Voter Delivers Baby After Casting Ballot

A Kansas woman went into labor while visiting a polling place, delivering her daughter a few hours later after casting her vote.

Tessa Von Fange, a longtime resident of Shawnee County, arrived at the local elections office on Nov. 3 with her husband, Chris Von Fange. She believed her baby would not arrive until after the induction date she had scheduled for later in the week.

"I don’t think there are too many elections that I’ve missed," Von Fange said. "So, especially as I’ve gotten older, I don’t miss them at all really."

An election worker informed Chris Von Fange that his wife was in labor. "Shocked, I was overwhelmed," he said. "Just to hear from the election worker that your wife is in labor is like millions of questions."

Tessa Von Fange described her initial reaction. "I was 100% in denial until my water broke," she said. The couple had already decided on the baby's name before the trip. "Her name is Morgan, but it did make me think, what would that be? If she were a boy, Chad," she noted.

Morgan was born at 1:16 a.m. on Nov. 3. She weighed 8 pounds and 1 ounce. Tessa Von Fange received a sticker for a future voter at the office. She placed it on her belly and kept it on while traveling to the hospital.

Chris Von Fange encouraged others to prioritize voting despite busy schedules. "No matter what you have going on, there’s always a half-hour of your time that can be spent to go to a polling place to have your vote cast," he said.