Last week, Connie Lawson (R) announced her resignation as the Indiana Secretary of State. She was first appointed to the role in 2012 to fill the office vacated by Charlie White (R), after he received felony convictions for voter fraud, theft, and perjury.
Lawson will submit her formal resignation “once Governor Holcomb selects her successor and the successor is ready to serve,” according to a press release.
“The mid-term vacancy perpetuates one-party tyranny and represents an increasingly common practice to disenfranchise Hoosier voters by ensuring that Republican candidates only run as incumbents,” said Tim Maguire, Chairman of the Libertarian Party of Indiana. Open races, without an incumbent, are far more competitive and give Hoosier voters a fair fight among the candidates.
In 2018, Lawson’s eligibility to run for a second term was contested because she had served nearly 3 years in office to fill Charlie White’s term. Attorney William Barrett represented Lawson before the Indiana Election Commission, saying that Lawson was eligible to run, but she would have to step down when she reached the 8-year mark in March 2020.
Lawson is the longest-serving Secretary of State since Robert A. New first held the office after Indiana gained statehood in 1816. She may surpass New’s tenure, depending on the timing of her formal resignation.
First, the Libertarian Party of Indiana calls for all elected officials of all parties to uphold the integrity of public office by not violating the law.
Second, the Libertarian Party of Indiana calls on the incoming Secretary of State to publicly declare his or her ineligibility to run for re-election for a second time in 2026.
Third, the Libertarian Party of Indiana calls on the General Assembly to clarify the law so that time in office as a “temporary” appointee is included in the Constitutional limitation of serving no more than 8 years in any 12 year period.
Fourth, the Libertarian Party of Indiana calls on the General Assembly to amend the Constitution of the State of Indiana so that all gubernatorial appointees of elected offices must receive simple majority approval confirmation by the General Assembly. This rebalances power from the executive to the legislative branch, and better represents the will of the people.
Libertarians work toward smaller government that is accountable to the people of Indiana. These improvements will return power to Hoosiers, the rightful owners of all power, per Article I Section 2 of the Constitution of the State of Indiana: “That all power is inherent in the people; and all free Governments are founded on their authority, and instituted for their peace, safety and happiness.”
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The Libertarian Party is the third largest political party in the United States and has been on the ballot in Indiana since 1994. Libertarians believe in a free-market economy; civil liberties and personal freedom for all; and a foreign policy of non-intervention, peace, and free trade.