A 78-year-old Blue Hill resident died after voting Tuesday, causing voting to be temporarily suspended in the Hancock County town, according to Town Administrator Shawna Ambrose and the Maine State Police.

The man had a medical incident, collapsed and died between 9:30 and 9:45 a.m. Tuesday, according to Ambrose and Maine Department of Public Safety spokesperson Stephen McCausland. Emergency responders treated the man, but could not revive him, McCausland said.





The man had inserted his ballot into the ballot-counting machine before he collapsed, said Deputy Clerk Lyndsey Dow, so his vote will be counted.

All people inside the Blue Hill Town Hall at the time were sent outside, and voting was suspended for one hour. Voting booths and ballot boxes were moved from the Blue Hill Town Hall auditorium into the select board room downstairs.

Voting resumed around 10:30 a.m. In the afternoon, voting was again moved back upstairs into the auditorium, where it will continue until polls close at 8 p.m., Ambrose said.

The man’s identity was not released.

BDN writer Bill Trotter contributed to this report.