On April 20, a federal appeals court ruled that an Indiana law removing student IDs from the list of eligible voter identification could be enforced, overturning a lower court ruling from earlier this month.

The decision from a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit allows the law to be enforced for the state’s May 5 primary. Judges Michael Brennan, Michael Scudder, and Joshua Kolar issued an unsigned opinion stating, "We view the risk of disruption to Indiana’s primary election as very serious. In no uncertain terms, the district court’s injunction will alter who can cast a ballot in this election. And this change—imposed unilaterally by a federal court—comes seven days after voting in the election has already begun."

The appellate court ruling overturned a preliminary injunction issued on April 10 by U.S. District Court Judge Richard Young. In issuing the preliminary injunction, Young wrote that plaintiffs were likely to prevail in their arguments that the policy violated the First and Fourteenth amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Following Young’s ruling, Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita (R) appealed to the Seventh Circuit.

Governor Mike Braun (R) signed Senate Bill 10 into law last year. The legislation was passed along party lines in both the state House and state Senate.

On May 5, 2025, the groups Count US IN and Women4Change Indiana and an Indiana University student challenged the law in federal court, saying it would disenfranchise student voters and that it improperly targeted student IDs. The lawsuit sought both a temporary pause on enforcement of the student ID ban and a more permanent ruling blocking the law.

Following the Seventh Circuit ruling, Rokita said in a social media post, “This commonsense protection is needed to close loopholes, prevent potential fraud by out-of-state or ineligible voters, ensure every ballot belongs to a verified Hoosier, and preserve public confidence in fair, honest, and transparent elections.”

In a statement posted on social media, Jalyn Radziminski, Executive & Lead Policy Director of Count US IN, said, “Despite this temporary setback, we remain firmly committed to this case and will keep fighting to permanently block SB 10 and ensure every Hoosier has a fair opportunity to make their voice heard at the ballot box.”

Indiana was the only state to prohibit student IDs for voting in 2025. Also in 2025, Montana passed a law allowing student IDs for voting. So far this year, Florida and New Hampshire have prohibited the use of student IDs for voting.

Read more about the Indiana litigation here.