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This story was originally published by TheStatehouseFile.com

By Anna Cecil
TheStatehouseFile.com
March 12, 2025

On Wednesday, in a Statehouse committee room decorated with photos and paintings of Indiana universities, college students testified before the representatives who will soon decide if they can still vote by presenting their college IDs at polling locations.

Students who attended the House Elections and Apportionment Committee meeting said Senate Bill 10, which would bar them from using their public school-issued IDs to vote, primarily targets out-of-state students who may not be able to travel home for an election but still wish to participate.

The current requirements to vote in Indiana are the following: The voter must be a U.S. citizen, an Indiana resident who has lived in their precinct for 30 days, at least 18 years old, a registered voter, and not currently convicted of a crime that has caused them to be incarcerated.

Currently, students who attend Hoosier universities and colleges but are from another state are permitted to vote in Indiana elections. They are also able to use their school-issued identification cards to participate in an election as long as they are registered to vote in the county where they wish to cast a ballot.

Registering to vote in Indiana does not require a state-issued identification card. When Hoosiers or out-of-state college students register, they are able to use their driver’s license number or the last four digits of their Social Security number.

A college student would only have to prove they reside in the Indiana precinct where they are registered when they arrive at the polling place. As of now, they can show an Indiana government-issued identification card or an ID from the Indiana public college or university they attend.

The Secretary of State’s Election Division website says the following: “The intent of where students plan to return after attending college, or during summer and winter breaks, is not to be factored into the decision to approve their registration. They may register at school, if they so choose.”

Suzanne Elia, a political science student at Purdue University, told the committee during her testimony that removing a college student’s right to present a school ID at the polling location adds another barrier for that demographic to vote.

In the 2022 midterm election, only 15.1% out of the 41.7% of registered voters ages 18 to 24 participated. A 2023 report from the Indiana Civic Health Index reported that the state ranks 50th out 51 states in general voter turnout.

Elia argued that SB 10 will only make voter turnout worse, especially among young voters. She said this is likely because of transportation difficulties and the busy schedules of college students.

Instead of using a school ID, students would have to go to the Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV), to obtain an Indiana ID. Elia argued that this would be difficult for students as many do not bring the proper documentation to school with them.

The Indiana BMV website says to receive an Indiana ID, Hoosiers must present one document proving identity, one proving lawful U.S. citizenship status, one proving their Social Security number and two proving Indiana residency.

“I’d have to go home to get that,” Elia said. “A lot of assorted students would have to do that … Between classes, jobs, homework and other assorted obligations, those us of who do have cars or are willing to take the bus, … we cannot afford to take time away to obtain this alternative form of ID.”

Sen. Blake Doriot, R-Goshen, the author of SB 10, argued that the reason his bill requires an alternative form of identification is because there have been cases of voter fraud in the form of an individual voting in two different states.

Doriot referenced data from the Public Interest Legal Foundation, a conservative legal group, stating that several voters who were registered in two different states also voted two times.

The Brennan Center for Justice, a liberal legal group, released a report “Debunking Voter Fraud,” which referenced an investigation of Maine college students who ultimately were found not to have committed voter fraud and called such fraud in general rare.

Elia argued there is no evidence voting fraud has occurred because of university-issued identification cards, even digital ones that bill supporters cited as additional cause for concern.

“This … is a gross misconception and fundamentally unfathomable,” Alex Vitat, an Indiana University student, said. “Student IDs are meant to be used and are used to realize the essential rights of education. They also fulfill all of the notable criteria for voting eligibility … Getting a new student ID is notably strenuous for students living on campus who are highly discouraged from having efficient transportation.”

Vitat added that while students could use mail-in or absentee ballots from their home precinct, the mailing system at his school is unreliable.

“My personal experience in both the midterm and general election was marked by extreme difficulties in ballot casting,” he said.

When the committee finished discussing the bill, student testifiers gathered in the hallway outside of the meeting room. Several told TheStatehouseFile.com that they think this type of legislation targets young voters because they might create blue dots in Indiana’s Republican-dominated state.

“I think they’re scared of what the student voice has to offer,” Anushka Panday, a student at IU, said. “Especially places like IU Bloomington are powerhouse or at least can be powerhouses for the Democratic Party.”

Josh Montagne, an IU student from Missouri, echoed Panday’s remark about Bloomington’s general political affiliation.

“They come up with these statistics… that have no validation,” he said. “Bloomington is one of the most liberal cities in the entire state. I mean, they have a supermajority in both chambers … They want to keep as much power as possible.”

Daniel Jenkins, another IU student, said he thinks the bill’s makeup is partisan and aims to prevent people from voting.

“It’s hard enough to get students to vote once,” Jenkins said. “I promise they’re  not voting twice.”