Rokita Report for June 24, 2006

Secretary Rokita, Delaware County Clerk Karen Wenger, (center) and Ball State University instructor Dr. Pierre Atchade (right) with previously used Deleware county voting equipment.
June 24, 2006 - July 14, 2006

Todd Rokita traveled to Santa Fe, New Mexico last week to meet with fellow secretaries of state at their national association's summer conference. Rokita, who currently serves as the treasurer for the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS), was installed as president-elect of the association. Rokita hopes to continue to share his successful Indiana election reforms with his peers, and he will be closer to this goal when his term as president of the organization begins in 2007.

"Rokita Installed as National Association's President-Elect" - Inside INdiana Business - July 14, 2006

Voter Rolls

Secretary of State Todd Rokita's plan to cleanup Indiana's bloated voter rolls has begun. "When our brand new statewide voter registration system found 290,522 possible duplicate records, we knew there was a problem," said Rokita. The cleanup process is underway and postcards have been sent to every registered voter in the state. If a postcard is returned undeliverable, a second notice is sent that can be forwarded on to a voter's new address. If any of those are also returned, the voter is placed on an "inactive" list. An eligible voter can "reactivate" their status simply by voting in any of the 2006, 2007 or 2008 elections. If they do not vote then their name will be removed by the end of 2008.

"Justice agrees to Indiana plan to purge voter rolls" - The Indianapolis Star - June 27, 2006

"U.S. Department of Justice Compels State Democrats to Sign off on Rokita Plan" - The Office of Indiana Secretary of State Todd Rokita - June 22, 2006

Voting Machins to West Africa

Secretary Rokita is working with officials in Deleware County in an effort to send now outdated voting machines to the emerging democracy of Benin, West Africa. As a result of the Help America Vote Act, 2/3 of Indiana's counties had to completely replace their voting equipment, and many still have their machines in storage. Instead of sending this equipment to a landfill, it will be put to good use overseas. So far Delaware, Madison, and Kosciusko counties have donated 325, 400, and 248 machines respectively. "Sharing this voting technology will create the confidence of people in the democratic system that will eventually lead to economic development within Benin," Secretary Rokita said.

"BSU teacher collects vote machines for shipment to African democracy" - The Star Press - July 8, 2006

Indiana Investment Watch

The Indiana Secretary of State's Office is educating Indiana residents about smart investing with the ongoing Indiana Investment Watch campaign. A recent survey from the Secretary Rokita's office says that Hoosier investors are prime targets for fraud. The campaign covers things such as unregistered securities, pyramid schemes, oil and gas ventures, affinity fraud, and viatical investments.

"Avoiding Investment Scams" - South Bend Tribune - July 9, 2006

Prosecution Assistance Unit

The Securities Division of the Secretary of State's Office recently helped charge "one of the worst elements of white-collar crime out there" according to Todd Rokita. Cooperation between the Prosecution Assistance Unit of Secretary Rokita's office and Madison County Prosecutor Rodney Cummings made this arrest possible. Since its creation in 2004, the Prosecution Assistance Unit has served to assist county prosecutors, who may not have first-hand experience and resources to thoroughly investigate white-collar crimes.

"Laundry list of charges" - Herald Bulletin - June 23, 2006

The Business Services Division of Secretary of State Todd Rokita's Office is currently undergoing a Corporate Scanning Project. The division will have scanned over 5 million corporate documents by fall. All of these documents will be available online and you will be able to print them off from your desktop once the project is completed.

Secretary of State Rokita had a booth at this year's Black Expo. Hoosiers that visited the booth had the opportunity to learn about safe investing through the Indiana Investment Watch campaign and were able to register to vote for the upcoming November elections.

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