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You have the right to vote in an Indiana election, if:
- You are both a U.S. citizen and a resident of Indiana; and
- You will be at least 18 years of age at the next General Election; and
- You are not currently in prison after being convicted of a crime; and
- You have lived in the precinct where you vote for at least 30 days prior
to the election; and
- You are registered to vote.
The
Indiana Statewide Voter Registration website can help you with
registration, voting, finding your candidates and polling places. Here are some
other helpful links:
The ACLU of Indiana protects your voting rights
In the past year, the
American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana has litigated several cases involving
Hoosiers’ voting rights.
A case filed in U.S. District Court in Terre Haute on
Oct. 11, 2012, Cox v. North Putnam School
Corporation, seeks to ensure every vote in Putnam County is weighted the
same as every other vote. Indiana law requires school districts to be
reapportioned before an election to achieve population equality; however, vast
disparities exist within Putnam County. According to the last Census, Floyd
Township’s population was nearly five times that of the least populated township
in the county, yet each township, regardless of its population, elects just one
school board member. The case challenges the school corporation’s failure to
maintain voting districts for school board positions that conform to the
one-person one-vote principles required by the Equal Protection Clause of the
Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and the Constitution of Indiana.
See news release
In November of 2012, the ACLU of Indiana filed
Common Cause Indiana v. Indiana Secretary
of State in U.S. District Court in Indianapolis. The case challenges Marion
County’s judicial election system, which is unique in Indiana and possibly in
the entire nation. Under Indiana law, each of the major political parties
conducts a primary election at which it selects exactly half of the seats to be
filled, which renders the general election a mere formality. Voters in Marion
County who do not cast a ballot in the primary election, therefore, have
absolutely no say in electing judges to the Marion Superior Court. This process
means that even people who do vote in the primary election have a say in only
half of the judgeships to be filled. The U.S. Supreme Court has long held that
the right of suffrage is a fundamental matter in a free and democratic society,
and that exercising voting rights in an unimpaired manner is preservative of
other basic civil and political rights, such as those guaranteed by the First
Amendment.
See news release
The
ACLU of Indiana settled a case filed in February 2013 in U.S. District Court in
Terre Haute, Russell v. Vigo County
Commissioners. The lawsuit challenged population deviation discrepancies in
Vigo County’s voting districts. The gross disparity in electoral apportionment
not only violated Indiana law, but also violated the Equal Protection Clause of
the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The settlement agreement
relocates two precincts into different election districts and removes the
Federal Penitentiary in Terre Haute from the population count because none of
the inmates there is eligible to vote in Indiana.
The ACLU of Indiana works diligently to protect the
constitutional rights of all people in Indiana. Keep up with our news on
Facebook at
www.facebook.com/aclu.indiana, and on
Twitter @acluindiana.
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