Clerks report low turnout for early voting
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Several county clerks on Monday told News 8 turnout percentages were in the low single digits when early voting ended at noon.
Marion County Clerk Kate Sweeney Bell said nearly 12,000 people had cast early in-person ballots, equal to roughly 2% of Marion County’s total registered voters. She said that’s similar to the numbers Indiana’s most populous county logged in 2022.
“Generally, in presidential years, we would expect that number to be even higher,” she said.
Turnout was only somewhat higher in surrounding counties.
In Hamilton County, election administrator Beth Sheller said 11,248 people had cast early in-person ballots. Those numbers are similar to Marion County’s but Sheller said they work out to roughly 5.5% turnout due to Hamilton County’s lower population.
Monroe County, home to Bloomington and the Indiana University flagship campus, logged 5.2% turnout while fast-growing Hendricks County had 5%.
Tuesday’s primary features numerous key races. The headliner is the Republican primary for governor. Current Gov. Eric Holcomb is unable to run for another term due to term limits and has six Republicans competing to succeed him. The winner of that primary will face Democrat Jennifer McCormick, who is unopposed, and Libertarian Donald Rainwater, nominated at the state Libertarian Party convention earlier this spring.
Mike Braun is vacating his U.S. Senate seat to run for governor, so Rep. Jim Banks is leaving his U.S. House seat to seek a seat in the upper chamber.
Reps. Larry Bucshon and Greg Pence both are retiring, so crowded fields of Republican candidates are vying for a total of three open U.S. House seats.
In addition, Rep. Victoria Spartz faces multiple challengers in her bid for another term in Congress.
Rep. Rudy Yakym is the only unopposed Republican candidate for the U.S. House this month.
On the Democratic side, voters face contested primaries for the U.S. Senate and in all U.S. House races except the First, Second and Sixth Congressional districts. The primary also features numerous down ballot races including state legislative seats, county offices and convention delegates for both parties.
Bell, the Marion County clerk, said those down-ballot races are just as important as the headline races. “Each person on the ballot, those folks who get elected, they decide every part of your life. There are also on the ballot township advisory board races and that is about as local as you can get.”
For Thelma Baker, there was no question of voting. Baker, who is Black, says she still remembers the barriers to voting her mother faced before the Civil Rights Movement. She says voting is critical if you want to affect issues you see in your community. Baker cast her ballot at the City-County Building about an hour and a half before early voting ended.
“They had so many barriers and so many things you had to go through to vote during that time,” she recalled. “I want to vote every chance I get.”
Polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. local time on Tuesday. A government-issued photo ID is required to vote. Bell said a driver’s license, passport or military ID are acceptable, as is a student ID issued by a state university such as IU or Purdue. If you don’t have an acceptable form of ID, all BMV branches will be open until 8 p.m. Monday and from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. local time Tuesday. Anyone who is at least 18 years old and can provide proper documentation can get a free non-driver photo ID.
Bell says people can get an ID card at the BMV and cast a ballot on the same day. Also, a provisional ballot can be cast, but Bell says provisional ballots will not be counted if the voter cannot provide proper ID within 10 days.