Indiana Secretary of State Diego Morales caused a bit of stir on Tuesday when he and three staff members arrived at two polling locations in St. John.
The confusion stemmed from Lake County Board of Elections and Registration officials telling poll workers during training that no one had submitted credential requests, but Morales’ staff members presented poll workers with credentials, election officials stated.
“We had no knowledge that he was coming in, not that he had to tell us, “ said Lake County Board of Elections and Registration director Michelle Fajman. “It was no disrespect to him, they just didn’t know who he was.”
On Tuesday, two special elections were held for school property tax measures in the neighboring districts of Lake Central School Corp. and the Hanover Central Community Schools. Both referenda passed.
Lake County Board of Elections and Registration administrators received calls that Morales and his staff were visiting the Lake Central High School and St. John Library polling locations.
Poll workers asked about Morales’ “authority to enter the polling location and were quickly informed by county election officials that the Secretary of State is authorized to enter polls and observe procedures at any time,” said Lindsey Eaton, a spokeswoman for the Secretary of State’s Office.
Under state law, the secretary of state can enter any polling location without credentials, Eaton said. The staff members with Morales “were properly credentialed deputies,” she said.
Fajman said she received a call from a poll worker at Lake Central High School that four people arrived at the polling location. One person, Fajman said, showed a credential on their phone to one of the poll workers but not the inspector.
Lake County Board of Elections and Registration assistant director Jessica Messler said she received a call from a deputy election commissioner at the St. John Library polling location that the Secretary of State was there and that the poll workers had questions about credentials.
During poll worker training, Fajman and Messler said that poll workers were told that no one submitted for credentials to enter the polling places.
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Morales called Messler, she said, and they were able to clear up the confusion.
“It was a whole big misunderstanding, but the poll workers did the right thing,” Messler said. “After the poll workers were given the information, everything went off without a hitch.”
The poll workers ensured the integrity of the voting process, Fajman said.
“Our poll workers did everything they were told to do, and he was let in after his identity was confirmed,” Fajman said. “They were being extra secure and making sure he was who he said he was.”
Fajman and Messler said they asked the Secretary of State’s Office to send them a picture of the deputies’ credentials to include in future training.
Morales did not want to distract the poll workers, Eaton said, so he thanked them and “left on his own accord.”
“Poll workers are not expected to be election law experts. Though the Secretary of State has authority to observe all aspects of election administration, the office wasn’t going to interrupt voting over what is taken to be a poll worker’s good faith concern,” Eaton said.