Live coverage: Follow along on Primary Election Day 2022 in Monroe County

The polls closed in Monroe County at 6 p.m. and the first vote totals are in. Visit our election returns page for the latest.

6:30 p.m.: Polls closed, ballots being counted

It was pouring heavy rain at 5 p.m. outside the Family Worship Center in Washington Township this Election Day. It wasn't going to keep 65-year-old Vic Stelzner from the polling site.

"I always vote, every election, since I was 18," she said, standing beneath the church awning, her pink pussycat hat protecting her head. "The more people who come out to vote, the better. My husband's here, too."

Lindsey Smith had been at the voting site since noon, handing out fliers in support of Monroe County Sheriff candidate Ruben Marte, one of five seeking the Democratic nomination. He said voters had trickled in throughout the day.

"I'm disappointed in the overall turnout. I thought it would have been better," he said. Smith is Black and a retired U.S. military officer.

"I always participate in the election," he said. "It's one of the most important civic duties. People don't understand that they can be involved in selecting the people who can do the best to represent you."

Clerk Nicole Browne said about 12% of registered Monroe County voters cast ballots in Tuesday's election. A total of 12,493 people voted, 9,060 of them on Tuesday.

Indiana primary results: Get Bloomington, statewide results live here

5:30 p.m.: Polls closing in 30 minutes

Polls will close soon. Monroe County Clerk Nicole Browne reported as of 5 p.m., about 11 percent of eligible voters have cast a ballot this primary election. Anyone standing in line when the polls close at 6 p.m. will be allowed to vote.

3 p.m.: R-BB voting turnout 'pretty good for a primary'

A young woman hesitantly approached the ballot box at St. John the Apostle Catholic Church.

“Just slide it in there and wait for the flag. It’ll kick out real quick if you did something wrong,” inspector Ron Andrews told the woman. “There you go. And now you can have a sticker.”

About 400 people had already voted at the church just outside of Ellettsville, which houses five precincts.

“That’s pretty good for a primary,” said Andrews, who has been an inspector since the early 1980s. “We’ve had a pretty steady stream all day. One primary we had less than 100 total. It only had 1 or 2 precincts, but it was pretty dismal.”

As of 2 p.m., 8,957 voters had cast a ballot, representing 9% of all registered Monroe County voters, Monroe County Clerk Nicole Browne said. Other polling locations had less luck — only 19 people had voted at the Indiana Memorial Union with four hours left to vote.

Andrews became an inspector shortly after he finished school because it was easy and gave him a little extra spending money. Throughout the years, he’s stayed because of all the people he gets to meet and help.

“I only missed, I think, once or twice in primaries,” he said. “I think I hit all the generals.”

Not much about his job has changed throughout the years besides the efficiency of ballot counting, which now includes sleeker machines than the previous “big blue monsters,” he said.

Although the polling location had five sign-in tablets, there were only enough volunteers to consistently cover two.

“We’re definitely going to need more volunteers come November,” he said.

1:05 p.m.: Voting goes 'steady,' has some precinct confusion

Despite a slow start and stormy skies, voting at the former NAPA store has been steady.

Inspector Susan Snider Salmon said the location's first voter arrived a little after 6 a.m. The rainy weather this morning caused some lulls at the site, but poll workers also have experienced a few surges —with the busiest times being right before 8 a.m. and the lunch hour so far.

This polling site, which houses seven precincts, has four judges, two for each political party, and six clerks. Prior to Election Day, the site was used for early voting, which has caused minor confusion for some voters.

According to Salmon, there were some voters who had arrived at the site who then had to be rerouted to their correct precinct. Salmon said she and other poll workers have been there to assist every voter who has experienced any issue so far.

"There's always glitches," Salmon said. "But it's about how you respond to those glitches and make sure people can vote."

Jeannine Bell brought her daughter, Ella, along when she voted at the NAPA building polling site. Bell said she votes in every election and tries to bring along her young family when she can.

"People died for my right to vote," Bell said.

Bell, who is a law professor at Indiana University Maurer School of Law, said she was most interested in the judge's Democratic primary race. The candidates are all IU graduates, including at least one that is a former student of hers, Bell said.

Bell noted that voting is "sacred" and everyone should exercise their right to vote if they can.

11:15 a.m.: What's happening at Election Central?

In an effort to have as many poll workers as possible, Monroe County Clerk Nicole Browne and Chief Deputy Clerk Tressia Martin spent Monday night training more workers. Even so, Martin said they cut 73 poll worker positions for this primary election.

"We thank every poll worker who showed up today," Browne said.

There are 28 polling sites open in Monroe County for the primary election. That's fewer than in past years, with several having to merge, including the seven precincts voting today at the former NAPA store, where early voting was conducted.

With stormy weather and no presidential election, Browne understands there will be fewer voters this year. At 10:45 a.m., Browne said 2,793 people have voted. That's 6% of eligible voters.

"I'm certainly hopeful we grow that number," Browne said. "This is pretty low."

It's not only the number of voters on Election Day that is down. In 2020, which was a presidential election year, Monroe County had 26,000 mail-in ballots returned. For Tuesday's election, 1,025 mail-in ballots were returned.

One reminder: Election Central is not a place for everyone to vote. To find where you should vote, go to https://indianavoters.in.gov/.

10:40 a.m.: 5% of Monroe County voters have cast ballots

After a communication problem between Election Central and the polling location at Southside Christian Church was resolved, Monroe County Clerk Nicole Browne reported voters have been casting ballots at that location.

As of 10:30 a.m., 2,269 voters had cast ballots in person. The busiest polling place is St. John's Church, 4607 W. Ind. 46, where 170 people have voted. The Indiana Memorial Union on the IU campus is the slowest polling place, with just eight people voting there since the polls opened.

Browne also reminds voters they must go to their polling place today, not the downtown location where early voting was held. Between early and Election Day voting, about 5% of registered voters in Monroe County have participated in this primary election.

7:20 a.m.: Bloomington High School South polling site

The first two voters for Perry 10 voted a little after 7 a.m. in the school's ground-floor atrium. Kurt Seiffert, inspector for the site, said there had only been about 20 to 25 people voting earlier in the morning.

Sieffert, who has worked the polls for the past 30 years, said in the 2020 presidential elections there were 30-40 people waiting for the doors to open at 6 a.m. On Tuesday there was one person waiting to be let into the school to vote.

Because there were fewer volunteers working Tuesday at the Monroe County polls, there are only three clerks — two Republican and one Democrat. In order to better serve voters, the Democratic clerk will sit between the others and help with both check-in stations until the polls close at 6 p.m., Sieffert said.

Sieffert credited county clerk Nicole Browne for improving the voting system in Monroe County. He believes the system used this year is better than previous elections, saying, "The county clerk has done a fantastic job of lessening the load the inspector and clerks have."

Browne sent an email at 6:57 a.m. that said all polling sites opened without issue and that no one had yet voted at Southside Christian Church and Christ Community Church.

Browne also stated that 3,433 Monroe County voters participated in early voting, which ended at noon Monday.

2022 Indiana Primary Election information

Where do I vote today?

Voters can find their polling place by visiting https://indianavoters.in.gov/. They can also check their registration status before heading to the polls.

What kind of ID do I need to vote?

Indiana requires voters to present ID when casting a ballot. For more information about acceptable forms of identification, visit https://www.in.gov/sos/elections/voter-information/photo-id-law/

When are polls open on Election Day?

The polls will be open in Monroe County today from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Monroe County and Indiana primary election 2022 live updates, results