The federal government will send “election monitors” to Indianapolis on Election Day, according to the county election board.
It isn’t clear why election monitors are coming.
“We got no clarity whatsoever,” Dan Goldblatt, director of policy and communication with the Marion County Clerk’s Office, told Mirror Indy.
The U.S. Department of Justice sent a notice late in the day Oct. 21 to the general email for the clerk’s office, Goldblatt said. A worker going through the office’s inbox saw it the next morning.
The Trump administration, which is run by Republicans, also reportedly will send monitors to Lake County. Indiana has 92 counties, and Lake and Marion generally vote the most consistently with Democrats.
U.S. Rep. Andre Carson, D-Indianapolis, said in a statement it is “no coincidence” that President Donald Trump’s justice department chose those two counties.
“There are so many threats to our right to vote because of how powerful our vote is,” Carson said.
In the notice shared with Mirror Indy, an attorney for the justice department’s Civil Rights Division told the election board that monitors will only observe.
“They do not intrude or interfere in any way in the voting process,” the attorney wrote.
Read the DOJ’s letter
Goldblatt said the Marion County Election Board and justice department are supposed to meet next week to get more details.
A spokesperson for the Department of Justice told Mirror Indy in an email that monitors will be in all 50 states.
“All monitors must meet the same legal and ethical requirements, including that they not interfere with the voting process” the statement says. “Every monitor has the same role: observe for potential violations of federal law and report concerns to the Department, which the Department will review after Election Day and act where appropriate.”
If you see an election monitor
Indiana law outlines who is allowed in polling places.
If someone is at a polling place without a credential from the county election board, Goldblatt said poll workers are supposed to call an internal hotline. From there, the board’s attorneys could get involved.
An eight-page policy goes through instructions and different scenarios for the nearly 3,000 poll workers expected to be around Marion County on Election Day.
If you see anything suspicious while voting, tell a poll worker. On Election Day, you can call 317-327-VOTE to reach someone from the county election board.
You can also call or text 866-OUR-VOTE to speak with someone from Election Protection, a national voting access organization.
You can also vote early. More early voting locations will open starting Oct. 24.
‘I’m sure they’re not here to help’
Along with Indianapolis, the justice department plans to send monitors to Lake County, according to the Marion County Election Board.
Julia Vaughn, policy director at government accountability group Common Cause Indiana, said she sees the election monitors as a way to intimidate voters.
“I’m sure they’re not here to help,” she said.
Marion and Lake counties are the most diverse in Indiana, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.
The Indiana Secretary of State’s office, which is run by Republicans and oversees elections, didn’t respond to Mirror Indy’s request for comment.
Megan Huntzinger, executive director of the Marion County Democratic Party, said in a statement that the party has the “utmost faith” in the Marion County Clerk’s Office to run a safe and secure election.
“Marion County voters should head to the polls with confidence,” the statement says.
The Marion County Republican Party did not respond to a request for comment.
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Mirror Indy reporter Tyler Fenwick covers housing and labor. Contact him at 317-766-1406 or tyler.fenwick@mirrorindy.org. Follow him on X @ty_fenwick and Bluesky @tyfenwick.bsky.social.
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