APIndiana News

Indiana legislation would add extra verification steps to prove voters are eligible

Photo Supplied / Indiana Statehouse

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Republican lawmakers in Indiana want first-time voters to prove they live in the state and additional verification of all voters’ addresses, prompting accusations from voting advocates that the proposal approved by the House could make it even tougher for some people to vote.

Indiana voters are already required to show photo ID when casting a ballot, and a law passed last year that tightened mail-in voting requirements in the state.

Brad King, Republican co-director of the bipartisan Indiana Election Division, told lawmakers earlier this month the elections bill would let the state use commercially available credit data to ensure the statewide voter registration roll is accurate and add an identification requirement for first-time voters.

The bill was passed on party lines Monday in the Indiana state House chamber; it’s not clear when the Senate that’s also held by Republicans could take it up.

Under the bill, residents who are first-time voters in Indiana would have to provide proof of residency when registering in person, unless they submit an Indiana driver’s license or social security number that matches an Indiana record.

“It’s just making voting more onerous,” Linda Hanson, president of League of Women Voters of Indiana, said.

Hanson said the requirement creates a “stumbling block” in particular for Hoosiers who have recently moved and do not have an Indiana ID. She said students and elderly citizens at assisted living facilities often do not have utility bills, a common form of residency proof.

Indiana historically sees low voter turnout, and its polls close on election day at 6 p.m. A Democratic amendment to the elections bill that would have extended statewide voting hours to 8 p.m. failed last week.

Additionally, the new bill would allow the state to contract with third-party vendors who supply credit data. The data would be cross referenced with voter registration records to identify possible residence changes and any voters registered at nonresidential addresses.

If the state identifies a voter registration at a nonresidential address, the bill outlines a process to investigate the discrepancy. If unresolved, the voter could eventually be removed from registration.

Opponents say out-of-date or inaccurate credit data could result in some voters eventually losing their registration status.

The bill also requires officials to cross reference the state’s voter registration system with data from the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles. The intent is to identify any noncitizens enrolled in the voter registration system, something voting advocates in Indiana say does not exist. National researchers also have found few instances but former President Donald Trump and other Republicans have continued to make the unsupported claim.

During a Jan. 10 committee hearing on the bill, Democratic co-general counsel to the Indiana Elections Division Matthew Kochevar told lawmakers that current law already forbids noncitizens from registering to vote.

The bill says an individual found unlawfully on the voter registration system would have 30 days to provide proof of citizenship to the county voter registration office or face the cancellation of their registration. It does not specify how often the state will cross check the bureau data or how often the bureau data on temporary identification cards is updated.

Julia Vaughn, executive director of transparency and voting advocacy group Common Cause Indiana, said that 30-day timeframe is unfair. She worries the bill could catch people who become lawful citizens and voters whose names are still on the temporary list.

“The failsafe has to move like clockwork right?” she said. “And in the real world, clockwork doesn’t always happen.”

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2 comments

We don't want Dems to Steal Indy January 31, 2024 at 9:00 am

You should have to prove: (1) legal citizen of the USA (2) Legal and exclusively a voting Resident in Indiana. (All constitutional to prove you are within jurisdiction you are subject to)

Election should be a full Day, And should be a holiday so there are no excuses.

Absentee/mail-in ballots should never be common (for ANY Circumstance-especially like the Covid “Emergency” nonsense, etc…), and you should be removed from the in-person list once the absentee ballot has been confirmed.

All votes should be counted by each county, then totals sent to Indianapolis.

Indianapolis (any City center) should NEVER be the sole location of counting….that’s how Democrats steal State Voting just like 2020 when 7 States ALL stopped vote counting to see how many they needed. Dems controlled all those Cities and didn’t allow observers or kicked them out (FACT).

None of this should ever be controversial if every citizen wants their vote to count.

Reply
Slcker06 January 31, 2024 at 10:27 am

Why do the dems have to cheat to “win” an election? Ive seen old men carded at Walmart to buy a bottle of wine. I was carded to buy a can of WWD-40 because gen Z-ers seem to want to huff the stuff. But NOPE, we cannot have extra ID Verification to vote. Why are our legislators upside down and backwards on so may issues of importance? Makes one wonder if we elected the wrong people.

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