vote for Amy Rolfes for reelection as your county clerk on May 5.
Amy Rolfes is St. Joseph County Clerk.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: I’m seeking reelection. Here’s what I’ve done as county clerk | Opinion
Reporting by Amy Rolfes, Guest columnist / South Bend Tribune
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