(BEDFORD) – The Election Board decided on Tuesday that since there are no Democrat races in the Cities of Bedford or Mitchell, there will be no Democrat Primary in this Municipal Election.
“The Board wants to be fiscally responsible to both the cities of Bedford and Mitchell and unanimously voted not to have a Democrat Primary,” says Billie Tumey, Lawrence County Clerk. “All current 2019 Municipal Primary Election Democrat candidates will be certified and automatically advance to the 2019 November General Municipal Election.”
The Election Board reviewed the following section of the Indiana Code in regards to this issue:
IC 3-10-6-4 (b) If no candidate has filed for the nomination of a party to any office of the municipality, the party may not hold a primary election in the municipality.
(c) Whenever there is no contest in a political party for the nomination of a candidate or candidates for an office, but at least one (1) candidate has filed for the nomination by that political party, the party may hold a primary election for that nomination.
(d) If a party wants to conduct a primary under subsection (c), the county chairman of the party must file a notice with the county election board not later than noon seven (7) days after the final date for filing a declaration of candidacy, stating that the party will hold a primary.
According to the Indiana Code, in order to have a Primary, we would have needed a request from the party chairman by noon seven (7) days after the final date for filing a declaration of candidacy stating that the party wanted to hold a primary. Since the Board did not receive such notice, they are not required to hold a Primary for the Democrat due to uncontested races.
By statute, major parties have until Wednesday, July 3, by noon to fill a vacancy existing on the 2019 November Municipal Election Ballot resulting from a vacancy on the Primary Election ballot for a nomination to a municipal office.
Independent candidates have until July 1 by noon to file their petition for nomination to be certified by the county voter registration office and then after the certification, the Independent candidate and minor party candidate have until July 15 by noon to file the petition of nomination.
Voter registration ends on Monday, April 8 at the close of the business day, for an individual to hand deliver a voter registration application to the county voter registration office so that the voter can be registered for the primary election.
Early voting begins on April 9th in the Lawrence County Courthouse, Voter Registration Office Room 11A Bedford. Absentee by mail applications can be filed at any time and will begin mailing absentee ballots on Friday, March 22.
Saturday early voting will be on April 27 and May 4 at the Lawrence County Courthouse in Bedford and Emerson Gym in Mitchell (voters entering the doors on 9th Street).
Normally North Lawrence Community Schools are closed on election day, but due to the need to cover makeup snow days, the School Board decided that school will be held as normal on Election Day.
Stalker Elementary and Parkview Intermediate will still be used as Vote Centers on Election Day. The Election Board met with school administration to discuss security issues and traffic flow for the students and voters.
Voting will take place in the Stalker Gym. The gym has its own outside entrance and the doors in the gym that lead to the school will be secured.
Voting at Parkview Intermediate will be in the school library. The library has its own entrance in the front entrance area of the school. The first set of doors to the entrance will be open for voters to go to the library but the second set will be locked securing the school from the public.
School staff will park away from the schools to allow for voter parking.
