Wait is worth it
Dave Ebbeler, 69, has voted in every presidential election, but this is his first time attending a midterm vote. He was half an hour into his wait, and said he had an hour remaining in line, but doesn’t mind the wait.
“The Kavanaugh thing bothered me more than anything,” Ebbeler said of his motivation to vote. “The caravan coming up from Mexico is another concern, the high cost of medical care.”
— Andy Bell-Baltaci
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Try again later
Brittney Matteson was just one of many voters who did not have time to wait in line for multiple hours. After waiting for 90 minutes at Mount Pleasant Christian Church in the mid-morning, she decided that it was best to come back later in the day.
“It was an extremely long line and very slow moving,” Matteson said. “It’s the longest I ever had to wait to vote.”
Matteson said an hour into her wait, she was told the system used to check in voters was moving slowly, and was told this was a county-wide issue. Other voters parked their cars, entered the church, and exited immediately upon hearing of wait times.
— Andy Bell-Baltaci
Where to go?
Five people were in line to vote at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday at Johnson Memorial Hospital. Less than three miles away at Grace United Methodist Church, the line had backed up all the way to the parking lot.
“This is as good as it’s been all morning. Earlier, (the line) was out to the elevator,” said Rick Nichols, the site inspector at the hospital vote center.
Still, the wait had not been longer than 15 or 20 minutes all morning, and they haven’t had any issues with the eight voting machines, Nichols said.
“It’s been perfect here,” he said.
Sherry Keller, a Franklin resident, was in and out in about 10 minutes.
“Shortest wait time ever,” she said with a big smile as she exited the poll.
Keller said she’s always voted at the hospital on Election Day, and usually at around the same time. It’s close to home, so it’s convenient, she said. In the last election, she waited about 45 minutes.
Across town at Grace United Methodist Church, the line was much longer. People were waiting about an hour to vote.
Alicia Osborne was at the back of the line — which was outside — at 8:45 a.m. She had no idea the wait time was so much shorter at the hospital, a five-minute drive down the road.
“That’s actually closer to my house, so maybe I should go there,” she said, laughing.
She eventually decided to stick it out.
“This was my designated polling place before vote centers and it’s pretty close to where I live, so I’ve just always voted here. I’m comfortable here,” Osborne said. “But normally, I’m at least inside the building.”
She wasn’t surprised the wait is longer this year, she said.
“This one’s a pretty big deal as far as midterms go. I haven’t seen this kind of turnout in my lifetime and I’m 36. If anything, I hope that it encourages more people — especially the young ones who are just now turning 18 — to get out and vote. Just get in the habit of doing it. I’ve voted in every election since I was 18,” Osborne said.
“No matter who you want to vote for, either way, just vote.”
— James Vaughn
Exceptional day for mother-daughter team
A mother and daughter duo were working together on Election Day at Grace United Methodist Church in Franklin. are at the polls this morning assisting voters. Jeannie Hutton, a poll inspector, and her mother Judy Hall, an 83-year-old election clerk, said just hours after voting was underway that this election is exceptional due to the high turnout.
“I’ve done this for six years,” Hutton said. “There’s a lot of voter turnout, a lot of first-time voters, younger voters. I think it’s over 1,000 so far. It’s been out the door since a quarter to 6, but we’re getting them in pretty fast.”
Hall said there have been no breaks in the line of voters.
— Andy Bell-Baltaci
Decades of voting, and this stands out
Jim and Wilma Waters are a combined 168 years old and have been voting in every major election since they were both 18.
“The turnout is more robust today,” Wilma Waters said, while waiting in line at Grace United Methodist Church in Franklin. “We expected to walk right in, but we’re in a line with a 45-minute wait.”
Jim Waters said the issues he most cares about include the economy, immigration and healthcare. Wilma Waters said healthcare for seniors is the biggest topic on her mind.
— Andy Bell-Baltaci
Excitement in the air
Franklin School Board candidate Ryan Waggoner sensed excitement in the air since he arrived at Grace United Methodist Church when voting started at 6 a.m.
“There’s excitement; people on both sides of the aisle are excited and motivated,” Waggoner said.
Waggoner, standing outside the entrance to the church in a shirt with his name on it, greeted voters as they entered the line and began their wait.
“I’ve never seen the line this long at Grace,” Waggoner said. “People are waiting an hour or more to vote. People are really enthusiastic and want to see some form of change in our government. That’s the impression I’m getting.”
— Andy Bell-Baltaci
‘I’ve never seen anything like this’
Long-time Johnson County poll worker Allen Distler said this election is one for the record books. He had already reached that conclusion by 7:30 a.m. at The Nest Event Center in Greenwood.
He’s been an inspector for more than three decades. He’s manned several elections and several vote centers over the years. This year, they were all the same — busy.
“The thing about this year is it’s constant. You have 15 to 20 people waiting at all times. The number of people and the long lines — it’s everywhere,” Distler said.
“I’ve never seen anything like this, even in a presidential.”
The question of whether people would show up on Election Day after such a busy early voting season was never a question for Distler, he said.
“Of course they’ll show up. I don’t have any doubt it’ll be just like this the rest of the day,” Distler said.
— James Vaughn
Getting older
About half of The Nest’s 20 voting machines weren’t up and running by 6:15 a.m. — 15 minutes after the polls opened.
The lines were long — more than 100 people deep before the doors even opened and growing by the minute.
Inspector Allen Distler was working to get all of the machines booted up, but they’re old and it takes time, he said.
Some people in the long line had started grumbling, but he was going as fast as he could, he said.
“It takes about 3 minutes each one,” Distler said. “We were here early. All of them should be good to go in the next 15 minutes or so.”
By 6:45, all of the machines were up and running and the line started moving a little faster.
“People expect delays. Most people are very cooperative,” he said.
Crystal Brooks, 22, of Greenwood, didn’t mind the 45-minute wait, even though it was longer than she thought it would be.
“I guess everyone’s going right before work. I should’ve assumed a longer wait,” Brooks said.
“I don’t mind waiting. I’m just glad I get to do it.”
She hopes the heavy turnout in this election is a sign of what’s to come, she said.
“This one influences a lot of policies, and people are especially divided right now. I think more than ever, people need their voices to be heard,” Brooks said.
— James Vaughn
There’s just something about Election Day
A 77-year-old Greenwood man was the first in line at The Nest Event Center on Tuesday morning.
Dean Prine got there at 5:30 a.m., just like he does every year, he said.
He thought the line would be outside by then, but was pleasantly surprised when he realized he was among the first to show up.
He’s voted at the event center for years, he said — always on Election Day.
It gives him more time to analyze the candidates and think, he said.
“I like to watch the situation with the candidates play out. You should vote, but you should know the candidates and how they voted in the past, not just pay attention to what somebody’s telling you. I’m voting for our country, not a politician,” said Prine, a military veteran.
“And I’m American. Americans should vote on Election Day.”
Voter turnout so far this year surprised Prine, who said he’s voted in past midterm elections when he’d walk into a vote center and walk right back out. But not this one.
Numbers are up significantly from the last midterm election. In fact, nearly 24,000 Johnson County voters have already cast ballots.
“I hope this straightens up our country,” Prine said.
— James Vaughn
