Jennifer McCormick’s Plan to Boost Indiana’s Low Voter Turnout as Governor

Jennifer McCormick is the Democratic candidate for governor of Indiana, which has consistently had one of the lowest voter turnouts in the country since 2010. In 2022, the state ranked 50th in turnout out of 51 jurisdictions, according to the 2023 Indiana Civic Health Index Report.
McCormick said that improving civic education and engaging voters are the key ways to mitigate this. She worked as a special education and language arts teacher for a decade before serving as a school principal and local superintendent.
Then, in 2016, she was elected as the Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction, which is a role she held until 2021. She was a Republican while she served in that role but switched to the Democratic Party after she left. McCormick said her values didn’t align with the GOP anymore, especially on issues like reproductive freedoms, education and the economy.
In addition to educating voters, she said the state allowing citizens to initiate ballot measures, like voters in many other states, would bring more people into the electoral process.
Her opponent in the upcoming gubernatorial race, U.S. Sen. Mike Braun (R-Indiana), is a staunch election denier and avid supporter of former President Donald Trump.
McCormick said his rhetoric is “just an attempt to mislead and create fear and chaos,” and “instead of celebrating the vote, what our democracy is based upon, he’s trying to suppress it.”
Responses have been edited for style and clarity.
Why are you running for governor of Indiana?
In 2016, I was elected the state Superintendent of Public Instruction, so I spent four years at our statehouse and learned a lot. But what I saw there was not a focus on Hoosiers; I saw a focus on a political party. For me, it’s about Hoosiers deserving better. That’s why I intend to bring them better than what we have now.
In 2021, after you finished serving as the Indiana superintendent, you changed your party affiliation from Republican to Democrat. Why did you decide to make that switch?
I watched a party — the Republican Party — that was unrecognizable. I have always been committed to being a public servant and making sure that we were staying focused on the needs of Hoosiers. I’m very concerned about what’s happening with reproductive freedoms, education and our economy. It was just staying true to my values and switching parties to align with the Democrats who share a lot of my values.
How do you plan to protect democracy in Indiana and the country in general as governor?
We are 50th out of [51] in voter turnout. We have a registration problem, but we also have a turnout problem. And our general assembly continues to make it harder [to vote], which you would think would be counterproductive, but they’re trying to accomplish voter suppression to win. We know that if we vote, Democrats will win in Indiana.
Making sure that we’re using our agencies, board appointments and commissions to address civic education [is important], but [we also need] to celebrate our voting rights and make sure that we are doing everything year-round in our diligence to make sure people are exercising their rights to vote.
Can you talk about why improving and increasing civic education is important, especially for improving young voter turnout?
It’s huge. Youth voting is our democracy. I was a teacher, and I was also a local school superintendent for seven and a half years before becoming the last elected state superintendent of Indiana. I am well aware that the vote is our voice and that impacts everything we do at the local, state and federal levels. That is their chance to [participate in] democracy, protect their rights and freedoms and change things.
You completed your undergraduate degree at Purdue University, which has been in the news recently because the Tippecanoe County Board of Elections decided not to hold an Election Day voting site on campus for the first time in decades. How does that impact college voters?
I don’t think it’s without coincidence that…this is the first time in decades that there wasn’t availability to vote on campus. Being a Big Ten campus and knowing the importance of that electorate, it’s one more example of voter suppression. When I was on campus not too long ago, there were a lot of citizens, students and faculty who were saying, “This is ridiculous.” And although they tried to fight it, they couldn’t get it resolved.
This past week, Indiana officials asked the federal government to verify the citizenship of over half a million voters, including overseas voters and people who registered without an ID. What are your thoughts on this push to eliminate non-citizen voting and spread a narrative about this happening on such a large scale?
We’re a few weeks out [from the election], so if it were a huge issue, this would have been looked into months if not years ago. They’re panicked because the Republicans know that we’re right in this race. We’re statistically tied. Our Democratic attorney general candidate looks really good. Their response to that is voter suppression.
It’s a fear tactic. They’re making sure people are afraid that if they go vote and they do something wrong, there’ll be consequences. And so we are trying to get out the message and just be aggressive with our get out the vote. But it’s clearly an attempt just to scare people to stay home.
Your Republican opponent, Senator Mike Braun, said on his website that election security is one of his top priorities and that people must trust that our elections are free from fraud. What do you make of his assertion that we need to be worrying about fraud in elections?
He was one of the few U.S. senators who supported Trump when he was out [saying] the election was stolen. Braun was right there. We know where his allegiance lies with the rhetoric. There’s no proof to it and you know it, but yet you’re still [spreading this] messaging. It’s just an attempt to mislead and create fear and chaos. Instead of celebrating the vote, what our democracy is based upon, he’s trying to suppress it.
On your website, you talk about a few ways to combat voter suppression, like expanding voter registration access, increasing ballot access and fighting against gerrymandering. How do you plan to tackle those issues if you’re elected governor?
Gerrymandering is a huge issue in Indiana as it is in other states. When you have a one-party rule, you get what we have. Some of our districts are drawn in such a way that it’s not even recognizable. If they’re gerrymandered so badly, then you have Hoosiers who are like, “What’s the point of voting? It won’t matter because it’s decided.” And we have to educate voters that it doesn’t matter about gerrymandering in this instance because it’s a statewide race and every vote counts.
We have to break that super majority and have balance at the statehouse. That includes getting some house positions, but also getting the governor’s office. It’d be great to get the attorney general’s office to break up some of the gerrymandering. But also, we have three judges up [for reelection] and the judges play into this immensely.
Do you think that these local races need to be discussed more?
Absolutely. The local level is incredibly important. And we have just too many Hoosiers who are sitting [those elections] out. It’s a huge concern. It goes back to making sure we are educating Hoosiers, making sure that we’re using our platform in a way that people are informed, but also are armed with what they need in order to make smart decisions and go out and vote.
How can you increase voter registration and how do you make that more accessible?
The voter registration deadline for this election has passed. So now our charge is getting out the vote. That’s every ounce of what we’re doing right now — informing voters, getting our name recognition, getting our message out about reproductive freedoms, access to healthcare, education and good-paying jobs.
And [we’re] making sure they are aware that they can vote early and know what those hours look like, and what the website is to find that information. We are making a lot of calls, we’re knocking on a lot of doors, we’re sending a lot of postcards and we’re working with the other candidates who are on the down ballots to make this happen.
Vice President Kamala Harris has offices that opened here in Indiana. They are working really hard as well to get out the vote. There are a lot of different efforts coming from different angles to make sure we can capture every single vote we can.
Indiana is known as a mostly Republican state. Republicans have a majority in both houses of the legislature. How do you seek to foster bipartisanship in an environment like this?
That’s one great thing about my Lieutenant Governor [Terry Goodin]. He was in the General Assembly for 20 years. He has relationships with many people — Republicans and Democrats — and makes sure he can reach across that aisle and get things done. And he would preside over the Senate, which is incredibly important here in Indiana. There are a lot of different ways we can do that day-to-day during the legislative session.
Outside of the session, we’re making sure we’re being a good partner in our boards, agencies and commissions — [which include] Republicans and Democrats. You have a lot of different ideologies at the table, but to find those common ground areas where we can come up with solutions [is important].
When I was state superintendent, we did it. We were known as the Ellis Island of the statehouse because our doors were open to all, and we helped everybody who needed help with education policy. And we will continue to operate in that same method.
How does holding a statewide office like superintendent prepare you for an executive role like governor?
I was one of seven statewide [officeholders], and I was in the executive branch. Indiana has taken that position away, so it’s not separately elected at this point, but I learned a lot about how the statehouse works. I also learned a lot about the areas in which it really doesn’t work well. Learning those lessons and utilizing them to move forward in a positive direction is very beneficial.
I also got to meet a lot of people and partner with a lot of agencies and companies, businesses and industries. That relationship-building started then and will continue. There are so many benefits to already being at the statehouse. I learned how it works — the good and the bad and the ugly — and I will bring those lessons. It helps on day one to be able to hit the ground running and go from there.
Is there any specific legislation that you are thinking of passing in terms of voting rights and democracy or other issues?
We’ll certainly use our platform for reproductive freedoms, which is a huge concern here in Indiana. My opponents are extreme and they want to take that even further. Making sure they never get near that statehouse in that position is our goal. [We’ll] fight and push against extremism. [We’ll improve] access to affordable health care, and there’s a lot of conversations about K-12 [education].
We have a lot of infrastructure that needs to be addressed. Also, the [legalization] of cannabis [is important], which about 80% of Hoosiers are with me on. We have a plan and we’re ready to go.
On your website, you mentioned that pushing policy through ballot initiatives is a really important democratic tool. How can citizen-initiated ballot initiatives help you push your agenda or make people’s voices heard?
It’s so frustrating that it’s 2024 and Indiana still does not have [citizen-initiated measures] as an option. A lot of states do. It’s because Indiana knows if you put abortion, cannabis, driver IDs and different items on the ballot, the majority of Hoosiers will speak positively about those items. They know that would be the result. This is just one more way to suppress our voice beyond just voting. Not having a ballot initiative is one more way to carve out the majority of Hoosiers and our desires.
What would be the benefits of having citizen-initiated constitutional amendments or measures going forward?
We’ve seen it in other states where it energizes people to be involved in the civic process. We have to have someone with a platform in the governor’s office to push that issue. I intend to do that, but there are so many benefits from saving lives to changing lives, but also re-engaging Hoosiers.
At Democracy Docket, we’re tracking the many democracy and voting rights-related ballot initiatives in many states. It’s interesting to talk about how things happening in other states could apply to Indiana and the benefits that could come from that.
We keep our eye on Ohio, our neighbor, because they’ve been having a lot of ballot initiatives and have passed them successfully. Kansas is very similar to Indiana, so we pay attention to Kansas. We pay attention to other states that are pretty red but can get it done. And I know we can get it done. We just have to change the leadership to get that initiative passed.
You recently had a campaign fundraiser concert called Musicians for McCormick. Who is your favorite Indiana musician?
By far it’s John Cougar Mellencamp. So, I’m aging myself. He is from Indiana, and I grew up listening to him and he’s always been one of my favorite artists. Those songs hit home because they are so Indiana-ish. The fundraiser was a lot of fun. There were a lot of local artists who played, some were members of the symphony and some were just up-and-coming singers.