Voters flood the polls throughout Greencastle, Antrim Twp. — Trump gets big local push to victory

Voters went to the polls in Greencastle and Antrim Township Tuesday with strong support for the eventual presidential winner Donald Trump.

Anita Grosh, 46, who has undergone a bone marrow transplant to treat myelodysplastic syndromes, said, "I have a lot more to live for" and was also thinking about the future of her 13-year-old daughter, Amanda, when she prepared to cast the vote for "Mr. Trump" at Grace United Church of Christ.

John Ommert, a Marine Corps veteran who also voted at Grace United Church of Christ, supported Trump because "I think he'll take care of the American people, the military and our country, which certainly has been lacking for a long time."

The military also was on the mind of Madison Wineriter, 18, who was "nervous, but excited" after participating in her first election at Greencastle Baptist Church, where the parking lot was full and people were waiting in line at 7 a.m. Her twin sister, Jordan, is in the Marines and just finished basic training.

"I'm voting for the next president in charge of her military progress," Wineriter said.

At Antrim Township's five voting locations, the Republican Trump outpolled Democrat Hillary Clinton by a margin of 75 to 83 percent vs. 14 to 20 percent. Antrim 2, located in the Kauffman area, had the highest percentage of Trump supporters and also saw the highest turnout — 1,005 (83.96 percent) of 1,197 registered voters.

Trump's numbers were slightly lower in the borough, where he earned about 70 percent of the vote compared to 25 percent for Clinton.

Franklin County saw a record 75.89 percent voter turnout Tuesday — or 70,593 of the 93,018 registered voters. Greencastle-Antrim voter turnout ranged from 75 to almost 84 percent.

Poll workers in Shady Grove described Tuesday as "busy, crazy busy," but added "we're having a blast."

Among the Shady Grove voters was 88-year-old Phyllis Marquiss, who said, "I want my country to get back to the more basic principles we used to follow and not so much government.

"I always vote," Marquiss said. "Everyone should vote."

Judge of elections John Rishel was happy to see the crowd at Grace United Church of Christ.

"This is what I always pushed for in my classes," said the retired Greencastle-Antrim High School educator, who taught Problems of Democracy. He noted, "There are people I've never seen before."

Other races

Incumbent U.S. Rep. Bill Shuster, a Republican whose Ninth District includes Franklin County, held off a challenge from Art Halvorson, who lost in the GOP primary to Shuster but earned enough write-ins for a spot on the Democratic ticket. Shuster received 183,798 votes — 63 percent — and Art Halvorson received 37 percent or 105,958. Support for Shuster was slightly higher — 64 to 70 percent — in Greencastle-Antrim.

Greencastle-Antrim High School graduate Rob Kauffman was the only local state lawmaker facing an election challenge. Kauffman, who represents the Chambersburg-area 89th Legislative District, retained his seat 21,446 vs. Democratic challenger Christine Tolbert's 8,121.

In the 90th Legislative District, which includes Greencastle-Antrim, Rep. Paul Schemel was unopposed. He received 98.5 percent or 25,791 votes.