Kansas mother gives birth at polling place hours after voting

Tessa Von Fange gave birth to her daughter at the Shawnee County Elections Office in Topeka, Kansas, shortly after casting her ballot.

Morgan Von Fange was born at 1:16 a.m. on Nov. 3. The newborn weighed 8 pounds and 1 ounce. The delivery occurred within hours of the mother's visit to the polling location.

Von Fange described herself as a dedicated voter who rarely misses an election. She stated she had expected the birth to occur after the holiday. "I'm going to make it to that induction. I had already really thought I wasn't going to have her before then," she said. She added that she remained in denial about the onset of labor until her water broke.

Her husband, Chris Von Fange, received the news from an election worker. He described his reaction as being overwhelmed and shocked by the sudden turn of events. "Just to hear from the election worker that your wife is in labor is like millions of questions," he said.

The couple had selected the baby's name prior to the hospital visit. Von Fange noted that they had chosen the name Morgan. She also considered the name Chad if the child had been a boy. She found the thought amusing given the circumstances.

Von Fange received a sticker from the election office to mark the occasion. She applied it to her belly before traveling to the hospital. She kept the sticker on for the remainder of the day.

Chris Von Fange encouraged other residents to prioritize voting despite busy schedules. He suggested that most people can allocate half an hour to cast a ballot. "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.