BRIGHT AND EARLY: Voting opens for general election

October 13, 2022

3624

129909498_web1_20221012dr-early-voting2 — Linda Young casts her votes for the upcoming election. Today was the first day for early voting. Hancock County residents can now vote at the Annex Building across from the Hancock County Courthouse. Wednesday, Oct 12, 2022.

HANCOCK COUNTY – The county’s early-voting center drew over 40 ballots in its opening 60 minutes Wednesday, according to election officials.

“That’s great for the first hour,” Hancock County Clerk Lisa Lofgreen said.

She hopes the trend continues as early voting remains available throughout the month and expands to other locations in the coming weeks before Election Day on Nov. 8.

“We’re hopeful that we’ll have a better turnout for the general than we did for the primary, because it was low,” Lofgreen said.

Out of nearly 60,000 registered voters in the county, just under 8,700 cast ballots for the May contests.

Lofgreen recalled that over 30,000 Hancock County voters participated in the 2018 midterm general election. But there were more races for county positions, she noted, including among judges, who are elected every six years.

“I would love to hit that number or higher,” she said. “We certainly anticipate higher numbers than in the spring, but because of the number of contests, we probably won’t be as big as we were in the ‘18 general.”

1 of 4

This time around, there are only local races for a county council seat, three Buck Creek Township Advisory Board positions, two McCordsville Town Council seats and school board seats for Mt. Vernon and Southern Hancock.

Uncontested county positions include prosecutor, clerk, auditor, recorder, sheriff, surveyor, assessor, a commissioner seat and three council seats. Besides the Buck Creek Township Advisory Board, no other county township positions are contested. Both Fortville Town Council seats up for election are uncontested. For school boards, two Greenfield-Central seats, two Eastern Hancock seats and one Southern Hancock seat are uncontested as well.

But there are plenty of contests for state and federal positions, Lofgreen noted, that she anticipates will interest voters. Those include roles in the national and state legislatures as well as Indiana secretary of state, auditor and treasurer.

The county’s early voting center is located in the Hancock County Courthouse Annex, 111 American Legion Place, Greenfield. It’s open 11 a.m to 7 p.m. weekdays through Nov. 4 and will have hours on a couple upcoming Saturdays and the Monday before Election Day as well.

Lofgreen said registered voters will need to have a photo ID that hasn’t expired earlier than the date of the last general election – Nov. 2, 2021.

If a voter’s address has changed from the one on their ID, they’ll still be able to vote, but will have to complete a form to update their address.

Equipment that vote center workers use will indicate what precinct a voter is in and supply the appropriate ballot. After it’s completed, the voter places the ballot in a provided envelope, signs the envelope and drops it in a locked box.

Lofgreen urged voters to remember to sign their envelopes. If any are discovered unsigned, the county sends the voter notice and a remedy process is available to them, however.

At the end of each evening, vote center workers count the ballots to ensure the total matches the number of check-ins.

“And if there’s not a right number, for whatever reason, we figure it out before they leave,” Lofgreen said. “The absentee (voting) team is not allowed to leave the center until we know that that count is right, or that we’re able to explain it.”

Usually a difference between totals results from one or more provisional ballots being issued that day, she continued.

After that, ballots get locked, under bipartisan control, into a transport case. That case is then locked into another case, also under bipartisan control, as it’s only able to be accessed via two locks, the keys for which are held by the vote center’s Republican inspector and Democratic judge.

“It requires both of them to be there to be able to get back into the case,” Lofgreen said.

Per state election regulations, vote center inspectors belong to the same political party of the Indiana secretary of state, while vote center judges must belong to the opposite party.

Registered Hancock County voters can also take part in absentee mail-in voting. The deadline for applications is Oct. 27, and directions are available at hancockin.gov/203/Election-Office.

2022 general election voting locations

Hancock County Annex, 111 American Legion Place, Greenfield

11 a.m.-7 p.m. weekdays Oct. 12-Nov. 4