Voters Needed. Poll Workers Even More So [View all]

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http://www.politicususa.com/2014/06/26/voters-needed-poll-workers.html

Voters Needed. Poll Workers Even More So
By: Dennis S
Thursday, June, 26th, 2014, 9:13 pm

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As critical as indifferent voter participation is in America, there is a problem of equal, if not greater, seriousness. It involves the people who make the whole process work. They’re usually called poll workers or poll managers. Their “boss” at the polling place is termed a ‘clerk’ in South Carolina. It usually takes a few years as a poll manager before one is elevated to clerk. I’m a clerk. That’s not a huge deal. A few more dollars and you have to know all the election rules or where to find them quickly. The buck ends at your badge.

Both poll managers and clerks are hard to come by in South Carolina and numerous other states. In our county the average age of those holding these positions is 72. Yes, 72. Now, most seniors I know in their seventies are still pretty sharp cookies. Mentally, there’s little they can’t handle at the polls. Physically, setting up rather heavy voting booths and terminals and moving some large tables and sign bases around could be another story. And, more than a few are dying off. My county could use twice as many poll managers than we have. Pay is $120.00 Youngsters, ages 16 and 17, can get the same pay as assistant poll managers, and yet, few sign up. Clerks make $180.00

Some poll workers come from the county chairman’s party list. Volunteers are welcome and the media is full of stories about how the county is again desperately short of workers. Once chosen, the poll worker will go through a thorough training class, lasting a couple of hours at least. They are also provided with a Poll Managers Handbook and there’s an extensive online training course.

Then, it’s off to work. In my state, at least, there is a setup day to get most things done on Monday that have little to do with the actual casting of the vote. You have to have a little bit of the designer in you to determine the best way to arrange the voting space so that people aren’t running into each other, snooping at voting screens and lining up in a genteel and practical manner. You also mount lots of signs at wheelchair level. Poll managers also take an oath to be straight shooters.

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When day is done, the poll workers pack everything up and the clerk earns his or her extra money by taking all the equipment back to the election board. The poll managers are free to go home after an average 13 to 14 hour day.

I guess what I really took away from this latest clerking experience was watching an indefatigable 78-year-old poll manager, working the full election day without a complaint or insisting on a long rest period. If this delightful lady can work full tilt for 14 hours, surely a voter can sacrifice a fraction of that time for our country.

One final plea; sign on as a poll manager.