When Guy Loftman, a retired Bloomington attorney and Democrat, visited an elderly husband and wife at their home during the May primary election, he and his Republican travel board partner handed each voter a ballot, a pen and a clipboard.
Loftman said he remembered both voters used walkers. The couple stayed together as the workers explained the voting process, then filled out their ballots without either worker influencing or watching their choices.
“It just felt good making sure that everybody, that these people who otherwise would not have been able to vote, got to vote,” Loftman said.
That visit was part of Loftman’s first election serving on a travel board. Travel board voting is a form of absentee voting in which a bipartisan team delivers ballots to eligible voters at their place of residence and helps them complete their ballots if requested. Eligible voters can begin voting through travel boards Oct. 15 for the Nov. 3 general election, according to the Indiana Election Division’s calendar.
Monroe County received 47 travel board voting requests as of Oct. 9, Election Supervisor Kylie Farris wrote in an email. Farris wrote that requests typically increase closer to Election Day. Farris also reported 84 travel board ballots were cast in the 2022 general election, 127 in the 2024 general election and 45 in the 2026 primary election.
To qualify for travel board voting, voters must expect to be confined by illness or injury on Election Day or caring for someone who is at a private residence that day. Voters also qualify if they have a disability and believe their polling place is inaccessible, or if they are physically unable to complete their ballot independently.
Farris said each team includes one Democrat and one Republican. Local party officials select workers, and the county election board approves them.
Chrissie Geels, chair of the Monroe County Democratic Party , said she has recruited three Democratic travel board workers for the upcoming election.
The party’s experienced election workers and established volunteer network have made recruitment easier, Geels said, and some people expressed interest before the party posted a recruitment call. The party also uses social media to reach potential workers.
“And if I woke up tomorrow and I saw that there were 50 more travel board requests, I would then hustle to go recruit more people so that we could make sure that everybody will be able to have their voice heard,” Geels said.
Cory Grass, chair of the Monroe County Republican Party, did not respond to multiple interview requests from the Indiana Daily Student.
Election Central, the offices of the county election board, prepares travel board workers by training them on voter interactions, ballot assistance, required forms and how to return ballots, Farris said. Workers practice different situations through role-playing and are paid $25 an hour plus 64 cents per mile reimbursed for every mile they drive, she said.
Loftman volunteered during the May primary after another Democratic travel board worker became unable to serve. Because voting had already begun, he said he learned on the job alongside his experienced Republican partner, a retired judge.
“We both have a great deal of respect for the rule of law, and we both were pretty knowledgeable about what the laws were, so we worked very easily,” Loftman said.
Loftman said the number of requests and the distance between voters’ homes determined their workload. For example, some days they didn’t do any visits, while a visit to one nursing home took the duo nearly an entire day.
For voters unable to see the choices or physically mark a ballot, one worker recorded their choices while the other watched, Loftman said. Both followed the voter’s instructions and checked the required signatures and initials before returning ballots to Election Central.
Loftman said travel board voters appreciated the visits and helping them participate motivated him to serve again this fall.
“They appreciate that we take the time to come to them and be able to allow them to cast their votes without having to try to find special circumstances to be able to get out, or to have to try to come to early voting,” Farris said.
Eligible voters can apply through Indiana’s voter portal by logging in with their registration information and selecting “Vote by Mail or Traveling Board.” They can also submit a signed paper application to county election officials by mail, hand delivery or email as a scan or photo.
Monroe County voters can email their signed application to election@co.monroe.in.us, or mail or hand-deliver it to Election Central at 501 N. Morton St., Suite 101, Bloomington, Indiana.
Applications require a qualifying photo ID copy or an accepted identification number. Accepted identification numbers include an Indiana driver’s license, an identification card number, a unique voter ID number or the last four digits of a Social Security number. Voters should include a phone number or email address so officials can reach out to schedule a visit.
Election officials must receive travel board applications by noon Nov. 2.
