HANCOCK COUNTY — With only one vote center still outstanding and the majority of early votes and mail-in votes counted, Hancock County Clerk Marcia Moore amended her expectation of a late night.
Initial voter turnout was counted at 29,155, officials said; some 13,300 votes were entered on Tuesday. Moore had anticipated a long night of waiting on vote counts earlier because of the time it takes to count mailed-in ballots, but said at about 8 p.m. that all early votes and most absentee ballots were tallied.
EARLIER:
7 p.m.:
County clerk Marcia Moore told a crowd of about 100 people gathered at the Hancock County Courthouse Annex to prepare for a long night shortly before 7 p.m. Tuesday.
County officials were still counting absentee ballots by the time polls closed at 6 p.m., she said; officials made a decision not to post any election results until the absentee votes were completely tabulated.
Moore said more Hancock County residents voted Tuesday than voted on Election Day in the 2016 presidential election.
“We’ve been spoiled with the vote centers and getting out of here at 7:30 p.m. before,” she said. “It’s not going to be an early night tonight.”
3 p.m:
With three hours before polls close, more than 9,000 Hancock County voters have already cast ballots on Election Day — bringing the total number of voters to nearly 25,000, according to county election officials.
The heavy turnout was evident in northwestern Hancock County. The line of voters remained steady from the morning until after lunchtime at McCordsville Town Hall, according to a campaigner for local Democrats, Linda Genrich. In Fortville, more than 600 people voted as of 1 p.m., said Randy Harrison, election inspector.
With early voting topping at 15,828, Harrison didn’t expect long lines, turnout similar to the 2016 presidential election. That year, Harrison said more than 1,000 voted in Fortville.
Local Republicans running in the two town council races, Bob Sterrett and Robert Holland, along with their supporters, were separated by a few hundred feet in the Fortville Community Center parking lot from Fortville Independents, led by council hopefuls Fritz Fentz and Becky Davis. Both camps offered warm food and refreshments for voters.
Larry Tuttle, born and raised in Fortville, came out to vote for Friz and Davis, saying they’ll bring a different voice to the town council. He said past elections for council have been fairly “cut and dry.” He’s glad there’s some competition for the growing Hancock County town.
Fortville resident Lucy Robie said she “objects” to early voting, saying casting her ballot on Election Day is her “personal responsibility” to the country. She wishes the country would “shut down” each Election Day so everyone can vote.
In McCordsville, the line stretched through the small town hall lobby and into the council chambers.Dave Bagnall, of McCordsville, said he’s voting on Election Day to support Libertarian candidates, adding Lucy Brenton, running in Indiana’s U.S. Senate race, is the third party’s top state candidate.
“I like to bring a third voice whenever I can,” Bagnall said.
1:30 p.m.: At Vineyard Church on Mt. Comfort Road, nearly 900 people had voted by 1:30 p.m., said election inspector Jim Sheets. Some residents saw long lines at the voting center throughout the morning, as volunteers’ electronic tablets were disconnecting from the main server, Sheets said.
Downtown Greenfield election officials worked with the vote center to correct the issue, which made it more difficult for volunteers to confirm voters’ addresses, he said.
“Normal operations are resuming,” Sheets said at about 1:25 p.m. “They’ve been working on it all morning, and we expect further progress.”
He said voters have been patient and gracious while the issues were worked around. The blue booths inside the church’s food pantry building were filled, but lines moved quickly.
“Everything went great, it was very smooth,” said Tyra Harris of Greenfield. “Everybody was very nice.”
Jo-Ann Haddix of Greenfield agreed, saying voting at the church was “easy and pleasant.”
Down the road about half a mile, the voting center at Adaggio’s Banquet Hall saw record numbers, said election inspectors Mike Wherry and Mike Wallpe.
Some 620 people had voted by 1 p.m., eclipsing the total of under 500 voters during the 2016 presidential election, Wallpe said. For the first half hour of voting, a long line trailed out the doors, but by 6:30 a.m. the line had shortened, Wherry said.
Wallpe said he was pleased to see a steady stream of voters all day.
“We haven’t had a chance to eat lunch yet, but when you spend all that time setting things up, that’s what you want to see,” he said.
9 a.m.: It’s been a slow but steady Election Day morning, those at the polls say.
A few cars dotted the parking lot of the Wilkinson Church of Christ early Tuesday as citizens of the quiet town and its surrounding area shuffled in to cast their votes before heading into work.
Across town and a few hours later, in the heart of Greenfield, a steady trickle of mid-morning voters flowed into the Hancock County Courthouse Annex and 4-H fairgrounds, not having to worry about the long lines early voters dealt with this week.
Outside the annex, Phil Miller of Greenfield held a sign for Mark Rutherford, the Libertarian party’s candidate for Indiana Secretary of State. He greeted those heading into the building to vote, thanked those who’d cast ballots for coming out, and even helped a woman with a walker climb safely into her car.
Miller often sits outside polling places on Election Day, he said. His adds an extra voice in the traditional mix of Democrats and Republicans.
“I’m a third party guy, so there’s no pressure,” he joked.
In Wilkinson, neighbors waved and smiled at each other as they passed on their way to the polls. Their town is one of those places in Hancock County where everybody seems to know each other, voters said.
Wendy Sheetz, who lives right outside of Wilkinson, said maintaining her home’s neighborly culture is important to her. But modern politics —even at the local level — has grown increasingly toxic as of late, and that has come to define this election.
“With the small-town values, I hate turning on the TV and seeing all these terrible commercials with everybody bashing each other,” Sheetz said. “It just gives you a bad feeling, and you don’t really want to vote for anybody.”
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Election Day voting is from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday at these locations:
Adaggios, 5999 Memory Lane, Greenfield
Bell Mortuary, 1512 W. U.S. 52, Finly
Brown’s Chapel Wesleyan Church, 994 N. 600 East, Greenfield
Cross of Grace Lutheran Church, 3519 S. 600 West, New Palestine
Fortville Community Center, 400 W. Church St., Fortville
Hancock County Annex, 111 American Legion Place, Greenfield
Hancock County Fairgrounds, 620 N. Apple St., Greenfield
Hancock County Public Library, 900 W. McKenzie Road, Greenfield
McCordsville Town Hall, 6280 W. 800 North, McCordsville
Ninestar Connect, 2331 E. 600 North, Greenfield
Vineyard Community Church, 1672 N. 600 West, Greenfield
Wilkinson Church of Christ, 7293 N. Indiana 109, Wilkinson
Source: Hancock County Election Office
