Throughout the day on Tuesday, Daily Journal reporters were canvasing the county to see what was driving voters to the polls, what their experiences were and what turnout was like for the primary election.
These are the stories we found.
Slow, wet start
More than a dozen people trickled into The Nest Event Center early Tuesday to cast their ballots.
Despite the rainy start, Katrina Sison of Greenwood was the first person to vote, after waiting outside for five minutes before the polls opened.
For Sison, voting is fundamental. She has voted in every election since 1982, when she first turned 18. Even before she cast her vote Tuesday, she was thinking ahead to her next one.
“I’ve been here every election. In 2024, I’m going to be here too,” Sison said.
Like Sison, Kathleen Herald of Greenwood has voted in almost every election. Voting is very important for Herald for several reasons. The first is because women earned the right to vote, so it’s important for her to do so.
The second is because of how crucial it is for voters to make sure that the people who get into office will do the right things for the country. Voters have to do research on candidates’ backgrounds and not just take things at face value, Herald said.
“You vote for who you think is right for the job,” she said.
Herald was excited to be among the first people to vote this morning. She was happy to exercise one of her freedoms: the right to vote, she said.
“I love this country and I want it to go in a good direction,” Herald said.
Driven by the issues
Voters came in at a steady hum at the White River branch of the Johnson County Public Library Tuesday in Greenwood.
Greenwood resident Patrick Lomstead Sr. has voted for as long as he could remember, he said. Whenever there’s an election, people need to exercise their right to vote. If you don’t vote, then you can’t complain about who’s in office, Lomstead said.
Jayne Walters of Greenwood said voting went smoothly for her, though she was disappointed there weren’t as many Democratic candidates on the ballot as previous years.
Voting is important to Walters because it can lead to change, and positive change is needed, she said. While she votes in every election, this election was especially important due to recent talk about banning books and materials relating to LGBTQ issues, Walters said.
“These are important to me as a librarian, an Indy Pride board member, and as a resident,” Walters said.
In the past, Walters favorite parts of voting have been bringing her daughter with her to vote and teaching her how important it is. Now her daughter is grown and votes on her own, she said.
“Teaching that is important. (Election Day) needs to be a national holiday, so no one has to worry about working,” Walters said.
Local races tops in Bargersville
About 190 voters had cast ballots by 11 a.m. at Bargersville Town Hall. With a town council race on the ballot and several town residents up for election in other offices, there was a lot to draw people to vote this year.
The town hall vote center had been busy all morning long, said Ruth Ann Moore, election inspector for the site.
Hyper-local races such as the town council race in Bargersville and the referendum in Edinburgh seem to be increasing turnout in small towns, Moore said. The excitement for local races was apparent at Bargersville town hall on Election Day and at the community center in Edinburgh last week, she said.
All three town council candidates were at town hall campaigning, along with Bargersville resident Scott Strother, a Republican who was in the running for Indiana House District 47.
When the rain started up candidates donned rain gear and took shelter under tents and vehicle hatchbacks.
Bargersville resident Lena Earl turned out to vote this year to voice her opinion on how the country, county and town should be run. Like she does every election, she read up on the candidates and voted for who she thinks will do the best job.
“I think our nation is in such a place that we need to support the people that we think will make our country better,” Earl said.
Another Bargersville resident, Kandeena Rumell, was motivated to vote this year to make sure incumbents who are doing a good job in office remain there, she said.
“We need to get some people re-elected, so I want to do my part,” Rumell said. “We need to get good people elected to do what is best for our community.”
Edinburgh residents vote to support schools
With a referendum and possibly the future of Edinburgh Community Schools on the line, the pair of Edinburgh High School graduates with deep ties to the school district wanted to do their part to make sure the property tax hike passed.
Edinburgh residents Robin Bennett and Carrie Palmeter both cast their votes for the measure at about 12:30 p.m., hopeful they would help the referendum pass.
“I am a 1996 graduate and my oldest daughter is a graduate and we want to see the referendum pass,” Bennett said. “This is for allowing the schools to stay open. I have a younger child in the first grade and want to see her graduate from here. The school is a big part of my family, and I would like to see that continue.”
Palmeter also has a daughter who graduated from Edinburgh High School.
“We just want to keep the schools open,” Palmeter said. “We graduated together and our daughters graduated together and all of our families graduated from here. We wanted the schools here to stay open.”
Ernest Smith, an Edinburgh resident and 1975 high school graduate, said he comes out to vote every year, but he was happy to vote this year to secure the district’s future.
“I’d like to see the school continue to go,” Smith said. “I have a son who will graduate in 2025 and I graduated in 1975 and I’d like to see it continue. I’ve been voting since I was 18. It’s just as important to support your community and vote and keep things afloat in your home town as it is in the whole country. I like to do my part either way.”
Voting a priority for World War II vet
Throughout the course of 80 years, he’s made sure to never miss an election.
Centenarian Gordon Dunn, a World War II veteran who is looking forward to turning 101 next month, arrived at the polls at about 2:45 p.m., and was able to vote within a few minutes of his arrival.
“We’re citizens of this country and we gotta vote. It’s up to us to select who we want; it’s very important, especially in this day and age,” Dunn said. “It’s exercising our privilege. We’re selecting the people we want to represent us.”
Election inspector Richard Wertz said turnout at Franklin’s community center was poor before 9:30 a.m., when the rain stopped, but picked up significantly afterwards, as poll workers counted 356 voters by noon.
First time voting a success
Jude Barger had finally reached the legal voting age.
Nothing was going to prevent him from exercising his right to vote for the first time ever.
“I wanted to come out and help the community out by casting my vote. I believe everyone should vote. It’s a natural right we have in a democracy, and everyone should do it,” said the 18-year-old Whiteland resident.
The county prosecutor race was the initial race that caught Barger’s eye, as it was one of the most important and hotly contested in the county. But with a variety of contested races on the ballot, he was sure to do his research and learn about the other candidates and offices up for grabs.
“It helped draw me in, and I learned there were a bunch of other things I had to vote for. So I had to learn about all of those different races up for the midterm and get my vote in, to make it matter,” he said.
Walking out of the polling place, Barger proudly sported his “I Voted” sticker. His experience had been an easy one.
“I was nervous at first, but they make it really easy. You just come in, give them your information, and they tell you want to do. It was a lot easier than I thought,” he said.
And though this was his first opportunity to vote, he is committed to continuing it each election cycle.
“I feel like it’s a big part of what everyone should do,” he said.
