Indiana Organizers Speak Out About GOP Voter Suppression In Lake County

As I explained in my recent summary of the dispute, Republicans in Northwest Indiana have used legal challenges to block "satellite" early voting centers from opening in three minority rich, heavily low-income cities -- Gary, Hammond, and East Chicago. These three polling places have remained closed even as early voting commenced at the Lake County clerk's office in Crown Point (located over a half-hour to the south) and despite the fact that all three towns had enjoyed early voting during the presidential primary.

After winning a a circuit court victory on Monday, labor and civil rights leaders held a press conference yesterday, calling on the Lake County Board of Elections to obey the court order and begin early voting in the three cities. Watch it:

But, hours after the press conference concluded, I got word that District Court Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen -- a Bush appointee -- had vacated the circuit court decision in lieu of a separate federal case pending in his court. The Post-Tribune confirms this:

Lake County Circuit Court Judge Lorenzo Arredondo ruled Monday that the three sites should be opened immediately, though U.S. District Court Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen had set a hearing on the issue for later this week.

However, federal court records indicate Van Bokkelen vacated Arredondo's order Tuesday during a conference call with attorneys in the case.

So it appears there won't be any further legal developments until he takes up the case on Friday.

Meanwhile, in an Indianapolis Star article yesterday, an attorney for the GOP side argued that opening the three satellite offices would be unfair to Republicans:

David Brooks, an Indianapolis attorney who represents Lake County Republicans, said his clients want a temporary restraining order to block usage of the satellite offices, which they believe give Democrats an unfair advantage.

"The issue isn't whether there's more opportunities to vote," Brooks said. "It's whether it's fair to everyone. They aren't opening any satellite offices in Republican areas. You have to find politically balanced or neutral locations."

It's a bit strange to see Brooks differentiating between fairness and opportunity. Access to voting booths should be proportional to population -- not to partisan geography, as he suggests. Indeed, over 40 percent of Lake County's population live in Gary, Hammond, and East Chicago, all of which are located side-by-side at the northernmost boundary. Meanwhile, the sole, open early voting center is located in the center of the county, a half-hour drive away for those with cars and much longer for those on public transportation.

How exactly is that "fair" or "balanced"?