Brayden Brodie got an unusual text on election night. It was the Marion County Democratic Party with an “URGENT” request to help process absentee ballots.
The same message went out to others on the party’s contacts list.
Brodie, 26, was at a Mexican restaurant in Lafayette with friends.
“I said guys, I gotta go,” he told Mirror Indy.
An hour and a half later, Brodie, who lives on the east side, was at the Election Operations Center off of East Washington Street, ready to pitch in.
The county Republican party sent a similar ask to their poll workers and other supporters. The Marion County Clerk’s Office posted a callout on Facebook earlier in the day.
Some people commented on the Facebook post, asking why a request for help was coming on the day of the election.
Party and election officials told Mirror Indy that asking for help with ballots can be a normal part of Election Day, depending on voter turnout.
“We do this every election,” said Dan Goldblatt, director of policy and communication with the Marion County Clerk’s Office.
Election officials rely on a bipartisan group of people to process absentee ballots. You can get paid $15 an hour to do jobs such as opening envelopes and checking for signatures. People from both parties, as well as those with no party affiliation, work together.
The demand for help goes up when there are more early voters and mail-in ballots.
There were about 99,200 absentee ballots this election in Marion County, according to data from the county election board. That’s about 27,000 more than the last midterm election in 2022.
‘People came out in droves’
The callouts worked.
“People came out in droves,” Brodie said.
He worked for about an hour and a half.
More than 200 people helped process ballots on election night, Goldblatt said.
“It was great seeing everybody coming out,” he said.
Political parties are responsible for recruiting people to help, Goldblatt said. They rely on their regular volunteers and poll workers.
Just because people agree to help doesn’t mean they’ll actually be there, though, creating last-minute pressure to find people who can show up on short notice.
“People flake and things happen,” said Megan Huntzinger, executive director of the Marion County Democratic Party.
Marion County Republican Chair Natalie Goodwin didn’t respond to a request for comment.
Brodie said helping on Election Day is worth it.
“I think every American needs to see this process happen,” he said.
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Mirror Indy reporter Tyler Fenwick covers housing and labor. Contact him at 317-766-1406 or tyler.fenwick@mirrorindy.org. Follow him on X @ty_fenwick and Bluesky @tyfenwick.bsky.social.
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