Election Protection Volunteers Protect the Right to Vote during the 2024 Indiana Primary Election
On May 7th, voters across Indiana showed up at the polls for their Primary Election. Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights helped mobilize nonpartisan Election Protection volunteers to respond to Indiana voters’ questions on the 866-OUR-VOTE hotline and to support partners Common Cause Indiana and Count US Indiana in the field in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, and Muncie. In partnership with national Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, Taft Law, and Kirkland & Ellis LLP, our team of call center volunteers was available to answer calls from voters to the hotline from before polls opened until after they closed.
Despite being a low turn-out election in most counties, Indiana voters from across the state called in to the hotline. We responded to various questions regarding voting with a disability, voting post-incarceration, late openings due to technology issues, and concerns about voters’ beliefs not being represented through their ballot options. Many voters had questions about Indiana voter ID requirements, including voters with recent name changes. We helped connect many callers with their election authorities when necessary.
One voter who experienced a problem had even made a plan to vote and confirmed her voter registration before the registration deadline. But upon visiting her polling place to vote, she was told she would only be able to vote a provisional ballot because of an error that showed up on the County’s end. We helped the voter call election authorities directly to confirm the error and ask for a certificate of error to be issued, which should have allowed her to vote a regular ballot. Unfortunately, after several hours of effort, she was permitted only to vote a provisional ballot, which would require follow up within a narrow time window in order to be counted. We then encouraged her to follow up with the important step of confirming with election authorities that her provisional ballot would indeed be counted. The voter shared:
“Because voting is such an important right for me personally and should be protected for everyone, when I experienced an issue voting at the polls resulting from an error on the side of the election authority, it was so disheartening at first. It was the Election Protection hotline that gave me hope both in my vote being counted and that there are services out there protecting the rights of everyone. In the future, I would recommend anyone reach out to the hotline due to the wealth of knowledge it has and the guidance they were able to give me.”
In addition to the 866-OUR-VOTE call center, we partnered with nonpartisan civic organizations Common Cause Indiana and Count US Indiana to support their programs in the field in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, and Muncie. At one polling location, our community partner Count US Indiana set up an Election Defender resource table well outside the building entrance, offering voters food, water, and nonpartisan resources including the 866-OUR-VOTE hotline. Count US Indiana’s Election Defender program is modeled on Movement for Black Lives’ electoral justice program and focuses on voter care, safety, and emotional support. A poll worker approached the table and repeatedly told our partner that they must leave and threatened to call the police. Our team contacted election authorities to resolve this issue and supported the partner in returning later in the day to provide this resource to voters. Meanwhile, in other jurisdictions, we heard reports of people explicitly campaigning and making intimidating comments to voters within the campaign-free zone without consequence. We supported voters and partners in trying to address such issues across the state.
Sarah Leone, Lead Organizer for Count US Indiana, stated:
“Count Us Indiana is truly grateful for the support that we received from the Chicago Lawyers’ Committee and the Election Protection hotline when resolving this issue. While disheartening that the poll worker, polling site employees, and election authorities threatened our volunteers with the police, rather than providing a real reason for why we were not allowed to defend that location, it was empowering to have legal supporters reaffirm our right to get back out there and defend a different location for our community. As we look towards the General Election come November, we hope that our efforts will be recognized as a non-threatening and lawful necessity, rather than ignored by officials.”
Indiana Primary Election Protection marks Chicago Lawyers’ Committee’s last major Election Protection effort before the General Election on November 5th, when we will again lead call center and field pro bono volunteers in Indiana and Illinois. We are deeply grateful to our team of volunteers and community partners amid this historic election season as voters express their beliefs on and off the ballot.