Tuesday is the day for voters to make their voices heard.
From 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday, Johnson County voters will cast ballots to select candidates in multiple contested races at the local, state and federal level.
Locally, voters have choices to make for some of the county’s largest school districts whose school board seats are all contested. Center Grove has eight candidates running for three at-large seats and Greenwood has four candidates running for two at-large seats.
For Clark-Pleasant school board, three candidates are running for two Clark Township seats and four candidates are running for one Pleasant Township seat. For Franklin Schools’ Needham Township seat, two candidates are facing off on Tuesday.
White River Township Trustee is contested, along with township boards in Clark, Pleasant and White River townships. All seats on the Franklin Union Needham Township board are contested, and two candidates are facing off for each township’s single seat.
Two contested Indiana statehouse races are on the ballot for Tuesday. Republican incumbent Rep. Peggy Mayfield is facing a challenge from Democrat Kathy Thorpe in Indiana House District 60. In the Indiana Senate, Republican incumbent Sen. Greg Walker is facing a challenge from Democrat Bryan Muñoz in District 41.
Other state races include Secretary of State — where voters will choose between Republican Diego Morales, Democrat Destiny Wells and Libertarian Jeffrey Maurer — and Auditor of State — Republican Tera Klutz, Democrat ZeNai Brooks and Libertarian John Andrew Shick. Voters will also choose a new state treasurer as Republican Daniel Elliot faces Democrat Jessica McClellan.
There also is the race for Indiana’s Sixth Congressional District, where Republican incumbent Rep. Greg Pence is facing a challenge from Democrat Cynthia “Cinde” Wirth. In the U.S. Senate, voters will choose between Republican incumbent Sen. Todd Young, Democrat Thomas McDermott Jr., and Libertarian James Sceniak.
There are two judicial retention questions on the ballot as well for the Indiana Court of Appeals.
Uncontested local races include most county offices, including prosecutor, clerk, auditor, sheriff, county council and county commissioner District 2. All township trustees, with the exception of White River Township, are uncontested, along with township boards for Blue River, Hensley and Nineveh townships.
Voters will also elect town council members for Bargersville, Edinburgh and New Whiteland, though none of these races are contested. School board elections for Edinburgh, Nineveh-Hensley-Jackson’s Hensley Township, Franklin’s Needham Township and Greenwood’s District 2 seats are uncontested too.
Statehouse races for Districts 47, 57 and 58 are uncontested as well.
A total of 19 vote centers will open in churches, libraries and government buildings across the county, giving voters many options to cast their votes. One notable change is the removal of The Nest Event Center as a vote center after the facility moved out of Johnson County. Greenwood Bible Baptist Church will replace it as a vote center.
County residents may use any vote center in the county. More than 280 poll workers will be staffed to check in voters and guide them through the voting process, said Trena McLaughlin, county clerk.
This year 17,569 people cast their vote through in-person early voting by close of early voting at noon Monday — a 15% turnout. Another 3,471 voters had returned mail-in ballots by Monday afternoon, with 433 ballots outstanding, McLaughlin said.
In this election, McLaughlin expects the turnout to be more than 12% voter turnout officials saw in the primary, based on what officials have seen so far and the number of contested races. In 2018, there was 50% turnout, and McLaughlin expects total turnout to be between 35-40% for Tuesday, she said.
“I don’t know if we’re gonna make 50%, but we are going to at least make 35-40%,” she said.
She also expects the White River Township branch of the Johnson County Public Library and Mt. Pleasant Christian Church to be among the busiest vote centers in the county.
There was a last-minute rush of voters before early voting ended on Monday, with 425 voters casting a vote at the Johnson County Courthouse — the only early voting site open on Monday. The last voter waited in line for an hour and cast their vote an hour after early voting ended, McLaughlin said.
The White River library branch had the largest single-day early voting numbers on Nov. 4, with 1,027 voters casting a ballot. The same day the courthouse vote center had its largest single-day, with 528 votes being cast, she said.
McLaughlin encourages voters to remember to bring a state-issued driver’s license or ID to the polls. Other forms of acceptable identification include passports, military IDs or an ID from a state-funded college.
If voters are at a location with a long line, they should call the Johnson County Voter Registration Office at 317-736-3798. Office staff will tell voters where other voting centers are located, McLaughlin said.
ELECTION DAY VOTE CENTERS
Here is a look at where you can cast your ballot in person from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday:
- Amity Volunteer Fire Department, 3247 S. County Road 550 East, Franklin
- Bargersville Town Hall, 24 N. Main Street, Bargersville
- Clark Pleasant Public Library, 350 Clearwater Boulevard, Whiteland
- Community Church of Greenwood (Main Entrance Foyer), 1477 W. Main St., Greenwood
- Franklin Community Center, 396 Branigin Boulevard and State Street, Franklin
- Grace Assembly of God, 6822 U.S. 31 North, New Whiteland
- Grace United Methodist Church, 1300 E. Adams Drive, Franklin
- Greenwood Bible Baptist Church, 1461 Sheek Road, Greenwood
- Greenwood Christian Church, 2045 Averitt Road, Greenwood
- Greenwood Public Library (East door), 310 S. Meridian St, Greenwood
- John R. Drybread Community Center, 100 E. Main Cross St., Edinburgh
- Mt. Auburn Methodist Church, 3100 W. Stones Crossing Road, Greenwood
- Mt. Pleasant Christian Church, 381 N. Bluff Road, Greenwood
- Rocklane Christian Church, 4430 Rocklane Road, Greenwood
- Princes Lakes Town Hall, 14 E. Lakeview Drive, Nineveh
- Scott Hall, Johnson County Fairgrounds, 250 Fairground St., Franklin
- Trafalgar Public Library, 424 S. Tower St., Trafalgar
- White River Public Library, 1664 Library Boulevard, Greenwood
- White River Township Trustee’s Office, 2929 S. Morgantown Road, Greenwood
READ OUR CANDIDATE INTERVIEWS
Before you vote, go online to check out our interviews with candidates. We spoke with candidates in several contested races, and asked others to answer questionnaires on key issues facing the state, county, townships and school boards.
All of our election coverage can be found online at dailyjournal.net/local/election-2022/.
ELECTION CENTRAL
Stay in the loop. Get the latest vote totals Tuesday on our website: dailyjournal.net.
TELL US YOUR STORY
Let us know how voting goes for you. Lines wrapped around the building? Didn’t have the correct ID? End up at a vote center that’s closed this election? Call us at 317-736-2774 or email [email protected].
