INDIANAPOLIS -- A group of blind voters is suing to force the state of Indiana to make absentee balloting more accessible.

Blind voters now have only two options in Indiana: They can vote in person, using voting machines that read their choices aloud as they are made; or they can ask a pair of bipartisan election officials from the "traveling board" to come to their house and help them fill out the ballot.

Jelena Kolic, a staff attorney with Disability Rights Advocates, said other states provide special online voting options.

"They deserve to participate fully in our democracy, and to know that their vote is private and that it's being counted," she said. "And that didn't happen for some of the blind residents in Indiana this year."

That's because, during the pandemic, the traveling board failed to show up at some voters' homes. Voting in person is especially challenging for people with visual impairments, who have to touch a lot of surfaces in order to get around, raising the risk of contracting COVID-19.

Indiana Secretary of State Connie Lawson's office had no comment on the lawsuit.

Other states - including Delaware, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oregon and West Virginia - have made changes to their absentee-balloting processes to accommodate people who are blind. The state of Maryland is offering its system to other states, free of charge. So, Kolic said she believes the holdup in Indiana isn't a matter of money.

"I imagine it's a question of political will, and it's at the expense of blind voters, however, and it's illegal," she said. "That's why we filed the lawsuit."

The suit contends the current absentee-voting rules in Indiana violate the Americans With Disabilities Act, which became federal law more than 30 years ago.

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Support for this reporting was provided by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.


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FARGO, N.D. -- The people behind efforts to recall four Fargo School Board members have until August 25th to collect signatures.

Ahead of that deadline, a statewide watchdog group sees the national movement to shake up local school boards as abusing the process.

Mask mandates and communication issues were among the concerns cited by recall supporters in Fargo when their petitions launched this year.

Amy Jacobson, executive director of Prairie Action ND, said from her group's viewpoint, nothing that has been mentioned warrants a special vote to remove a sitting board member.

"The recall process is meant to remove an elected official who has done something particularly egregious and should no longer be serving," Jacobson contended.

Jacobson urged those upset with board members to focus on the next election, which is next spring. She pointed out special votes also are a drain on resources.

But the parents involved say members they are targeting have terms that expire in 2024. Ballotpedia noted more than 150 recalls were launched nationwide in the first half of this year, with nearly 50% involving school boards.

A number of attempts to oust board members have been linked to rhetoric over a concept known as Critical Race Theory, with some of those talking pointed surfacing in Fargo.

But Jacobson argued it isn't even being taught in the local schools.

"There's definitely misinformation that's being spread from national, to states, to local that is causing folks to get in an uproar about things that are not actually happening in their schools," Jacobson asserted.

Jacobson added the turmoil hurts teachers and staff, who get caught in the middle of the backlash. Since special elections have lower turnout, candidates with extreme views could find an easier path to victory for a seat that's traditionally nonpartisan.

Outside the Fargo recall efforts, Prairie Action ND said there have been discussions in other North Dakota communities, such as Williston, but no other petitions have been filed with the state.

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COLUMBUS, Ohio -- New congressional and legislative maps will soon start to take shape in Ohio.

The Ohio Redistricting Commission convenes for the first time this Friday, ahead of August 16, when the U.S. Census Bureau is set to release key demographic data used for redistricting.

Jeniece Brock, policy and advocacy director for the Ohio Organizing Collaborative, which is a member of the Equal Districts Coalition, said they urged the commission to hold public hearings around the state to ensure transparency.

"We aim to lift up the voices of Black, brown and immigrant Ohioans who have long been left out of the conversation; unheard, under-represented during the official redistricting process," Brock explained. "We want to make sure people's voices are heard."

The commission will draw Ohio's House and Senate maps. State lawmakers are tasked with drawing the congressional map.

Advocates have called on Gov. Mike DeWine to convene the commission for several months, and launched the Ohio Citizen's Redistricting Commission to gather public input on the map-drawing process. Ohio will lose a congressional district, dropping from 16 to 15, as the result of new census data.

The Equal Districts Coalition is wrapping up a ten-city Fair Maps Town Hall tour this week, where the topic is how gerrymandering has impacted communities. Brock pointed out to ensure people could participate during the pandemic, the events have been held online.

"Also, some people really don't have the means to travel down to Columbus to share their story," Brock acknowledged. "So, we thought we would bring this to the people, make sure that we make this process accessible and transparent."

Brock contended all Ohioans deserve a chance to weigh in on how their voting districts should be drawn.

"When we let Ohioans draw the maps, we can choose what hospitals, schools and the resources [are] funded in our neighborhood," Brock emphasized. "These maps will shape our lives, laws and policies for at least the next decade."

Support for this reporting was provided by The Carnegie Corporation of New York.

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Correction: Link to the 2020 SB 334 is now correct. 4:10pm MST, 8/3/2021

INDIANAPOLIS -- Voting-rights advocates applaud this week's federal appeals-court decision to prevent Indiana from purging some voters from the rolls without notifying them first. However, they said there is more work to do to ensure everyone has access to a ballot.

Two Indiana state laws, Senate Bill 442 in 2017 and Senate Bill 334 in 2020, aimed to remove a voter's registration if it appears they'd registered in another state.

Barbara Bolling-Williams, Indiana state conference president for the NAACP, said neither held up in court, because they violated the National Voter Registration Act.

"The federal act requires that there is contact with the voter, you know, to say, 'It appears that you're registered in Ohio, is that you? Have you moved to Ohio; are you no longer going to be registered to vote here in Indiana?'" Bolling-Williams explained.

If a voter does not respond, officials need to give notice that the person is set to be removed from the rolls, and then wait two federal election periods.

Bolling-Williams pointed out other policies, like same-day registration, have increased access in other states, but Indiana's voter registration period ends 30 days before Election Day.

Legal battles around voter purges and other laws to restrict voting access, especially for historically marginalized communities, are not unique to Indiana.

As of July 14, 18 states had passed 30 laws in 2021 alone, making it harder to vote, according to the
Brennan Center for Justice. Proponents argued they are meant to prevent fraud, but Bolling-Williams countered lawmakers are not taking voters' needs into account.

"In this climate of not wanting people to vote, basically, we understand that if everybody has an opportunity to vote, then the will of the people will reign, and not the dictatorship of a few," Bolling-Williams contended.

Sen. Mike Braun, R-Ind., and Sen Todd Young, R-Ind., were among those who blocked federal legislation, the "For the People Act," which would have prevented many of the new, more restrictive state laws from going into effect.


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