Election Day has begun.
The Indiana Daily Student is live reporting from the polls and will update you with the latest results.
Polls have opened in Monroe County and across much of Indiana. To find out your polling place and ways to get to the polls, read the IDS’ guide here.
Check out the IDS’ elections landing page for candidate profiles and news from the local, state and national races.
7:45 a.m. at the Indiana Memorial Union
It was the calm after the storm at the Indiana Memorial Union’s voting location, situated in an open church-like hall. Voters trickled in, but poll workers said most came in at opening. Snacks wait for voters leaving the hall.
Carol Barnett, a first-time poll worker, was checking people in with Sandy Sluss, who’s worked the polls six times. Both said it’s important to contribute to the electoral process
It was also Marcel Bernucci’s first time working the polls. He’s a graduate student at IU, and said he decided to help out because of how consequential this election will be. That, to Bernucci, means women’s rights and democracy at large.
“So much is at stake,” he said.
7:30 a.m. outside Bloomington South High School
Logan Collins is not a Republican. He voted for Kamala Harris and other non-Republican candidates down the ballot — except one.
Collins stood outside Bloomington South High School at 7:30 a.m. with a Dave Hall sign, thanking people for voting as they headed into the polls. He said he’s campaigning for Hall, an incumbent Republican representing District 62 in the Indiana House of Representatives, because he knows Hall is a “good guy” and has reservations about his Democratic opponent, Thomas Horrocks.
Collins paused, then glanced at Peter Iversen, who stood next to Collins with a Thomas Horrocks sign. Collins voted for Iversen, a Democrat on the Monroe County Council, during the primary.
“Don’t hate me,” Collins told him.
While Collins doesn’t agree with all of Hall’s positions, he doesn’t think Horrocks should be in the legislature because Horrocks is a pastor. Collins is part of the LGBTQ+ community and believes there should be a staunch separation between church and state in government.
Horrocks official stance on the LGBTQ+ community is that they should be protected by the law, along with other groups affected by systemic injustice. Hall’s website does not mention the LGBTQ+ community.
Iversen, dressed in a gray hoodie and hat that reads “book nerd,” said he’s campaigning for Horrocks because he has two little girls whose rights he believes are threatened. He also thinks Horrocks has a real chance to flip the district red to blue — in 2022, Dave Hall beat his Democratic opponent by just 74 votes.
Republicans in the Indiana General Assembly currently hold a supermajority, but only by four seats. If Horrocks wins, it will cut into that majority, helping bring balance to the state, Iversen said.
Though campaigning for opposing sides in this race, both Collins and Iversen voted for Harris. To demonstrate, Collins lifts his blue and gold Dave Hall sweatshirt to reveal a Harris-Walz T-shirt.
Iversen said he’s voting for Harris because of Trump’s rhetoric and policies. Though he describes himself as a political guy, he said he can’t always talk about politics with his daughter because of how inappropriate Trump’s language can be.
“I literally can’t let my daughters watch his speeches,” he said.
Once polls close, all that will be left to do for Collins and Iversen is to wait and see if their candidates will win.
“It’s gonna be a fun night,” Collins said.
“I agree,” Iversen added.
7:15 a.m. at Sherwood Oaks Christian Church
Daniel Jenkins and Perry Robinson didn’t know each other before setting up to campaign outside of Sherwood Oaks Christian Church at 6 a.m.
Jenkins was representing Democrat Thomas Horrocks, while Robinson was representing Republican Dave Hall. Both candidates are vying to represent Indiana State House District 62.
Despite their political differences, Jenkins and Robinson are enjoying the company. Above all else, they were there to encourage voters and answer questions regardless of their party.
“The mission is just to get people to vote,” Jenkins said.
In the first hour, the county has seen 2,655 voters enter the polls, according to the Monroe County clerk.
Robinson, who ran for Monroe County Commissioner in 2022, said the turnout today was lower than he remembered two years ago. He said he hopes that’s due to voters taking advantage of early voting.
Regardless of today’s turnout, the two will campaign until the polls close at 6 p.m., encouraging voters to make their voices heard on either side of the political spectrum.
“Look at us,” Robinson said. “He’s on Thomas’s crew; I’m on Dave’s crew. We sit here and have great conversations. People don’t think you can do that anymore, but you can. You can unite together still.”
They thanked people for voting as they exited the church and continued to make small talk between conversations with voters. By the end of the day, they’re sure they will know each other quite well.
6:10 a.m. at Election Central
The poll workers inside had just finished with the first wave of voters at 6:10 a.m.
“I’m here to ensure everyone’s right to vote,” poll worker Patricia Cole said.
Other poll workers were more casual about why they are working, like Richard Freeman.
“It’s a good past time, and good to have more poll workers working the polls. I work at Burger King, so I’m used to standing around,” Freeman said.
Volunteers Jimmy Beasley and Rich Benak, who sat together at the poll site, were full of smiles for the opening of Election Central. Beasley has worked in the polls for the last 30 years in different areas, while this election was Benak’s first.
“I’ve always done it. I feel like I'm giving back to the community, and this is my way of doing it,” Beasley said.
“I feel like I need to be involved in the process because our country needs more people involved in the process,” Benak added.
6:05 a.m. at Ellettsville Christian Church
An hour before sunrise, the line of voters is wrapped around Ellettsville Christian Church. Emily Truell was with her partner and two children. Truell said it was her children who brought her out to the polls so early.
“We have kids,” Truell said. “We didn’t want to come later and have to wait here all day, potentially, so we wanted to show up first thing to hopefully get in and out a little more easily.”
Truell, who is new to the Ellettsville area, said she has voted since the 2016 election.
“A lot has changed for me since the 2020 election,” Truell said. “I have kids now and started a family and all that kind of stuff. I’m excited to vote this year because I feel like I have more skin in the game this time. I’m voting for my kids and me too.”
Judy Bryant was a few dozen people behind Truell’s family in line, chatting with the voters in front of her. Bryant said it was the presidential election she was voting for.
“Right now, I am just voting for the presidential candidate and that’s all,” Bryant said. “I’m still new here, so I don’t know the people on those signs, so it doesn’t mean a lot to me yet, but it will.”
She said she was out so early to make sure she “got it done.”
Bryant felt she had to vote because of America’s history of racial violence and oppression.
“Because of that, I have to vote,” Bryant said.
6:05 a.m. at Election Central
Steve Host was the first voter who finished voting at Election Central and he had one purpose
“I’m just here to vote for Joe Davis.”
Joe Davis is campaigning for an at-large county council seat. He is not on the ballot.
The second voter to leave was Carissa Moschel, who knew what she wanted in a president.
“I think that the election is important to elect a president that will protect our borders, and our citizens,” she said.
Voters line up and wait for their chance to vote Nov. 5, 2024, outside Election Central in Bloomington. The voters waited outside at 5:59 a.m., right before the doors were about to open.
6 a.m. inside the Meadow polling center:
A pair of Democratic and Republican poll clerks witness the location’s opening. Teams made up of both parties check people in. Another bipartisan team helps a man fill out his ballot.
There are many older people and many students, not much in between. Poll workers shuffle to assist everyone.
Ben Kubat, a sophomore at IU, was the second to leave the poll site after casting his ballot — his first time voting. He said he came to the poll’s opening because he had an early class.
“I wanted to vote to stick up for people who aren’t in the same position I am,” he said.
Two poll workers wait for voters Nov. 5, 2024, at the polling center at Meadowood, a senior assisted living facility in Bloomington. The poll worker on the left, who walked away to help a voter before sharing his name, said he has worked the polls for 20 elections.
6 a.m. Bloomington Eastview Church of the Nazarene
Jaslyn Reedus, 19, arrived at Bloomington Eastview Church of the Nazarene at 4:30 a.m. to vote. She sat on the sidewalk listening to music until just before 6 a.m., when poll workers gave final shouts of encouragement to each other before opening the doors to voters.
“Hear ye, hear ye, hear ye. The polls have now opened,” a poll worker said.
Reedus was the first person to walk through the doors, and shortly after entering, a cheer erupted from inside the building.
“First-time voter!” another poll worker shouted.
By 6:13 a.m., Reedus had cast her vote.
“Voting is important in general, so I was going to vote regardless,” Reedus said. “But this election feels especially important to be a part of.”
A steady flow of voters trickled through the building, and the occasional cheer for first-time voters could be heard from the parking lot.
Voters stand in line at 6:15 a.m. Nov. 5, 2024, at Bloomington Eastview Church of the Nazarene. The line stretched to the end of the sidewalk by 5:45 a.m., and a steady stream of cars flowed through the parking lot by 6:30 a.m.
5:52 a.m. at Election Central
Surrounded only by fallen signs and a cold breeze, 13 voters waited anxiously for the polls to open. One of the first voters in line, Ally Horwitz, voted for her future.
“It's my future, as a woman and as a member of the LGBTQ+ community, I can't even describe how anxious I am for the results of the election.”
As more voters lined up, the reasons for voting diversified.
“For me, it’s women’s reproductive rights,” Craig Courteau, a voter in line, said
Other voters are focused on the statewide elections, such as the race for Senate and Governor. Others are excited about the possibility of a flipped seat for the Governor election in the state of Indiana.
“Voting in every election is important, but for the first time in a long time, our governor position has a chance of becoming democratic,” Clifford Marr, one of the first voters through the door, said.
Poll workers sit and wait to direct incoming voters Nov. 5, 2024, inside Election Central in Bloomington. Some workers said they decided to work the polls because they wanted money and some wanted to give back to the community.
5:50 a.m. Lines form early outside the polling center at Meadowood:
It’s early but eight people are already lined up to vote.
Campaign signs illuminated by streetlights for both parties bounce in the wind. Graduate student Garrett Whelan will work eight hours today along with classes afterward, and this is the only time he has to vote. Whelan said that there are issues driving him to vote, but he would even if there weren’t.
“It’s an important responsibility in a democratic country,” he said.
Four poll workers wait for voters Nov. 5, 2024, shortly before the polling site at Meadowood, a senior assisted living community in Bloomington, opened. Before the polls opened at 6 a.m., the workers tested the tablets at their tables used to verify voters' registration.
