By Sheryl Swingley—
MUNCIE, IN—Oct. 5-9 is National Voter Education Week.
To help voters and young people who cannot yet vote, the League of Women Voters of Indiana and the Muncie-Delaware County League have two resources to help voters become better educated about candidates running for local, state and federal office in the 2026 midterm elections.
The first resource is a “Citizens’ Handbook” to help citizens be better informed about their rights and responsibilities in the United States.
The free handbook is available online – in English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole. Copies of the handbook also are available from all Muncie Public Library branches.
The “Citizen’s Handbook,” was developed with the support of a “Making Democracy Work” grant from the League of Women Voters Education Fund to help citizens be better informed about their rights and responsibilities in the United States.
“The Indiana League and the Indiana State Libraries are working together to serve their communities through education, outreach and civic engagement,” said Linda Hanson, president of the Indiana League of Women Voters and the spokesperson for the Muncie-Delaware County League.
Hanson added, “The handbook is designed to empower voters and defend democracy. The League of Women Voters hopes to use the handbook to expand civic participation and safeguard voting rights, so everyone is represented in our democracy.”
Authors of the handbook are Darren Wheeler, a professor of political science at Ball State University, and Stacy Wheeler, who has done work with the Bowen Center for Public Affairs at Ball State and the Indiana Secretary of State’s Voting System Technical Oversight Program.
Categories in the handbook include information about the U.S. Constitution; the three branches of government: executive, legislative and judicial; lawmaking and how bills become law; presidential powers; participating in state government; participating in local government; voting; voting rights; and 10 ways to participate in politics and make a difference.
The second resource is VOTE411.org, which is a site the League of Women Voters maintains. It provides easy access to information about candidates that citizens need to participate in elections. To access the site, citizens will be asked to provide their first and last name, date of birth and county of residence.
The League, since its founding in 1920, strives to empower voters and defend democracy through advocacy, education and litigation at the local, state and national levels.
In addition, the League never supports or opposes political parties or candidates. Instead, it takes positions on issues that affect voters. Positions might align with a party or a candidate at times but diverge at other times. The League’s focus is always on policies and measures that serve the public interest – not party affiliation.
The League of Women Voters Education Fund and local leagues work to register and inform voters through the election resources of VOTE411.org and candidate forums.
People of all different governing beliefs are eligible to join local chapters of the League of Women Voters. No invitation is needed. To join the Muncie-Delaware County League, go to https://www.lwvmunciedelaware.org/.
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