160,000 ballots processed by 8:30 p.m. despite poll worker shortage

Marion County election officials managed to process a record number of ballots on Tuesday night despite a shortage of available staff. The surge in voter turnout outpaced the initial number of volunteers who signed up to work the polls.

Dan Goldblatt, the spokesperson for the Marion County Election Board, explained that finding enough workers for a Tuesday morning shift proved difficult. Many residents were already working their regular day jobs. Goldblatt noted that the board had to make a last-minute plea to local residents to fill the gaps in staffing.

The response to that call allowed the team to finish the initial count well ahead of schedule. The board had projected that the process would continue until midnight or 1 a.m. Instead, volunteers completed their shifts by 8:30 p.m. Goldblatt described this as a record time for handling such a large volume of ballots.

The numbers for the election show a strong participation rate. Forty-one percent of registered voters cast ballots. More than 88,000 people voted in person during the early voting period. On Election Day itself, another 160,000 people submitted their ballots.

As of Wednesday, the board reported that 99% of all votes had been processed. Goldblatt said this level of completion allows candidates to determine the likely outcomes of the races. He emphasized that the remaining few thousand votes are still being handled by bipartisan teams. These teams are reviewing ballots that machines could not read, often due to damage or smudges.

The remaining 1% of ballots are not provisional votes. They are standard ballots that require manual review. Goldblatt clarified that the state has ten days from the election date to certify the final results. The board is currently preparing for the next election scheduled for May and welcomes new volunteers to join the process.