The Election Process: Roles & Responsibilities 1
To assist our voters and citizens, the Porter County Commissioners Office has prepared this summary of the roles, responsibilities and authorities of the various boards, elected officeholders and political party chairs in the administration of elections as defined under Indiana law. Also included are the individuals currently served in appointed or elected positions, along with their current contact information. Table Of Contents 1. Election Overview Chart Page 3 2. County Chairs Of Republican & Democrat Parties Pages 4 5 3. Board Of Registration (Voter Registration Pages 6 7 4. County Election Board Pages 8 11 5. Clerk Of The Circuit Court (County Clerk) Pages 12 13 6. Precinct Election Boards (Poll Workers) Pages 14 15 7. Board Of Commissioners Pages 16 17 8. County Council Pages 18 19 2
1. Election Overview 3
2. County Chairs of The Republican & Democrat Parties 4
A. How The County Chairs Are Determined The County Chairs of each major political party are elected by their respective precinct committeemen and vice committeemen. The names and contact information for the current Republican and Democrat County Chairs is as follows: Republican Chair: Michael Simpson via email at michael.valpogop@gmail.com Democrat Chair: Jeff Chidester via email at chidesterjl@sbcglobal.net B. Duties Of The County Chairs The County Chair of each major political party has the following duties: Each County Chair appoints one member to the Board of Registration (Voter Registration) to serve at the pleasure of the County Chair which appoints them. Each County Chair recommends for appointment the necessary assistants to be employed by the Board of Registration to serve at the pleasure of the chair which appoints them. Each County Chair nominates one member of the County Election Board which MUST be appointed by the Clerk of The Circuit Court. The appointed Election Board member serves at the pleasure of the County Chair which nominates them. Each County Chair nominates for appointment by the County Election Board one poll clerk and one judge to each precinct election board. The County Chair of the party whose candidate for Secretary of State received the highest vote in the county at the last election shall nominate a voter for the office of Inspector for each precinct election board. 5
3. Board Of Registration (Voter Registration) 6
A. How The Board Of Registration Members Are Determined The Board of Registration consists of two members. The County Chair of each major political party appoints one member. A member of the Board of Registration serves at the pleasure of the County Chair whose political party appointed them. The two members are full-time exempt employees of the County who, in 2018, will be paid a salary of $50,960 each, and may receive benefits including health insurance, dental insurance, vision insurance, life insurance, vacation pay, sick pay, workman s compensation, and inclusion in the benefits provided by the Public Employees Retirement Fund. Because they serve at the pleasure of the County Chair of the political party that appointed them, they are not subject to the Human Resources Policies that apply to all other county employees, including anti-nepotism restrictions and reporting of time worked. The cannot be disciplined, suspended or terminated by any County government authority including the Board of Commissioners, any elected officials or county department heads. The names and contact information of the current Board of Registration members is as follows: Democrat Member: Kathy Kozuszek Chidester via email at kkozuszek@porterco.org Republican Member: Sundae Schoon via email at sschoon@porterco.org B. Duties Of The Board Of Registration The Board of Registration, in addition to duties otherwise prescribe by law, has the following duties: Supervise the registration of voters in the county as prescribe by the National Voter Registration Act and IC 3-7-1 through IC 3-7-48. Employ all necessary assistants. The number of assistants must be divided equally between the major political parties of the county. An assistant my not be appointed until the Board of Registration receives the written recommendation of the County Chair of the appropriate major political party of the county. Currently there are two full time assistants employed by the County as non-exempt employees with an annual salary of $36,237 each and may receive benefits including health insurance, dental insurance, vision insurance, life insurance, overtime pay or compensatory time, vacation pay, sick pay, workman s compensation, and inclusion in the benefits provided by the Public Employees Retirement Fund. Because they serve at the pleasure of the County Chair of the political party that appointed them, they are not subject to the Human Resources Policies that apply to all other county employees, including anti-nepotism restrictions. They cannot be disciplined, suspended or terminated by any County government authority including the Board of Commissioners, any elected officials or county department heads. 7
4. County Election Board 8
A. How County Election Board Members Are Determined The County Election Board is comprised of three members. The Clerk of the Circuit Court (County Clerk) is an ex officio member of the Election Board by virtue of their position as County Clerk. The County Clerk may not be a member of a candidate s committee other than their own. The County Clerk is responsible for appointing the two other members, one from each of the two major political parties of the county. The County Chair of each political party nominates a candidate as a member. The nominees submitted by the County Chairs, or their proxies, may not be appointed by the County Clerk if: They are a candidate for elected office, or; Are a member of a candidate s committee, or; Are an elected officeholder. As long as the nominees of the County Chairs meet the above requirements, the County Clerk MUST appoint their nominees to the Election Board. Only the County Chairs can remove their respective appointees from the County Election Board. The appointed County Election Board members may designate an individual to serve as proxy in the member s place on the County Election Board and has the same authority to act and vote on all matters as does the member. The two appointed members of the Election Board are each paid $2,000 per year. The current names and contact information of the current appointed Election Board Members are: Republican Appointee David Bengs can be reached via email at dbengs@mlg-defaultlaw.com Democrat Appointee J.J. Stankiewicz can be reached via email at attyjjs@aol.com B. Duties Of The County Election Board The county Election Board, in addition to duties otherwise prescribed by law, shall do the following: Adopt and amend a written plan to implement National Voter Registration Act within the county. The county election board may designate that the Clerk of the Circuit Court (County Clerk) shall exercise the powers and perform the duties imposed upon the board whenever the facilities of the clerk's office make it more reasonable and efficient for the clerk to do so. OR, the County Election Board may appoint deputy election commissioners to assist the board in carrying out its duties. The county chairmen of the major political parties of a county shall designate the deputy election commissioners. The deputy election commissioners must be divided equally between the major political parties. If appointed, the deputy election commissioners serve at the pleasure of the County Election Board. Conduct all elections and administer the election laws, included but not limited to the following. (NOTE: The election duties listed in red were assigned by the county election board to the County Clerk for the 2018 elections.) Not later than noon fourteen (14) days after the final day for filing a declaration of candidacy, declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate, petition of nomination, certificate of nomination, or certificate of candidate selection, the county election board shall determine if a candidate has complied with IC 3-9-1-5 or IC 3-9-1-5.5 (if applicable) by filing any campaign finance statement of organization required for the candidate's committee. The county election board shall maintain and make available for public inspection all campaign reports and statements at outlined in IC 3-9-4-5. The county election board shall make audits and field investigations from time to time with respect to reports and statements filed under this article and with respect to an alleged failure to file a report or statement required under IC 3-9-4-13. 9
Appoint precinct election officers as nominated by the County Chairs of each major political party, including two poll clerks, two judges and one inspector for each precinct. Each County Chair of a major political party nominates one poll clerk and one judge for each precinct. The inspector for each precinct is nominated by the County Chair of the political party whose candidate for Secretary of State received the highest vote in the county at the last election. The county election board shall conduct a training and educational meeting for precinct election officers. The board shall require inspectors to attend the meeting and may require other precinct election officers to attend the meeting. The board shall maintain a record of the attendance of each individual at the meeting conducted. The meeting required under this section must include information relating to making polling places and voting systems accessible to elderly voters and voters with a disability; and relating to the voting systems used in the county. The meeting may include other information relating to the duties of precinct election officers as determined by the county election board. The meeting must be held not later than the day before election day. Remove disqualified precinct election offices as outlined in IC 3-6-6-12. Fill vacancies on precinct election boards as outlined in IC 3-6-6-13. If a precinct inspector (or the inspector's representative) fails to appear at the office of the circuit court clerk by the close of the second day before election day, the county election board shall immediately dispatch a special messenger to the inspector's precinct with the ballots for the precinct as outlined in IC 3-11-3-13. Approve or deny appointment of precinct election officer vacancies made by the precinct election board as outlined in IC-3-6-6-14 and issue credentials as outlined in IC 3-6-6-16 By unanimous vote of the entire membership of the county election board may permit an individual who is not a voter to serve as any precinct election officer (other than inspector), or to assist a precinct election officer, if the individual satisfies all the requirements of IC 3-6-6-39. Prepare all ballots as required under IC 3-11-2. The county election board shall receive and handle applications for absentee ballots as outlined in IC 3-11-4-2 and shall transmit the absentee ballots to the applicants as prescribed in IC 3-11-4-18. The county election board shall have all absentee ballots delivered to the precinct election boards at their respective polls on election day. The absentee ballots shall be delivered during the hours that the polls are open and in sufficient time to enable the precinct election boards to vote the ballots during the time the polls are open. The county election board of each county planning to use an electronic voting system shall randomly select at least three (3) precincts within the county and test the voting system units to be used at those precincts on election day. Each voting system shall be tested to ascertain that the system will correctly count the votes cast for all candidates and on all public questions in that precinct as outlined in IC 3-11-14.5-1. The two (2) appointed members of the county election board shall observe the test required by this chapter and, if they so determine, shall certify the test as meeting the requirements. Deliver all ballots, ballot supplies, installation of hardware, firmware, and software for electronic poll books to all the precincts in the county as required under IC 3-11-3-11. At 6 p.m. on each election day, the county election board shall assemble in a room to canvass the certificates, poll lists, and tally papers returned by each inspector in the county and to declare the results of the election as provided in IC 3-12-4-6. The county election board shall ascertain the results of elections as prescribed in IC 3-12-3. This includes the certification of votes cast and counted at each precinct by each precinct election board, and valid absentee votes cast. Absentee votes may be counted at the precinct by the precinct election board during polling hours on election day or at a central location by special canvassing boards appointed by and under the direction of the county election board. The county election board shall count provisional ballots at prescribed in IC 3-11.7-5. Types of provisional ballots include circumstances where the voter did not provide identification at the polling location, the voter was not registered to vote, the voter voted at the wrong precinct, or ballots cast at polling 10
locations that were ordered by a judge to stay open past 6:00 PM. The determination of validity of provisional ballots and counting of valid provisional ballots must be completed no later than 3 p.m. ten (10) days following the election. The county election board shall provide Certificates Of Election and Commissioners to the Indiana Secretary of State Election Divison as prescribed in IC 3-12-5. Each county election board shall submit a report to the Indiana Secretary Of State Election Division after each primary, special, municipal, and general election describing the activities of the board during the previous year. If a county election board determines that there is substantial reason to believe an election law violation has occurred, it shall expeditiously make an investigation. If in the judgment of the board, after affording due notice and an opportunity for a hearing, a person has engaged or is about to engage in an act or practice that constitutes or will constitute a violation of a provision of this title or of a rule or order issued under this title, the board shall take the action it considers appropriate under the circumstances, including referring the matter to the attorney general or the appropriate prosecuting attorney. A county election board may examine under oath any person with regard to a material matter connected with the proper discharge of its duties. A county election board may subpoena persons and papers and compel the witnesses to answer under oath any questions that properly come before the board. Each county election board shall prepare annually a budget estimate itemizing its expenditures for the previous year and its estimates of the amount of money necessary to be appropriated for the next year. The board shall submit the budget estimate at the time and in the manner and form other county budget estimates are required to be filed. Should the Clerk of the Circuit Court receive a written notice of violation of the National Voter Registration Act or Indiana Code, conduct an investigation, and file the report and content of the investigation with the county election board, the board shall hold a hearing as prescribed in IC 3-7-12-36 through IC 3-7-12-40. 11
5. Clerk Of The Circuit Court (County Clerk) 12
A. How Are The County Clerk or Deputy Election Commissioners Determined? The Clerk of the Circuit Court (County Clerk) is an elected position in County government. The County Clerk is an ex officio member of the Election Board by virtue of their position as County Clerk. The position of Clerk of the Circuit Court is not subject to the Human Resources Policies that apply to all other county employees, including anti-nepotism restrictions and reporting of time worked. They cannot be disciplined, suspended or terminated by any County government authority including the Board of Commissioners, any elected officials or county department heads. The Clerk s salary in 2018 was $57,651 and may receive benefits including health insurance, dental insurance, vision insurance, life insurance, workman s compensation, and inclusion in the benefits provided by the Public Employees Retirement Fund. The Clerk also received an additional $2,000 as the ex officio member of the county election board. The current Clerk of the Circuit Court is Karen Martin and she may be reached via email at kmartin@porterco.org B. Duties Of The County Clerk The County Clerk, in addition to other duties otherwise prescribed by law, has the following duties in regards to elections: The Clerk of the Circuit Court (County Clerk) shall exercise the powers and perform the duties assigned to them by the county election board. (NOTE: See Duties of The Election Board highlighted in red in the previous section.) The County Clerk MUST appoint the other two members of the Election Board as nominated by the Democrat and Republican County Chairs. The County Clerk shall perform all duties imposed upon the clerk under Indiana Code as a member of the county election board or as secretary of the board. The County Clerk may designate an individual to serve as proxy in the Clerk s place on the County Election Board who has the same authority to act and vote on all matters as does the Clerk. When a person aggrieved by a violation of the National Voter Registration Act or Indiana Code files a written notice of a violation with the circuit court clerk of the county where the violation occurred, the clerk shall promptly provide a copy of the notice by first class mail to the person alleged to have committed the violation; members of the county election board; and the National Voter Registration Act official. If the circuit court clerk determines that the notice alleges a violation of NVRA or this article if the facts set forth in the notice are assumed to be true, the clerk shall conduct an investigation under IC 3-6-5. The report and content of the investigation must be provided to the county election board as prescribed under IC 3-7-12-34 and IC 3-7-12-35 As prescribed in IC 3-11-4-22, Each circuit court clerk shall do the following: Keep a separate absentee ballot record for each precinct in the county. Certify to each inspector, at the time that the absentee ballots are delivered, all the following: The number of absentee ballots sent to each absentee voter. The number of absentee ballots marked before the clerk. The names of the voters to whom the ballots were sent or who marked ballots in person. Certify to each inspector or the inspector's representative, at the time that the ballots and supplies are delivered under IC 3-11-3, the names of the voters: to whom absentee ballots were sent or who marked ballots in person; and whose ballots have been received by the county election board under IC 3-11-10. 13
6. Precinct Election Board (Poll Workers) 14
A. How The Precinct Election Board Is Determined The Precinct Election Board is comprised of one Inspector, two Judges and two Poll Clerks for each precinct. The Precinct Election Board may, at the discretion of the County Election Board, also include two Assistant Clerks and two Sheriffs. Porter County does not currently include Assistant Poll Clerks or Sheriffs. To qualify for nomination as a Precinct Election Board member, the nominee must be a voter in the county, OR for the position of Poll Clerk must be at least 16 years of age and meet all qualifications as outlined in IC 3-6-6-39. An otherwise qualified person is eligible to serve as a precinct election officer unless the person is unable to read, write, and speak the English language; the person has any property bet or wagered on the result of the election; the person is a candidate to be voted for at the election in the precinct, except as an unopposed candidate for a precinct committeeman or state convention delegate; the person is the spouse, parent, fatherin-law, mother-in-law, child, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, grandparent, grandchild, brother, sister, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, uncle, aunt, nephew, or niece of a candidate or declared write-in candidate to be voted for at the election in that precinct UNLESS the candidate is unopposed. In addition, a person is not eligible to serve as an Inspector if the person is the chairman or treasurer of the committee of a candidate whose name appears on the ballot. The voters or otherwise qualified persons who fill these positions are determined as follows: Inspector: The County Chair of the party whose candidate for Secretary of State received the highest vote in the county at the last election shall nominate a voter for the office of Inspector for each precinct election board. The nominee is then appointed by the County Election Board. Judges: The County Chair of each major political party nominates for appointment one Judge for each Precinct Election Board to be appointed by the County Election Board. Poll Clerks: The County Chair of each major political party nominates one Poll Clerk for each Precinct Election Board to be appointed by the County Election Board. B. Duties Of The Precinct Election Board Each Precinct Election Board shall determine all matters coming before the board in accordance with Indiana law. Additional responsibilities include: Inspector: Attend required training. Administers the oath of office for all Precinct Election Board members. Present themselves at the circuit court clerk's office for the precinct election supplies; and return of the precinct election supplies to the clerk's office. At the opening of the polls, after the organization of and in the presence of the precinct election board, the inspector shall deliver the state and local ballots to the poll clerk representing the opposite political party and marking devices to the other poll clerks. Inspector shall return the poll lists, together with the oaths of the precinct election board members, in a sealed envelope separate from all other precinct election returns to the circuit court clerk. Return required precinct election returns and ballots to the circuit court clerk Judges: Attend required training. Assist the inspector and poll clerks in the performance of their duties and also assist and instruct voters when assistance is requested. Receive cast ballots from voters. Process cast ballots as required under Indiana Code. Poll Clerks: Attend required training. Verify registration along with current and valid photo ID. If voter is unable to present the documentation to the poll clerk, the poll clerk shall notify the precinct election board and shall provide a provisional ballot to the voter. The two (2) poll clerks of each precinct shall place their initials in ink on the secrecy envelope of a ballot card (or on the fold-over part of a ballot card) at the time the card is issued to a voter. Mark the poll list after each voter has voted. Perform all other duties connected with voting by ballot card voting system or electronic voting system. Make a record of the Inspector's proclamation of the opening and closing of the polls and the times the proclamation were made. 15
7. Board of Commissioners 16
A. How The Board of Commissioners Is Determined The Porter County Board of Commissioners is the executive and legislative branch of county government and is comprised of three members who are elected by the voters of Porter County. The names and contact information for each of the three current Commissioners are: North District Commissioner: Jim Biggs via email at jbiggs@porterco.org Center District Commissioner: Jeff Good via email at jgood@porterco.org South District Commissioner: Laura Shurr Blaney at laura.blaney@porterco.org B. Duties Of The Board Of Commissioners Regarding Elections In addition to other their other duties prescribed by law, the Board of Commissioners legal authority regarding elections is limited to ONLY the following: Approve precinct boundaries as recommended by the county election board. Approve polling locations as recommended by the county election board. Set stipend amount paid to precinct election board workers. Set stipend amount paid to county election board members. Provide office space and furnishings to Board of Registration. Provide office space and furnishings to County Election Board. Establish or dissolve the Board of Registration. Approve or deny contracts recommended by the Board of Registration. Approve or deny contracts recommended by the County Election Board. After a county election and registration fund has been established, the Board of Commissioners shall monitor the fund to determine if it contains sufficient money to meet the obligations of the fund. Whenever the Board of Commissioners finds that there is not sufficient money in the fund, the they may request that the county council adopt an ordinance authorizing a transfer between funds. If the ordinance is adopted, the Board of Commissioners shall order the county auditor to transfer the amount specified in the ordinance from the general fund of the county to the election and registration fund. 17
8. County Council 18
A. How The County Council Members Are Determined The Porter County Council is the fiscal body of Porter County Government and is comprised of seven members. Four are district members who are elected by the voters in their respective districts. Three are at-large members and are elected by voters of the entire county. The names and contact information for each of the current Council members is listed below: District 1: Andy Bozak via email at ABozak@porterco.org District 2: Jeremy Rivas via email at council@porterco.org District 3: Karen Conover via email at council@porterco.org District 4: Mike Jessen via email at mjessen@porterco.org At Large: Dan Whitten via email at council@porterco.org At Large: Sylvia Graham via email at sgraham@porterco.org At Large: Jeff Larson via email at JLarson@porterco.org B. Duties Of The Porter County Council Regarding Elections In addition to other duties prescribed by law, the County Council s legal authority regarding elections is limited to ONLY the following: Set salaries of the Board of Registration members and their assistants. Review and approve or modify the budget submitted by the Board of Registration. Review and approve or modify fund transfers or additional appropriations submitted by the Board of Registration. Review and approve or modify the budget submitted by the County Election Board. Review and approve or modify fund transfers or additional appropriations submitted by the County Election Board. As the fiscal body, the Porter County Council shall resolve a tie vote for any county level offices by electing a person to fill the office not later than December 31 following the election at which the tie vote occurred. The fiscal body shall select one (1) of the candidates who was involved in the tie vote to fill the office. 19