In-person voting will be available for the June 2 primary election, but the opportunity to vote early in-person will be cut back to just a few days. During a press conference Thursday, Indiana Secretary of State Connie Lawson announced that early voting will only take place from May 26 to June 1, ahead of Election Day voting on June 2.
“As recommended by the Centers for Disease Control, we plan to address the potential coronavirus threats by minimizing direct contact among Hoosier voters and election staff, educating poll workers on sanitation best practices, and ensuring that polling locations are supplied with the necessary personal protective equipment, all while maintaining the highest standard of election security,” Lawson said. She added that voting locations may be different than in past years due to COVID-19.
The state has already expanded mail-in voting to all registered voters. Voters can apply for a mail-in ballot by printing out an application or asking the county clerk’s office to mail one and then returning it to the clerk’s office by May 21. Plans are also in the works for an online application process in the coming weeks.
Lawson encourages Hoosiers to vote by mail if possible. “But the fact of the matter is there are some people that feel very, very strongly about voting in person, and so we also have decided that we would cut down the number of days of early voting,” she explained. “We didn’t want to have in-person voting only on Election Day because we felt like that would be too many people congregating at the same time, and so that’s why we have instituted early voting.”
Lawson added that the state is applying for $7.9 million in federal funding to purchase masks, gloves, hand sanitizer, and cleaning supplies for county election boards. The state will also be recruiting high school and college students, as well as the recently-unemployed, to serve as poll workers.
The new recommendations are expected to go to the Indiana Election Commission for final approval Friday. Locally, the Starke County Election Board plans to meet Friday afternoon to adjust its plans accordingly.
