INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — A federal appeals court is being asked to make mail-in ballots available to all Indiana voters for this fall’s election.
The appeal filed Tuesday by the nonprofit group Indiana Vote By Mail and several voters comes after a federal judge in Indianapolis on Friday rejected their request for a court order to extend the no-excuse mail-in balloting that Indiana allowed for the spring primary election because of the coronavirus outbreak.
Their appeal maintains that Indiana’s mail-in voting limits place an unconstitutional burden on those worried about coronavirus exposure but don’t meet the state’s excuse categories, including being 65 or older or being absent from their home counties on Election Day.
Later Tuesday at Gov. Eric Holcomb’s daily briefing, Secretary of State Connie Lawson said Indiana will not be making changes like the ones that were made for the primary because Indiana is no longer under a stay-at-home order. She did not mention the appeal.
Indiana is one of six states in which the coronavirus is not a valid reason to vote by mail. Lawson encourages Hoosiers to vote early, which begins October 6.
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(This story was originally published on Aug. 26, 2020)