Indiana college students can no longer use their student identification cards for voting during the state’s May 5 primary election following a Monday U.S. Court of Appeals decision.
The order comes just a week after federal judge Richard Young granted a preliminary injunction to the plaintiffs of a May 2025 lawsuit, temporarily blocking Senate Enrolled Act 10. In his ruling, Young estimated 40,000 Indiana student voters would be impacted by the ban.
SEA 10 was signed into law last April and prohibits the use of university-issued IDs as a form of valid identification when voting.
Count US IN, Women4Change Indiana and Indiana University junior Josh Montagne filed a lawsuit against Indiana Secretary of State Diego Morales in May 2025. The plaintiffs argued the bill targeted young voters and violated the First, 14th and 26th Amendments.
In February, the plaintiffs filed a preliminary injunction request asking for an update on the case before the primary election. The Indiana Attorney General’s office filed a denial request in response in March.
The State of Indiana filed an emergency motion April 16 for the preliminary injunction to stay pending while the appeal is being considered. The appeals court granted the motion Monday, effectively overruling Young’s decision just two weeks before the primary election.
Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita celebrated the decision in an X post, stating it was a “BIG WIN for Election Integrity in Indiana.”
“This commonsense protection is needed to close loopholes, prevent potential fraud by out-of-state or ineligible voters, ensure every ballot belongs to a verified Hoosier, and preserve public confidence in fair, honest, and transparent elections,” Rokita wrote in the post.
Isaac Chapman-Whitehead, IU junior and president of IU’s chapter of College Democrats, told the Indiana Daily Student the status of the legislation will not dissuade the organization from encouraging IU students to vote.
“Regardless of the status of SB 10 by the fall, we will continue to register all eligible voters, and empower students with the tools they need to exercise their rights,” Chapman-Whitehead wrote in a text to the IDS. “Young [people] will not bow to the monster if College Dems has anything to do about it.”
Women4Change spokesperson Casey Harrison told the IDS in an email the Indiana chapter of the organization is “deeply disappointed” by the decision to halt the injunction.
“However, this temporary ruling does not invalidate the district court’s finding that SB 10 is likely unconstitutional, and we are going to keep fighting to make sure that ruling is eventually affirmed,” Harrison wrote.
Count US IN Executive and Policy Director, Jalyn Radziminski, told the IDS in an email that the group remains “firmly committed to this case” and will continue fighting to permanently block SEA 10.
College Republicans at IU President Dillon Burns referred the IDS to a statement posted on its Instagram.
“The reinstatement of this law reinforces the principle that safeguarding elections is not optional; it is essential,” the post read.
Montagne declined to comment.
Morales’ office also did not immediately respond to request for comment.
The order stated that a “reasoned decision will follow within two business days.”
UPDATE: This story was updated with a statement from College Republicans at IU.
