Election Board places county vote center plan in hands of party chairmen

MUNCIE, Ind. − The Delaware County Election Board introduced a plan to create a vote center system of balloting in local elections beginning with Municipal elections in 2023.

The board voted unanimously to pass the plan onto county chairmen for the Republican and Democrat parties to evaluate before pressing ahead with the plan the change the way the county votes.

"This is the most significant change in election procedures the county has ever had," said local attorney Pete Drumm, who serves on the three-member board as the Republican representative.

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He said the entire effort to make the change, which is already in effect in 59 of Indiana's 92 counties, has been bipartisan in nature.

The plan, which County Clerk and board member Rick Spangler referred to as a draft subject to change, would allow any voter registered in Delaware County to vote at any one of 25 vote centers set up across the County. A voter's polling place would no longer be tied to a specific precinct where the voter lives. Technology now allows the proper ballot, based on a voter's residency, to be produced for the voter at any one of the county's voting centers.

"As voters check in at a vote center , the E-poll books across the county are instantaneously updated so that poll workers at every location know if a prospective voter has already cast a ballot at another location or has requested an absentee ballot," the plan said.

Spangler and Drumm said the vote centers allow for more convenience for voters, who could cast ballots at locations closer to their work or other places near where the voter would be on Election Day. But is is also less expensive and more efficient. For instance, this fall in the countywide election there will be 44 polling places each requiring a set of paid poll workers to conduct the election. That number would be reduced to 25.

Finding enough poll workers under the current system has been a struggle, Spangler said.

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The plan was based on research from two employees of the county clerk's office, Jessica Whitehead, deputy clerk, and Leisa Meer, Delaware County voter registration clerk. Both earned Certificates in Election Administration, Technology and Security at Ball State University this year and the plan was their capstone project. A committee of local officials also helped oversee the plan's development.

The 25 vote center locations proposed in the plan would include places like open retail space at Muncie two Walmart stores, the Muncie Mall, town halls in Daleville and Yorktown, fire departments in the county as well as assorted churches.

Criteria for the vote centers suggested included having a site that was along public transportation routes, was accessible for disabled people, was big enough to handle a large volume of people, was secure and had enough parking space for voters, according to the plan.

Meer said the locations also got the polling places out of schools, which has been a desire. Having the members of the public inside schools while classes were are in session has been a security concern.

"I like the idea," said Ed Carroll, Delaware County treasurer and the GOP county chairman. "It is hard to get poll workers to work."

Carroll and his Democratic counterpart, Ana Quirk Hunter, chairman of county Democrats, will review the plan and review and approve all vote center locations, according to the board. Hunter was not present at the Election Board meeting Monday. In the past she was voiced concern about reducing the number of polling places. The Board tentatively voted to meet again at 10 a.m. Sept. 15 in the County Building to hear feedback from the leaders of the local political parties.

Ashley Nelson, representative for the local Democratic Party on the board, said she believed that all the decisions by the board regarding vote centers, including those beyond the simple establishment of the centers will have to be unanimous. Drumm said the board attorney would review that question and report back.

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The plan discussed Monday also calls for two satellite vote centers to be set up in the county for early voting ahead of Election Day. At some point, a resolution must be adopted by county commissioners and county council that gives the election board authority to develop the vote center plan.

Spangler said that this is about the farthest along a plan has gotten in the 16 years vote centers have been thought about for Delaware County.

"A clerk would get people to the table but it always blew up because one side would think the other side would get an advantage," he said.

In other business, the election board voted to increase pay for election workers for the fall general election. Spangler said he was hopeful a raise would attract enough needed workers for the polling places and for the Election Room at the County Building downtown.

Election Room commissioner pay goes from $12 per hour to $15 per hour. Deputy Election Room commissioner goes $10 per hour to $12 per hour. Inspectors in charge of a precinct at a polling place on Election Day will be paid $125, up from $110. Pay for poll judges on Election Day goes from $95 to $110. Pay for other Election Day poll workers increases for $80 to $95.

This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Delaware County Election Board pushes vote centers to local parties