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Monroe County clerk says student ID use barred for now after SB 10 injunction; one student’s absentee ballot may count
Summary
The Monroe County clerk told the election board an injunction tied to Senate Bill 10 currently prevents accepting student IDs; she said one student used a student ID during the affected window and that Indiana Code 3-5-4.5-2 may support counting that ballot because it was lawful when cast.
The Monroe County clerk told the county election board on April 23 that, following news of an injunction tied to Senate Bill 10, "at this very moment, we cannot accept student IDs to vote." The clerk said she learned of the change at a conference and later confirmed with the Secretary of State's office that a stay prevents use of IDs for now.
The clerk reported absentee-ballot activity to the board: 1,129 absentee ballots were mailed, 332 have been returned and 797 remain outstanding. Separately, 64 ballots were emailed and 15 have been returned, leaving 49 outstanding emailed ballots.
Board members discussed one Monroe County case in which a student used a student identification during the statutory window. "It was legal at the time that ballot was cast and it should count," one member said; the clerk agreed and cited Indiana Code 3-5-4.5-2, which the clerk read into the record as barring challenges to a voter's right based solely on student enrollment or registration at student housing.
The clerk cautioned the board that judicial orders and administrative guidance can change between now and election day, and staff are updating training packets and poll-worker instructions accordingly. She said the office is preparing poll-worker training to reflect whatever the judge’s ruling is at any given moment.
The board noted the office does not record the type of ID provided with a ballot, which makes retrospective verification of an ID type difficult. The clerk said she has "no reason to believe" the student’s ballot would be disqualified and that statutory language supports counting ballots cast when the law authorized the conduct.
The board did not take a separate formal vote on whether to count the identified student ballot at the April 23 meeting; members said they would proceed based on statutory guidance and the evolving court order.
