County Council approves first deputy for elections position in clerk office

MUNCIE, Ind. − Delaware County Council unanimously approved appropriating $37,100 Tuesday to fund a position in the county clerk office to help oversee election operations.

County Clerk Rick Spangler made the request after mentioning the need for the position during budget time last year. He was told then to come back to the council after the first of 2023.

Spangler's office provides services to local courts, and the clerk has a first deputy who directs those activities. The first deputy for elections would oversee the Election Room at the County Building and be in charge of the voter registration office.

Spangler said that, considering all of the election related changes taking place, he will need help handle all the election-related issues while also maintaining his other duties as clerk.

The clerk said he will likely name the new deputy clerk in February.

The county council also threw its support behind the effort to bring vote centers to county elections Tuesday.

By a 7-0 vote, the council adopted a resolution endorsing Delaware County as a vote center county. The request for the endorsement came from Spangler, who has also gotten the support from county commissioners to proceed with bringing voter centers to Delaware County.

The county election board will meet Friday at noon this week after also meeting Tuesday to consider sites for the vote centers. The meeting will be on the second floor of the County Building in a conference room.

On Tuesday the election board received a list of voting sites from Democrat County Chairman Ana Quirk Hunter. Republican County Chairman Ed Carroll had already summitted a list the previous week. At this point there are 21 sites under consideration for use in a countywide election.

Spangler said the various sites under consideration are being checked for wifi service needed for the polling places. Southside Middle Schoo0l is being considered as a likely polling place because a vote center could be placed there and remain separate from the building containing students and classrooms.

The Board is also discussing using the Delaware County Fairgrounds as an additional early voting site. All early voting in the past has occurred in the County Building downtown.

Spangler said the vote center plan must be advertised 30 days before the final vote to adopt the plan.

In other business at the county council meeting Tuesday, County Coroner Gavin Greene appeared and told the council he plans to provide them with a monthly report on activities of his office.

In the first few week of 2023, Greene said there were 58 coroner cases and 10 cases involving an autopsy. There were also four suicides in the county since the beginning of the month.

"That's kind of stunning," the coroner said.

This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: County Council approves first deputy for elections in clerk office