Indiana clerk refuses to wear mask while administering polls
A county clerk in rural Indiana says she will not wear a mask while overseeing early voting despite the county’s surge of coronavirus cases and warnings from a state official.
Indiana Secretary of State
Articles
Rokita closes fundraising gap with Weinzapfel in AG race
The fundraising gap between Indiana attorney general candidates Todd Rokita and Jonathan Weinzapfel has closed, with Rokita finishing the third quarter of 2020 with a slight lead over his Democratic challenger. Both candidates are entering the final weeks of the race with a little more than $1 million, much of which has come from interest groups.
Stafford: Indiana has all sorts of election laws, but few favor voters
The Indiana Lawyer editorial staff has been covering Indiana’s voter suppression laws and how they are holding up to court challenges. So far, so good for several statutes, which is awful news for democracy and the right to vote.
Indiana race opens up after attorney general’s troubles
Indiana Democrats are targeting the state attorney general’s race as their best chance to break the stranglehold Republicans have over state government.
Mail-in voting advocates alert 7th Circuit to dispute with state’s argument
Plaintiffs in Indiana’s vote by mail case are questioning the state’s assertion made this week in oral arguments to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals that Hoosiers can request a special exemption from the Indiana Election Commission to cast an absentee ballot if they do not meet one of the law’s categories of who may vote by mail.
Federal judge blocks Indiana’s noon deadline for receiving mail-in ballots
A federal judge on Tuesday blocked a state law that declares mail-in absentee ballots late and invalid if they aren’t received by noon on Election Day.
Indiana vote-by-mail appeal brief warns of ‘confusing and chaotic’ election scenario
Plaintiffs in the battle to expand no-excuse absentee voting in Indiana before the Nov. 3 general election filed their reply brief Wednesday, arguing the state’s suggestion of requiring all Hoosiers to vote in-person, regardless of age, would create a “more confusing and chaotic outcome.”
Indianapolis corporation counsel leaves administration for private sector gig
Anne Mullin O’Connor will become corporation counsel for the city of Indianapolis at the end of the month, replacing Donald Morgan, who has worked for the city since 2016, Mayor Joe Hogsett announced Wednesday.
In push for poll workers, lawyers are coveted recruits
Anticipating a shortage of poll workers on Election Day, the Indiana Supreme Court has joined the recruitment effort. Lawyers who serve on Nov. 3 will be able to claim up to one hour of continuing legal education credit for going through the training and report the time worked as pro bono hours.
Stafford: Holcomb’s calculation leads voters to risk health or liberty
Crises present tests of leadership, and Holcomb’s milquetoast excuses for not backing no-excuse mail-in voting during this time will haunt him and define him. This is easily his worst hour in a long political career.
CLE credit available to attorneys who work polls on Election Day
The Indiana Supreme Court is joining the effort to recruit poll workers for the November general election by offering incentives to encourage lawyers to spend the day helping Hoosiers cast their ballots.
Knox County judges granted emergency relief
The Indiana Supreme Court is enabling Knox County courts to call upon senior judges and local judges pro tempore to fill the vacancy created by the sudden death of Judge Ryan Johanningsmeier.
Indiana forecasts 10-fold jump for mail-in voting
Indiana election officials are bracing for perhaps 10 times more mail-in ballots for this fall’s election than four years ago. The forecast comes as litigation over efforts to expand mail-in voting continue to play out in federal court.
Indiana’s limits on absentee balloting upheld by federal court
An attempt to allow all eligible Hoosiers to vote by mail in the November general election has been thwarted by a federal judge who ruled the limits on absentee balloting do not deny state residents their fundamental right to vote.
Federal rulings block Indiana voter roll purge, absentee ballot signature match law
Finding Indiana’s process for matching signatures on absentee ballots is unconstitutional, a federal judge has permanently enjoined the Secretary of State and other election officials from rejecting any mail-in ballot on the basis of a signature mismatch without providing adequate notice to the voter.
Plaintiffs seek 10-day deadline for November mail-in ballots
As part of another lawsuit challenging Indiana’s election laws, Common Cause Indiana and the Indiana State Conference of the NAACP are seeking a preliminary injunction to suspend the noon Election Day deadline for county officials to receive completed mail-in ballots.
Suit: Election Day deadline to receive mailed ballots disenfranchises voters
Indiana law that says mail-in ballots must be received by noon on Election Day will disenfranchise voters and should be blocked, a federal lawsuit filed Thursday says.
Lawsuit challenges Indiana limits on voting site extensions
An Indiana law violates the U.S. Constitution by blocking voters and candidates from asking courts to keep polling places open longer because of Election Day troubles, a voting rights group argued in a lawsuit filed Thursday.
Indiana GOP AG candidates speak out before ballots come in
Indiana’s Republican delegates are casting ballots as the time nears to select who will run for state attorney general in November.
Judge orders Lawson to produce emails, documents on voting-machine security
A Marion Superior judge has ordered Indiana Secretary of State Connie Lawson to produce documents to back up her claim that the public should not see emails and other communications about the reliability and security of voting machines because they could jeopardize cyberterrorism security.