A roundup of what was happening Tuesday as city residents went to the polls to select members of the next Columbus City Council.
Large turnout
Free cookies and coffee had already attracted more than 600 people to vote at Grace Lutheran Church as of 1:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Voting at the church, one of eight vote centers in Columbus for the city primary, was moving quickly, said Charlie DeWeese, Republican inspector.
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Once voting began at 6 a.m., a steady stream of voters came through, and the church has been busy ever since.
As of 1:30 p.m., 623 voters had cast ballots at Grace Lutheran. The site started with just three voting booths but one was replaced and a fourth was added due to visibility issues on one of the booths, DeWeese said.
John Kestler greeted voters on behalf of his daughter, Grace Kestler, a Democratic candidate for one of two city council at-large seats.
"This is more than we expected," John Kestler said of the turnout. "The voters have been very energetic to exercise their right; I’ve heard several say it’s their civic duty to come and vote. With a full slate of people, it generates more votes. It makes for a good turnout."
Jo Flohr said she was returning the favor to Josh Burnett by standing outside polling centers and holding a sign in support of the Republican candidate for city council at-large.
Flohr ran in 2018 to represent District 59 in the Indiana House of Representatives, and she said Burnett helped make videos for her campaign. Burnett also made an appearance at Grace Lutheran.
"I’ve always been there to support him," Flohr said. "He will go far in this political race, and I want to help get him there."
She said Election Day is a nerve-wracking day for candidates. When they wake up, their stomachs are turned upside down, and when the bell rings at 6 p.m. and polling centers close, their stomachs are really upside down, Flohr said.
"You have no idea," Flohr said. "All you know is you worked hard, you got your name out, you spent a lot of money — people don’t know how expensive it is to try to serve the community."
Family and friends of Republican Laurie Booher and Democrat Tom Dell, both candidates in the race for city council at-large, and Michael Kinder, an independent running for District 1, stood outside Grace Lutheran Church, thanking each voter for taking time to cast a ballot.
Republican incumbent Frank Miller, seeking a third term to represent District 4 on the council, expected to stand outside the church for a little while to greet voters. Little did he know he’d also play a mechanic, helping one couple jump-start their vehicle after they voted.
Miller said he had also been to Flintwood Wesleyan Church and St. Johns Masonic Lodge, both of which he said had a great turnout. His next stop was Donner Center.
A ‘tight race’
As of 1:15 p.m., 131 people had cast votes at the vote center at the Bible Church of Columbus, located at 3010 10th St., said Toni Pirtle, Democratic clerk at the vote center.
Charlie Kinder, 63, the father of independent Columbus City Council District 1 candidate Michael Kinder, was standing outside the church, wearing his son’s purple campaign T-shirt.
Charlie Kinder, who made the five-hour drive yesterday to Columbus from Florissant, Missouri, to support his son, said he had been standing there since 6 a.m. and planned to stay outside the vote center until the polls close at 6 p.m.
"I know he’s a long shot, but he wanted to try," Charlie Kinder said.
Charlie Kinder said he would snack on a bag of peanuts that staff from Texas Roadhouse had brought all the volunteers and poll workers at the church. Additionally, Michael Kinder had tacos delivered to his dad at the church, Charlie Kinder said.
A few minutes later, Dascal Bunch, the incumbent Republican Columbus City Council member for District 1, pulled up in the church’s parking lot in a sports utility vehicle to talk to one of his volunteers at the vote center.
Bunch said he was hospitalized last week with ongoing issues related to an open wound on his left foot that was almost septic.
"They ended up doing a bone biopsy Friday and closing it up with sutures and put a drain tube in," Bunch said. "I can walk around on crutches, but I’m not supposed to be putting any weight on it. But, hey, the sun is shining and I’m living."
Bunch said his foot hampered his ability to campaign as he normally would. Bunch added that he used a golf cart to visit with constituents.
Bunch, who is being challenged by Kinder and Democrat Jerone Wood, said he anticipates a close race for the District 1 seat.
"It’s a three-candidate race, and you just hope for the best," Bunch said. "We got 4,700 registered voters in my district. In the primary, we had 263 vote. You’re going to have more than that (in the general election). We’re going to have probably somewhere between 400 and 500 vote, I’m guessing. But you divide those (votes) three ways, and it’s going to be a tight race."
Does repetition work?
Call it a last-ditch effort to instill name recognition in the mind of voters. There were plenty of repetitive campaign yard signs situated outside Donner Center Tuesday.
For example, six Elaine Wagner signs were lined up in a row along 22nd St, just east of the center’s entrance. As residents drove into the parking lot, they could see six Grace Kestler signs set up in a similar fashion to the right of the drive.
Those who drove along 22nd Street found no less than 14 identical yard signs in a row — all with Ross Thomas’ name – west of the entrance.
Nearby, there were eight identical signs encouraging voters to support Katea Ravega.
But as voters approached the doors to Donner Center, nearly all the candidates had the same number of signs.
Trump factor
For at least one Columbus resident, the controversy surrounding President Donald Trump was a motivating factor to cast a ballot in Tuesday’s municipal election.
“I would like to see a lot of the Republicans out, and while that may not happen, I’m putting my vote in to make that happen,” said Nancy Ray of Caldwell Place.
Ray said she also felt discouraged that no opponent could be found to challenge incumbent Republican Mayor Jim Lienhoop. Earlier this year, Bartholomew County Democratic chairman Bob Hyatt said most members of his party approved of how the incumbent Republican was doing his job.
Strong morning turnout
Few people were expecting long waits at the voting centers in Columbus Tuesday. But voting center officials confirmed a number of Columbus residents who arrived at Donner Center at mid-morning left after being discouraged by a lengthy line.
When some of the same voters returned during the noon hour, the queue had still not significantly diminished, an election official said.
“They started lining up at about 10:30, and the next thing we knew, they were all the way at the door,” said Mary Rigsby, Republican election inspector. “And it remained that way for quite some time."
That prompted election officials to bring in an additional voting machine to Donner, as well as to Grace Lutheran Church, Bartholomew County Clerk Jay Phelps said.
While Rigsby said she was surprised by Tuesday’s strong turnout, “we are thrilled to death to see the voters come out," she said.
FairOaks a top issue?
When seven random voters were asked what they felt were the top issues arising from this year’s election, the No. 1 answer was the development of FairOaks Mall.
Five out of six voiced support for transforming the retail property into an indoor sporting facility, as well as other related businesses.
“It’s a big area of town, and I think something has to be done to help the economy there, as well as the tax base,” said Terry Johnson of Flatrock Park North.
Far less popular is the proposed Riverfront development in downtown Columbus. Doubt was expressed by some voters regarding whether the proposed downtown project is a good public investment.
But Bartholomew County Clerk Jay Phelps was among those suggesting the controversy of these major issues, as well as affordable housing and the drug crisis, may have helped attract voters discouraged by a lack of a mayoral race.
Youth support
One of the most encouraging developments that emerged Tuesday was the number of younger voters who cast ballots, according to Democratic election supervisor David Harpenau.
One of those youthful voters was 28-year-old Tyler Tolbert of Windsor Place.
“We just realized there are a lot of needs we can help with,” Tolbert said regarding both young candidate and voters. "I think we feel we need to be a part of the solution, rather than just complaining about the problem.“
Tolbert said he knows some of the younger candidates running for Columbus City Council, who had urged him to cast his ballot.
"I know them as go-getters, and I think they are going to be good for our city," he said.
