This story will be updated throughout the day with information on how voting is going around Johnson County. Voting is open today from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
5:20 p.m., Greenwood Public Library
The line snaked out of the polling place, down the hallway and outside the library as the evening rush picked up at Greenwood Public Library.
Voters had been flocking to the site all day long, said Chris Sifers, poll inspector.
“It’s been like this all day long,” he said.
By shortly after five, 1,112 people had come to the library to vote. With three contested Greenwood city council races, it was anticipated to be a big turnout.
Being in a central location also makes it popular, Sifers said.
“This site is the center of everything. If you live up by Marion County, you can come down here. If you live south, you can run up to here. We’re kind of that place. We catch all of the people from around here,” he said.
Despite the constant rush, everything had gone smoothly with the voting machines, Sifers said.
“No problems at all,” he said.
– Ryan Trares
4:40 p.m., Grace Assembly of God, Whiteland
Cheers rang out through the polling place at Grace Assembly of God when two voters walked through the doors in late afternoon.
It had been a slow day.
“There just hasn’t been anything to bring people out,” said poll inspector Garnet Whited.
Whited is a longtime poll worker, having covered four presidential elections as well as multiple primaries and general elections in between. He was still determining if he’d sign up again next year; while it would make his five presidential election, it’s a lot of work to do, he said.
Still, he enjoyed serving his community this way.
“It’s fun. You get to meet a lot of people, even if some people get mad at you,” he said.
– Ryan Trares
3:40 p.m., John R. Drybread Community Center, Edinburgh
Chickens were foremost on the mind of voter Donna Adams as she came to cast her vote Tuesday afternoon.
The Edinburgh resident had formerly kept five chickens, including a rooster, at her home for years. The town had no laws against it, and she never had any issues, until she was told the town council was planning to pass an ordinance against them.
“Even Columbus allows chickens in town. We should be allowed,” she said.
The ability to keep chickens within town limits has been a hot topic around Johnson County, with communities such as Whiteland and Bargersville grappling with the issue this past year. Adams would like to see the town council reconsider the issue, which is what motivated her to cast her vote for town council candidates.
“So now people are pretty mad about it,” she said.
Adams was concerned about other issues as well, but the overarching problem was the need for new leadership on the town council.
“I just believe we need some new people,” she said.
–Ryan Trares
3:20 p.m., John R. Drybread Community Center, Edinburgh
Inside one of Johnson County’s smaller vote centers, one or two voters at a time were coming through the door, even in mid-afternoon.
The turnout had been consistent throughout Election Day, said poll inspector Steve Tansy.
“We’ve been very busy today,” he said.
Close to 200 people had been to the polling place by 3 p.m. Tuesday, Tansy said. Edinburgh only had one contested race – the town council at-large race, where Republicans Jeff Simpson, Miriam Rooks and Sherri Sweet, and Independent Michael Bryant were vying for three open seats.
That race seemed to be driving turnout.
“We only have one race here, but there’s been a good turnout for it,” he said.
The vote center had not encountered any problems during the day Tuesday, though there was always the challenge of parts of the town being located in three counties. Often, someone living in either Bartholomew or Shelby counties would come to the downtown polling location, only to be told they had to vote in their own county, Tansy said.
— Ryan Trares
1:41 p.m. Clark-Pleasant Public Library
Voter turnout at the Clark-Pleasant Public Library has been higher than expected, the location yielding about 245 votes since this morning.
There was a short line outside of the library before voting opened.
The machines have been working well aside from one glitch that was quickly rectified.
“We’ve seen a lot of people come out to just see if they were even registered to vote,” said Damien Katt, election official.
Officials have also noticed a higher amount of younger people come out to vote, which was not expected, said poll worker Kevin Gaughan.
Voters haven’t expressed an interest in any specific candidate, but have accredited their votes toward it being their duty as a citizen of the United States.
There were no candidates soliciting their campaign, which Katt said was unusual.
The turnout is also nothing compared to the primary, Gaughan said. They did not get a break and the room was packed and required more machines. He said that he believes this is a popular place to vote because it is right off of U.S. 31.
—Waylon O’Donnell
12:46 p.m. Franklin Cultural Arts and Recreation Center
It has been a slow day at the Franklin Cultural Arts and Recreation Center. About 150 people have showed up since this morning to cast their votes.
It has been a steady trickle all day, said Richard Wertz, an election official. He attributes the turnout to the fact that the races in Franklin are uncontested.
Wertz said the new, larger machine cases are working great for voters as well.
“The new machines have been working excellently,” Wertz said. He said he’s noticed a difference in ADA voters specifically because they can roll their wheelchairs right up to each machine, as opposed to having a singular machine dedicated to ADA voters.
One of the machines had a minor glitch, but that was quickly rectified, he said.
Several voters said they came out to vote was because it was their civic duty to do so.
“I always come out to vote,” said Franklin citizen Richard Ryker. “The fact that I came out to vote makes a difference in the community.”
—Waylon O’Donnell
11:40 a.m. Greenwood Bible Baptist Church
Several voters expressed they came out today to ensure current Greenwood City Council members stay in office.
They were drawn out to vote for both the at-large race and the District 3 race, where Republican incumbent Michael Williams faces Democratic challenger Manjit Nagra.
Gerard Shepherd and Barbara White were a couple of those voters.
“We want to see the current Greenwood council stay intact. We like the way they’re doing things. We liked the growth in the area,” Shepherd said.
Williams has been campaigning at the church in the heart of District 3 this morning. Keeping in touch with constituents, not just on Election Day, but throughout his term has been a key goal for Williams, he said.
He keeps their opinions at the top of mind when casting his votes on the council, he said.
“When I first got elected I vowed I was gonna vote the way that my constituents wanted me to vote. And there’s been times I’ve voted ways that I didn’t even agree with but it’s like, well, that’s what my constituents have told me,” Williams said. “That’s our job, right?”
— Leeann Doerflein
11:34 a.m. Greenwood Bible Baptist Church
Voter turnout is a little better than Election Inspector Melody Quante expected at Greenwood Bible Baptist Church today. The day started with six people in line and voters have been coming in steadily all morning thereafter. When there’s been a line, it has been cut down quickly, she said.
David and Celia Dick were excited to exercise their right to vote today, they said.
“Well, we think it’s our civic duty. I’ve been a career missionary and I’ve been all around the world and there’s countries that fight for the right to vote,” David Dick said. “And so, you know, it means a lot to us to have the freedom to vote.”
— Leeann Doerflein
10:28 a.m. Bargersville Town Hall
All four town council at-large candidates are greeting voters at town hall this morning.
Republicans Ruth Ann Moore, Susie Qualls and James Rumell II are gathered in front of a fire truck right outside the vote center. They’re thanking people for voting, smiling, waving and chatting with voters.
They felt good about their chances after a solid effort campaigning.
“We made so many connections with people we were out campaigning. They really appreciated that we came out to knock on their doors,” Qualls said.
Being long-time residents and council members since 2020, campaigning is also a way to catch up with friends and neighbors.
“Being in the community so long, it’s just nice to see so many people out here,” Rumell said.
Democrat Blythe Potter is a short distance away greeting voters with a small group of friends. She woke up bright and early and came out wearing a purple campaign shirt that says “I heart Bargersville.”
She was a little anxious this morning but glad to connect with voters, she said.
The turnout has been steady with a short line forming around 9:30 a.m. but dissipating shortly after.
— Leeann Doerflein
9:52 a.m., White River Library, Greenwood
More than 159 voters have cast a ballot at the White River Township library.
Things at the polling site have run smoothly for the most part, said Heather Overton, election inspector. They did have one issue when they set up the voting machines first thing Tuesday morning, but it was something that was solved with one call to the Johnson County Courthouse, she said.
“It was just a small glitch,” Overton said.
A common theme for part of the morning was voters coming into vote only to discover they had nothing to vote for. Only voters who live within city or town limits are eligible to vote in this election.
“About 50% of our voters who come in are either unclear on whether they live within the city limits or they’re verifying what they saw online,” Overton said. “So a lot of people did the research and looked into where their addresses and if they had an election, but a lot of people come in just to double check, which is good. It shows that they want to be responsible voter.”
With the White River Library branch being close to the county line, they usually get some Marion County voters who try to vote here. Because the branch is also close to the edge of Greenwood city limits, there are also some people from unincorporated White River Township trying to vote but who are ineligible for this election, she said.
Despite the confusion, people have been very understanding and no one has been too frustrated, Overton said. During the primaries, election officials tried to explain the difference of a municipal election compared to a statewide election, she said.
“They seem very understanding with realizing, ‘OK. I just live outside the city limits.’ No one is thinking we’re trying to keep them from voting, which that’s always a concern,” she said. “So we’ve been trying to be really clear with our wording, that it’s not you, it’s your address and where you live.”
— Noah Crenshaw
8:35 a.m., White River Library, Greenwood
For first-time candidate Teri Manship, today is the day the Republican Greenwood City Council District 4 candidate will find out if she’ll be voted into office.
Manship feels anxious, but is excited to know the results, she said.
“This whole process is new to me,” Manship said. “But I’m anxious for it to get resolved, ready for it to be done and move on — whether I get the seat or not.”
Manship has been outside the White River branch of the Johnson County Public Library since polls opened at 6 a.m. There’s been a good amount of voters, she said.
“We’ve had a good showing of people that have been here. A line even when we got here,” Manship said.
So far 95 votes have been cast at the White River library, election officials said.
— Noah Crenshaw
8:20 a.m., Greenwood Public Library
Candidates were out in force at the Greenwood Public Library Tuesday.
7:40 a.m., Greenwood Public Library
An hour and a half after polls opened, at least 88 voters have cast ballots at the Greenwood Public Library.
The first hour saw 48 votes, but there was a rush around 7 a.m. where a few people had to briefly wait in line.
This year marks poll clerk Heather Johnson’s sixth year as a poll worker. Her husband, who is not at GPL, has been doing it for 20 years. It’s a family tradition.
“It’s been in the family, started with my husband’s dad, and then he decided to work,” Johnson said. “Then I married him and we started working together.”
Johnson enjoys working the polls, and even did a day working early voting at the White River Library, she said. Turnout has been about what she expected.
“It’s been steady. It’s been good,” she said.
This is poll clerk Carol Beasley’s second year as a poll worker in Johnson County, but her 17th overall. When she previously lived in South Dakota, she worked the polls for 15 years, she said.
She finds it fun, saying she enjoys meeting people while doing her patriotic duty as well, she said.
Beasley worked early voting at GPL, which was steady, but she said she didn’t really know what to expect in terms of turnout Tuesday.
“I’m surprised that we’ve had as many as we’ve had this morning,” she said.
— Noah Crenshaw
6:31 a.m., Greenwood Public Library
As the clock struck 6 a.m., one voter was in line to vote.
Tom Trotter, a veteran and Greenwood resident, cast his ballot in only a few minutes. The 61-year-old votes every time there’s an election — having voted since he was 18, he said.
He’s also usually one of the first people to vote when polls open.
“I’m usually in the first five or six here every time,” Trotter said. “And I still work for the federal government and I’m on my way to work now.”
It’s important for Americans to vote because it’s their right, and they need to do it every time they have an opportunity, he said.
A half hour after polls opened at 6 a.m., 24 people have voted at GPL.
— Noah Crenshaw
