GREENVILLE – The Darke County Democrats gathered Tuesday for their Fall Fest at the Greenville American Legion.
Welcomed by Jim Surber, executive committee chairman, approximately 100 who attended gave a round of applause for the veterans in attendance, drawing special attention to J. Byron Davis, a 96-year-old Navy Veteran of World War II.
Also participating in the event were members of the Greenville High School NJROTC, who presented the colors.
The special speaker for the evening was Darke County Municipal Court Judge Julie Monnin, who shared some of her experiences during the nearly 15 years she’s served on the bench.
Monnin said she often uses her “mom skills just as much as my judge skills” in dealing with offenders. She also mentioned how recent changes in Ohio’s court system included working to provide needed assistance for low-level offenders.
“We’re trying to become part of the solution instead of part of the problem,” Monnin said.
Also as part of the program, Darke County Board of Elections Director Paul Schlecty and assistant director Jason Schmidt, gave a demonstration of the county’s new electronic voting machines.
According to Schlecty, the county has purchased 126 new units, which will be used for the upcoming Nov. 5 election.
The state, he said, kicked in $650,000 to purchase the voting machines, with the county paying $64,000.
So far, around 200 voters have used the new equipment during early voting.
The last time the county purchased voting equipment was in 2005.
Schlecty explained the new machines were ADA compliant, complete with headphones for those with hearing issues as well as a magnifier and a Braille pad for those with impaired vision.
Surber also took a few minutes to share his concerns with the upcoming 2020 election season, which he called “possibly the most contentious election” in quite some time.
He also warned of the “pure hatred, partisan politics” coming from the nation’s elected officials and urged those in attendance to exercise their right to vote for change.
The evening included a straw poll of Democratic presidential hopefuls, with Joe Biden earning the top spot and Elizabeth Warren coming in second.
The results of the poll will be sent to both the Ohio and National Democratic Party organizations, who are requesting such information from across the country.
