UPDATE: FBI probes ballot irregularities in Monroe County

The FBI was investigating allegations that a Democratic volunteer at a Monroe County polling site was found with unprocessed absentee ballots in her possession Tuesday.\nThe ballots were found after officials began counting absentee ballots at 2 p.m. Monroe County is the largest county in the 9th Congressional District, where Republican Rep. Mike Sodrel and former Democratic Rep. Baron Hill were in a virtual dead-heat in their third matchup since 2002.\nJack Schmit, a Republican member of the Monroe County Election Board, confirmed the ballot issue and said the woman also had a key to a room where absentee ballots were kept. He said she was not authorized to have the key.\nSchmit said the FBI, county election board and Indiana State Police were looking into the matter.\nHe said the count was continuing and that officials were monitoring the tally to ensure the number of ballots scanned matched the number that were cast absentee.\n"At this moment, there is no concern for the election, but we'll know more later," Schmit said.\nThe deadline in which absentee ballots could be accepted by mail was noon, but officials did not begin counting until 2 p.m. because of a final mail-run of all 96 precincts, clerk Jim Fielder told The Herald-Times of Bloomington.\nHill defeated Sodrel by more than 9,400 votes for the congressional seat in 2002. But in 2004, Sodrel rode a Republican wave and won by about 1,400 votes out of 287,000 cast. With 49.5 percent of the vote, it was the smallest winning percentage in 2004's congressional races.\nSodrel campaign manager Cam Savage said he'd heard about the matter but declined to comment until he knew more.\nMelanie Morris, Hill's spokeswoman, said the Democrat's campaign had an attorney in Monroe County monitoring the situation.\n"We think it's probably going to be a long night in Monroe," she said.