Rhetoric almost boils over at Indy vote center; leaders must turn down the heat

Some things just don’t go together. Oil and water, polka dots and plaid, ketchup and pancakes. Here’s another pair that isn’t compatible, but unfortunately on Election Day this year, we saw them clash at an Indianapolis vote center. 

Guns and voting. Last month, poll workers and voters at one Indianapolis location came face-to-face with how incompatible these things are.  

I’m not going to publicly name the location where this incident took place, because one incident with guns is enough for those who were intimidated, and they fear retribution. But it is a church, and they did post signage, in accordance with the law, banning guns from their property. 

This voting location had been busy all morning and there was a line of voters when things took a turn.  A voter showed up wearing articles of clothing promoting one particular candidate. Per Indiana law, poll workers asked the voter to remove his hat and turn the shirt inside out.

The voter removed the hat and his shirt, revealing two firearms and a knife in his waistband and began to loudly and profanely complain about being asked to comply with the law prohibiting electioneering inside a polling place. When the sign posted on the door with the church policy prohibiting guns was pointed out to him, his behavior became even more threatening.  

Thankfully, the poll workers on duty did everything right. Instead of arguing with him, they de-escalated the situation and got him in and out as quickly as possible. This was certainly to the relief of the people who witnessed this scene, some of whom fled to the church kitchen during the tense moments that transpired.  

But the damage was done. Word about the situation quickly got out in the surrounding neighborhood through social media and the long line of voters became a trickle. It remains to be seen if this man will be charged with intimidation of a poll worker, a law newly passed in 2024 and one that is obviously needed. 

While I’m not going to blame Marion County’s lackluster turnout solely on people being afraid of violence while voting, it is increasingly mentioned by voters as a concern. According to a Reuters poll, 43% of U.S. voters are concerned about threats of intimidation or violence when they cast an in-person vote.

With the election over, it’s time for our elected officials to restore trust in elections and reassure voters that their polling places are safe from gun intimidation or other violence.           

It’s bad enough that Indiana’s current gun laws make it legal to carry a gun just about anywhere, including a polling place. It gets worse when elected officials and some candidates demonize the other side and use overheated rhetoric to make baseless claims about election fraud. 

Instead of experiencing Election Day as a celebration of democracy and majority rule, too many Hoosiers seem eager to cast a hostile and suspicious eye toward anyone who might make different choices at the ballot box. They do that because certain candidates and election officials have set an example they follow.  

It is time for elected officials to turn the thermostat down and stop using election laws to score political points. It is time they lead by example and stop festering conspiracies about their Hoosier neighbors. 

Earlier this year Secretary of State Diego Morales urged local election officials to “blow the whistle on election interference.” I urge all elected officials in Indiana to abandon their dog whistle messaging on election security and instead work to ensure that all Hoosiers can cast their ballot in person without fear of intimidation or violence. Banning guns from Indiana polling places would be the place to start. 

Indiana does not have a problem with ineligible voters casting ballots; our problem is getting eligible voters to participate.  Banning guns from Indiana polling places would reassure voters our elections are safe, secure and accessible to all.