Four times as many Bartholomew County residents cast ballots on the first day of early voting this year compared to the last midterm election.
Tallies showed that 160 individuals cast their ballots on Wednesday at the Bartholomew County Courthouse. That’s up from 40 who did the same on the first day of early voting prior to the 2014 midterm election, county elections supervisor Shari Lentz said.
Although many local races are uncontested, there is intense public interest regarding the U.S. Senate battle between incumbent Democrat Joe Donnelly and GOP challenger Mike Braun, Bartholomew County Clerk Jay Phelps said.
“That’s where everyone wants to weigh in,” Phelps said. “The outcome might help decide which party, Democrat or Republican, controls the U.S. Senate after the election.”
In addition, the recent controversial hearings regarding new Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh has energized Republican and Democrat voters alike, the clerk said.
However, Phelps acknowledged that midterm elections tend to act as a referendum on the president, which can be bad news for the party that controls the White House.
One early voter said many political issues have an impact on her as a teacher and a woman.
“People are wanting their voices to be heard and their votes to count,” said Casey Boilanger of Hope. “It’s more important than ever to get out and vote in order to make a change.”
Another early voter, Suzie Rentschler of Hartsville, said she prefers casting her ballot early because it’s less of a hassle than waiting until Election Day.
“But I’m always interested in voting because I want to get good people in all levels of government who understand our needs and concerns,” Rentschler said.
Another potential indicator of a unusually high mid-term turnout is the 220 completed mailed ballots delivered to the courthouse Wednesday. That’s nearly two-and-a-half times more mail-in ballots than what was received on the same day four years ago, Lentz said.
While a variety of different reasons can be cited for the early voter enthusiasm, Lentz said not all are political.
Ever since Bartholomew County officials voted to implement vote centers in 2014, there has been significant growth in the number of voters who, like Rentschler, cite convenience as their main reason for casting early ballots, Lentz said.
“Our staff has been very busy,” Lentz said. “We are receiving a lot of phone calls from those interested in knowing where to vote and to ensure they are registered.”
For the next few weeks, early voting will be available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays at the courthouse only.
From Oct. 29 through Nov. 3, ballots can also be cast at:
Donner Center, 739 22nd St.
German American Bank, 2310 W. Jonathan Moore Pike.
Flintwood Wesleyan Church, 5300 25th St.
Weekday voting hours at the three satellite locations are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Oct. 29 to Nov. 2, with hours from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 3. The final opportunity for early voting will be from 8 a.m. until noon Nov. 5 at the courthouse only.
On Election Day, Nov. 6, there will be 18 different vote centers in Bartholomew County where ballots can be cast from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
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People who want to ensure they are registered to vote, or to see a sample ballot, can do so online by going to indianavoters.com.
When arriving at a vote center to cast ballots, voters will need a government-issued identification card, such as a driver’s license or passport, to cast a ballot.
Source: Bartholomew County Elections supervisor Shari Lentz.
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