Election Day: Poll workers report higher turnout than expected

Come back here after the vote centers close at 6 p.m. for the results of today’s election.

Twenty vote centers across Johnson County opened this morning for voters to make their picks for county sheriff, U.S. Senator, county council and commissioner and judge.

Candidates and their supporters and volunteers are stationed at the polls, which are scattered across Johnson County, to greet voters and make one final push. Voting in the primary election continues until 6 p.m.

Election workers at several of the vote centers said that more voters than they expected were casting a ballot.

“I don’t think anyone anticipated quite so many folks coming out today,” said Angie McClelland, poll inspector for the voting site at Greenwood Christian Church. “It’s been awesome, but we’ve had a long line since we opened.”

Election workers were also reporting lines throughout the day at the Franklin Community Center and Mount Pleasant Christian Church.

“It’s been very busy, much greater than expectations,” said Les Tabeling, poll inspector at the Franklin Community Center. “I don’t think anybody anticipated it to be like this.”

Voters were lined up and ready when the vote center at Community Church of Greenwood opened at 6 a.m. Election workers got 40 voters through the line in 24 minutes after opening.

Election officials had hoped at least 10 percent of registered voters would cast ballots today, but had not been confident of that based on early voting turnout.

Voters and election workers have reported problems at just one voting site, Greenwood Christian Church, which have since been resolved.

For about 30 minutes, voting paused at the when the electronic poll books used to look up voter information stopped working.

Poll workers were forced to send people to nearby voting centers at Grace Assembly Church and the Nest, poll inspector Angie McClelland said.

Technicians with the clerk’s office were sent to the church to figure out the problem. The electronic polling books were running on the wireless network at the church, and the increased traffic throughout the morning overwhelmed the system, McClelland said.

Problems with the voting center’s two registration book tablets started about 8:30 a.m., McClelland said. One would start delaying, slowing down and disconnecting from the wireless system, then once it was up and running again, the second would crash.

Finally, both tablets stopped working completely about 11 a.m., McClelland said.

“We had a few unhappy customers when we had to send them to another polling site, but most people understood,” she said.

Technicians rushed to the church and installed a private wireless hotspot, which connected the voting center to a more stable network. Since going up shortly before noon, it has worked without issue, McClelland said.

“We’re pleased with how we’re moving people along. Hopefully it goes smoothly from here,” she said.

Here’s the vote centers that are open today:

  • Mount Pleasant Christian Church, 381 N. Bluff Road, Greenwood
  • White River Public Library, 1664 Library Blvd., Greenwood
  • Rocklane Christian Church, 4430 Rocklane Road, Greenwood
  • Mount Auburn Methodist Church, 3100 W. Stones Crossing Road, Greenwood
  • Greenwood Christian Church, 2045 Averitt Road, Greenwood
  • Vineyard Community Church, 512 S. Madison Ave., Greenwood
  • The Nest (formerly Jonathan Byrd’s Cafeteria), 100 Byrd Way, Greenwood
  • GracePoint Church, 330 Whiteland Road, New Whiteland
  • Bargersville Town Hall, 24 N. Main St., Bargersville
  • Franklin Fire Station No. 23, 1150 Sloan Drive, Franklin
  • Franklin Community Center, 396 Branigan Blvd., Franklin
  • Grace United Methodist Church, 1300 E. Adams Drive, Franklin
  • Johnson Memorial Hospital, Building 1159, 1159 W. Jefferson St., Franklin
  • Trafalgar Public Library, 424 S. Tower St., Trafalgar
  • Prince’s Lakes Town Hall, 14 E. Lakeview Drive, Nineveh
  • Edinburgh Public Library, 119 W. Main Cross St., Edinburgh
  • Amity Volunteer Fire Department, 3247 S. County Road 550E, Franklin
  • White River Township Trustee’s Office, 2929 S. Morgantown Road, Greenwood
  • Community Church of Greenwood (main entrance foyer), 1477 W. Main St., Greenwood
  • Grace Assembly of God, 6822 N. U.S. 31, New Whiteland

Most of the local contested races are on the Republican ballot. In the primary, voters must select a Republican or Democrat ballot to vote. The winners in each party will face each other in the general election in November.

The key races are a three-way Republican battle for the sheriff’s nomination among longtime deputies Duane Burgess and Kirby Cochran and retired Indiana State Police trooper Stoney Vann.

Indiana’s Republican U.S. Senate race has caught attention nationally. Todd Rokita, Luke Messer and Mike Braun are seeking the nomination. The winner will face Democrat Joe Donnelly in November.

Other races on the ballot include circuit court judge, a state representative seat, Bargersville Town Council seats and township trustee and advisory boards.

Voters are sharing their experiences casting a ballot and what issues helped shape their decisions.

Voter: Research was key to get the best candidates

Before one Greenwood resident went to vote in the primary election on Tuesday morning, she made sure to do as much research as she could about the local candidates on the ballot.

That meant reading everything she could about candidates in races for sheriff, county commissioner, county council and state representative, and setting aside time to go to campaign events to meet as many of those candidates as she could in person, Rita Smith said.

RitaSmith
Voter Rita Smith

Her goal was to be as prepared as she could before coming to vote in the primary election. Taking part in the primary election is important because it set the slate for the general election, she said.

“I want to get the right candidates in the Johnson County election,” Smith said.

Honesty and the ability to follow through on their campaign promises are the qualities she said she was looking for in candidates.

When Smith arrived at the Community Church of Greenwood about 6:10 a.m., a location she chose because it was between her home and workplace, there was a line of about 10 people.

About 35 people voted in the first half-hour that vote center was open, election officials said.

Gauntlet of signs

Voters aiming to cast their ballots this morning at the White River Branch of the Johnson County Public Library first had to walk through a line of signs and campaigners.

Voters navigate a gauntlet of electioners on Tuesday at the White River Branch of the Johnson County Library in Greenwood.
Voters navigate a gauntlet of campaigners on Tuesday at the White River Branch of the Johnson County Library in Greenwood.

About 15 people and twice as many signs lined the sidewalk leading into the library around 7:30 a.m. The campaigners greeted residents and thanked them for coming out to vote, hoping that their sign and last minute reminder might swing a few votes toward their preferred candidate.

Andy Harris, a childhood friend of sheriff candidate Stoney Vann, was at the library right at 6 a.m. when the polls opened and plans to stay until 6 p.m. Harris said he knows what the race means to his friend and he wanted to be around to support him.

For Sandy Horvath, whose son Scott Horvath is running for state representative, this is the first time she’s ever done any campaigning.

“I want to be here for him,” she said.

She brought a chair, lunch and snacks to get through the downtime when the vote center slows down. What’s been most enjoyable so far has been meeting fellow campaigners and people coming to vote, Horvath said.

Tonisha Jarrett came out to the vote center support friend and fellow attorney, Ryan Dillon, who is running for circuit court judge. She plans to be at the vote center throughout the day, with breaks to take her kids to school.

Participating in the election process, by both voting and campaigning, is an important right for Americans to exercise, she said.

Ten elections and still going strong

Election Day is always long for one Johnson County resident, who has worked to keep elections running for 20 years.

As the inspector for the vote center at the White River Branch of the Johnson County Public Library, Election Day means arriving to work at 5 a.m to get the vote center open and not getting home till as late as 9 p.m, after a trip to the Johnson County Courthouse, Ron Goins said.

After working in 10 elections, what keeps Goins coming back is a desire to help his community and all the people he gets to meet being part of the election process, he said.

“I’m retired, and this is something I can do to give back to the community,” he said.

Ahead of this morning, Goins wasn’t sure what type of voter turnout to expect, but said the amount of voters coming out to the polls is similar to past non-presidential primary elections.

About 25 people were lined up when polls opened at 6 a.m., and once those voters were through the center still had a steady flow of people coming in. He expects the next rushes to be around 9 a.m., after parents have dropped kids off to school, and again around 4 p.m., once people are beginning to get off of work.

Long line at Center Grove area vote center

Voters wanting to cast a ballot this morning at a popular Center Grove area vote center waited about a half hour.

The line of voters was about 40 people long at Mount Pleasant Christian Church shortly after 9 a.m., meaning voters had to stand in line for about 30 minutes before being able to cast their ballot.

Some would-be voters returned to their vehicles after seeing how long the wait was.

Voters wait in line to cast their ballots Tuesday at Mount Pleasant Christian Church in Greenwood.
Voters wait in line to cast their ballots Tuesday at Mount Pleasant Christian Church in Greenwood.

Center Grove area resident Liza Griffith said getting through the line took her about 25 minutes. She arrived to vote shortly after 8 a.m. and was out by 8:30 a.m.

While the line was longer than most other vote centers, residents waiting said they were glad the line didn’t compare to the 2016 general election, when the wait to vote at the church was more than three hours.

“This is a piece of cake,” said Center Grove area resident Nansie Whitt, who was waiting in line with her 5-year-old daughter.

Debbie Waltke said she waited to vote until this morning because that time fit her schedule best. Her husband took part in early voting over the weekend and was able to avoid any lines.

She joked that an “I told you so” might be coming her way.

Voter: Time in military provides meaning to voting

For one military veteran, his time spent serving his country is a reminder of the importance of voting.

Center Grove area resident John Foley spent nine years in the U.S. Air Force and said that his time in the military and the National Guard gave him a different perspective on the importance of voting and exercising his rights as a U.S. citizen.

“This is our civic duty,” he said. “We shouldn’t take these freedoms for granted.”

Foley initially joined the military for the education benefits, but quickly found joy in serving his country.

While in the National Guard, he was sent to help residents in disaster areas. Seeing people work side by side to protect their homes and properties showed him how people have so much more in common than the issues that sometimes divide them.

“I cherished the time I was in there,” he said. “It taught me to respect the freedoms we have.”

Since then he has always made sure to take part in both primary and general elections.

When evaluating candidates the past couple months, the quality he said he was looking for the most was integrity, which he said has been lacking in the country’s leaders.

Unexpected lines

Poll inspector Les Tabeling had been warned that voter turnout might be low during Tuesday’s primary election.

In preparation for a slow day, he brought a book for extended periods of down time.

He wouldn’t be sitting down to read any time soon.

“It’s been very busy, much greater than expectations,” Tabeling said. “I don’t think anybody anticipated it to be like this.”

The line snaked throughout the voting center as dozens of people took their places to wait shortly before lunchtime. By that time, it was estimated to take about 45 minutes to get to the voting machines.

Many walked in the front doors, saw the line, and turned back around, hoping to try their luck later in the day when the crowds had dispersed.

The line had been consistently long since polls opened at 6 a.m., Tabeling said.

With a slate of important races on the ballot, including sheriff and the county’s representative in Congress, people were energized about voting, Tabeling said.

“There are some pretty big races for both parties,” he said.

That increased participation is exciting for those who have volunteered to work the polls, Tabeling said. People seem to be more interested in taking an active interest in their government leaders and being as informed as possible.

“To me it suggests that there are more people who want to be engaged. I’m looking forward to seeing what the totals are at the end of the day,” he said.

“For effective leadership in our country, we need to have people coming out and deciding who the best candidates are.”

Exercising her right to vote

Voting is a responsibility that every American needs to take advantage of, one voter said.

That was the message that Amy Ulerick’s parents stressed as she was growing up. So coming out to vote in Tuesday’s primary election was never a question.

“I’ve always voted. (My parents) instilled that belief in me. If you have an opinion, you need to do that,” she said.

On top of the civic duty that Ulerick felt, she was also intrigued by the important races in this year’s election. The Franklin resident wanted to be sure to cast her vote for county sheriff. Though she was confident in who she would vote for in most races, she did admit that her pre-election research didn’t go as far as she’d like.

“I meant to do a little more on a few of the people, but things got in the way,” she said. “I think people go into this not knowing what all of the candidates stand for, and these primary elections make a difference. You need to know who you’re voting for.”

Ulerick managed to get in line during one of the lulls in line, and was finished voting in about 10 minutes. Even if it would have been longer, she still would have waited it out.

“I nice to see the lines so long. I didn’t think so many people would be out,” she said.

Tell us about your experience casting a ballot today and the issues that formed your decisions. Email us at [email protected].