The Indy Star informs us that Charlie White’s failure to obey election law with respect to his town council seat might hurt him and it might not hurt him in his bid to become the State’s chief election law official. Right now, like Schrodinger’s Cat, I guess it exists in both states at once. Much like White was part of two election districts at once until his transgression was observed.
White moved out of the district in which he was a Fisher’s Town Councilman. You see, he “inadvertently had moved out of his designated council district and voted in a precinct where he no longer lived.”
One analyst has said that White has “embraced” the situation and so it shouldn’t hurt him. But, I’m not sure he has embraced it. His explanations make him seem absent-minded or incompetent; and, in any case, maybe it’s because I’m a parent of younger children, but the “I forgot” or “it was an accident” type explanations frequently seem implausible.
Perhaps we’ll be treated to the “let’s focus on the issues” gambit to change the subject from this incident. But, really, what issues do the electorate or media really focus on in the Secretary of State race?
As the chief election officer of the state – I’d think it would be easy. But so long as his name is followed by an R….
articles like this are so frustrating. did you learn anything reading it?
but the worst is this passage:
If voters perceive White’s actions to be immoral, even if they aren’t illegal, that could cause problems, McCann said.
voting in the wrong precinct is a felony! you’d think a reporter writing this story might want to spend five minutes looking that up.
The metaphysical uncertainty in that passage is striking. “Let us assume for the sake of argument that White’s actions were legal. Then, let’s speculate as to how voters might perceive such a hypothetical world.”
Anyone contemplating the question of whether or not Charlie White broke the law should consider this statute:
IC 3-14-2-11
Voting in other precincts
Sec. 11. Except as provided by IC 3-10-10, IC 3-10-11, or IC 3-10-12, a person who knowingly votes or offers to vote in a precinct except the one in which the person is registered and resides commits a Class D felony.
I am at present putting together a package to send to the Hamilton County Prosecutor. I will also be asking that she look into whether any laws were violated by White accepting salary and benefits from the Town of Fishers when he was not entitled to the same. Also, the source of funds for White’s new townhome, for which he paid cash, should be looked into. As a low-paid former state employee, where did he get the money?
The trick is the “knowingly” part, I think. White’s going with the “honest mistake” defense, it looks like.
Maybe so, but if he wants to go with that, first, it is not credible. And if it were credible, it makes him look like a complete moron. Either way, do the voters want A) someone who disregards the law for his own benefit, or B) a complete moron, as Secretary of State.
@Greg Purvis: My understanding is that he did vote where he was registered. The problem was he didn’t live there any more. I know he could have been challenged, but I’m not sure it was a crime (and I don’t care to look it up).
I suspect the move was anything but inadvertent. What was inadvertent was failing to report the new address to voter registration, followed by a vote knowing cast in a precinct where he no longer lived (“Oops! Forgot to move my registration! Well, I’m not giving up my right to vote because of a silly little oversight.”).
It’s a pretty trivial violation for anyone other than someone aspiring to be Secretary of State.
tipsy: reread that.
IC 3-14-2-11
Voting in other precincts
Sec. 11. Except as provided by IC 3-10-10, IC 3-10-11, or IC 3-10-12, a person who knowingly votes or offers to vote in a precinct except the one in which the person is registered and resides commits a Class D felony.
back to knowingly, which seems it wasn’t. case closed
Case closed? Because a possible wrongdoer says he didn’t know? I wouldn’t go that far.
White screwed up. No doubt. I think all agree that his “honest mistake” is a pretty lousy defense. Still, the idea of prosecuting criminally for such an action seems a little aggressive. If I were a betting man, I would bet that at least 10% of our state has voted with an invalid address. Granted, they weren’t running for SoS, but without more information, the idea of sending White to jail for voting in the wrong place seems a bit strong.
I wouldn’t put him in jail, personally. I suspect, without knowing, that the prosecution gambit is more of an effort to get the mainstream press to keep covering the story.