New details on election monitors coming to Indianapolis INDIANAPOLIS – The Marion County Election Board held a call with U.S. Department of Justice officials on Wednesday to learn details on the Election Day deployment of federal election monitors. Marion County Clerk Kate Sweeney Bell, a De mocrat, said there will be 12 federal monitors split up into six groups of two, covering the county’s more than 180 voting centers.  “Nothing is going to change for the voters,” Sweeney Bell said.  The monitors will not be allowed inside voting sites and voters are not required to talk to them. “They do not have the right, nor does anyone have the right, to harass or intimidate or coerce a voter,” Sweeney Bell said. “And they have indicated to us that is not the reason they’re here.” Federal monitoring is expected to primarily cover disability access, use of provisional ballots, and compliance with language assistance laws.  Indiana Lt. Gov Micah Beckwith and Attorney General Todd Rokita, both Republicans, reinforced their support for federal election monitoring after several poll workers applauded Democratic Secretary of State candidate Beau Bayh while he cast his ballot in Marion County on Tuesday.  “Just another reason why we need election monitors in Marion County,” Rokita posted on X in response to a photo posted by Indiana Capital Chronicle. “Why can’t they just be professional?” Beau Bayh walking into cast his ballot in Marion County on Tuesday as several poll workers applauded. (WISH/WRTV Photo) Indiana’s electioneering law prohibits verbal or written statements supporting or opposing candidates, political parties, and public questions inside a voting site.  Sweeney Bell said a staff member talked to poll workers about their conduct, but declined to say whether it crossed the line into electioneering because it may become a question for the Marion County Election Board to consider.  In a statement, Libertarian Secretary of State candidate Lauri Shillings said “I have seen poll workers applaud for first time voters and candidates from time to time. If this occurred, hopefully it was a general applause for our democracy at work rather than any kind of show of bias.” (WISH/WRTV Photo) The campaigns for Bayh and Lincoln Party candidate Greg Ballard declined to comment. Republican Max Engling did not respond to Indiana’s I-Team before publication.  “We’re grateful for the hundreds of hours volunteers give to help our elections run smoothly,” Marion County Republican Chair Natalie Goodwin said in a statement. “The behavior we saw doesn’t reflect the environment we hope voters experience. The priority should be non-partisan, making sure every voter feels comfortable and respected while casting their ballot.”  In total, about 1,000 federal election monitors will be deployed to counties in all 50 states “doing the routine election monitoring the department has done for decades,” a DOJ spokesperson emailed Indiana’s I-Team.  See also: New Marion County policy outlines steps if federal agents deploy to voting sites The announcement that federal monitors would deploy to Indiana in Lake and Marion County raised concerns from some Democrats worried it could be a strategy to intimidate voters. Sweeney Bell said that after her call with the DOJ, she expects a smooth Election Day without issues from federal monitors.  “It seemed like they were frustrated a little bit,” Sweeney Bell said. “This is something that has been assigned to them, is what I took from it.” While the DOJ hasn’t said which voting sites it intends to monitor, Sweeney Bell said there will be communication with the DOJ on Election Day, so poll workers can identify monitors to avoid any issue. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3. ...read more read less