The director of the Hamilton County Board of Elections says it's not too late to sign up to be a poll worker. Sherry Poland says technically the position is called "precinct election official."
“These are the folks that work together in a bipartisan fashion to basically bring democracy to the community. Their job is to check-in voters. When a voter comes in to their voting place, they check to make sure they have acceptable form of ID.”
Poland says poll workers hand out ballots and answer any questions. She says it's not a difficult job, but it is a long day, starting at 5:30 a.m. and ending after the polls close at 7:30 p.m. She says there is a training course, and workers get paid $225.
Poland says more than 70% of their workers have done it before.
“I think it’s a very rewarding and fulfilling job,” she says. “If you’ve thought about doing it, this is a great one to work as your first election, because the turnout will be a little lower than what we saw, for example, last year in the presidential (race).”
Poland says the position is paid for the long day, and for the three-hour training. She says there are training classes in the morning, afternoon, and evenings, as well as on weekends.
She says while politics in the nation are very partisan right now, that's left at the door.
“It’s Democrats and Republicans working together to fulfill the public’s work. I really find they develop a sense of camaraderie,” she says. “Because we leave our politics aside and we focus on a common goal. And our common goal is conducting free and fair elections, and when you do that you rarely have disagreement.”
Poland says she invites anyone who questions the integrity of the election system to become a poll worker, or at least take a tour of the facility to learn about the process.
You can learn more about becoming a poll worker on the Hamilton County Board of Elections website.
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