McLean County officials report very few issues, smooth process on Election Day
BLOOMINGTON — With unofficial results tabulated, election officials in McLean County and the City of Bloomington said there was little to no issue with voters casting ballots in Tuesday's general election.
"It went pretty smooth," said Luke Stremlau, executive director of the Bloomington Election Commission. "It went real smooth, actually. I'm very happy with it."
As of early Wednesday afternoon, not accounting for mail-in ballots postmarked Nov. 5 and yet to be received, turnout for the city is at 71.2%, Stremlau said.
According to the Bloomington Election Commission's website , over 37,000 ballots were cast, some 15,000 shy of total registered voters.
The county had a slightly higher turnout rate of 78.55% as of Wednesday morning, said Mark Senger, director of elections for McLean County.
"It was a long day, but an interesting day and fun day for us," he said. "We had an amazing turnout."
Equipment issues were practically nonexistent outside of a little humidity making the odd ballot act up in the machine, Senger said. "But the judges made it through it, and every bill (was) counted," he said.
By Tuesday, the McLean County Clerk's Office had received some 6,000 mail-in ballots, said Director of Elections Bradley Beyer, with total votes cast being around 42,000.
Democrats picked up two seats on the McLean County Board while defending four, giving them a majority. If the results as they stand are certified, this will be the first time the party has held a majority since the county has had an elected board.
"Within the county, I thought we did a really good job," said McLean County Democrats Chair Patrick Cortesi. "I'm sure proud of my election team. I was glad to see the results reflected that hard work."
His counterpart in the McLean County Republicans, Dennis Grundler, expressed dismay at Tuesday's numbers.
"They didn't go the way I was hoping," he said Wednesday. "We lost two seats on the county board, so I'm disappointed about that. (I am) concerned it's going to cost us more tax levy and things like that."
Still, he remains open to working across the aisle, he said.
"I hope we can all work together so we can all move forward," Grundler said.
The shift does not change the county board's mission of doing the business of McLean County, said current Board Chair Catherine Metsker.
"Changes happen, just as they do in Springfield," she said Wednesday.
While elections are often colored by "hot-button" issues, the County Board does not deal with divisive topics such as abortion rights or gender-affirming care, Metsker said.
"Those things aren't what the county deals with... We have to do the work of the county for the betterment of the county and our constituents," she said.
The County Board's duties are "operational," Metsker said. "They'll just have to do the work of the county the way we have been doing it for years. It might have a different flavor, but it'll get done."
Despite the tensions leading up to the general election, authorities in the Twin Cities, including the Bloomington and Normal police departments, reported no out-of-the-ordinary or violent activity.
"Everything went swimmingly. ... No one reported any misbehavings or bad behavior," Stremlau said.
There was one odd happening for county polling places, Senger said.
"We did have one incident where someone wore a trash bag. ... The voter had something written across it that was considered electioneering," Senger said. That person was asked to remove the bag before casting his ballot, Senger said.
The voter complied, and there was no further issue, he said.
Contact D. Jack Alkire at (309)820-3275.
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General Assignment Reporter
