Category: Polls and Ballots

Contributed by Michelle Harris.

In a year that the familiar feels a bit sideways and even routine activities are being rethought, voting by mail is one of the few things that for me is the same old, same old. Well, sort of. As far back as 1996, when living in Frankfurt, I started the practice of submitting my vote by mail. Election Day brought collective excitement to me and my colleagues at the U.S. Consulate and to Americans living in the city, but it came and went as quickly as dropping an absentee ballot envelope into the Consulate’s mail pouch. As grateful as I was for the ability to participate from afar, about my time in Germany I remember missing reading U.S. newspapers on their issue date (the internet then was a thing, but not The Thing), American donuts (yes, really), and going in person to the election polls. 

Fast forward ten years to May 2006. The general election for President of the Republic of Mexico was six weeks away when I arrived for duty at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City. In addition to the President, 128 Senate seats and 500 in the national Chamber of Deputies were also on the ballot. The size and scope of the single-day turnover was astounding to me, as were aggressive party activities and controversial political actions leading up to the vote and then the election day energy of the citizenry. The U.S. Presidential election was both two years past and two years ahead. Still, I felt a pang and looked forward to my day to participate and cast a vote for U.S. President. 

That satisfaction would have to wait. In 2007, I returned to my then home of Puerto Rico and the full weight of limitations on territory resident voting rights came down heavy. I cast a vote in the 2008 Presidential primary but had to watch from the sidelines as continental U.S. residents showed up in numbers for the November general election and President Obama took his first turn in office. I wouldn’t let that absence happen again and vowed to remedy my hurt by getting involved in the voting process when I got back to the States. 

Between work assignments, I volunteered with Habitat for Humanity Global Village and considered it a great fortune to be engaged in international consulting efforts that fed my endless interest in traveling to places that are not necessarily a picnic, for travelers or residents. Darfur, Sudan; the Vietnamese province of Tien Giang Province; rural outskirts of Ndola, Zambia. Others. I traveled with coworkers and friends from around the world. Maybe it was a mix of diverse international perspectives combined with the difficult political histories and rights realities of our host countries that always led conversations to voting. How did it happen? Who could, who couldn’t? When did it really count? 

To say that I landed in New Jersey in 2013 ready to engage is an understatement.

Working the Polls

The Hunterdon County Board of Elections made it easy to apply and prepare for service as a poll worker. After a two-hour mandatory training session conducted at the Hunterdon County Library, the Poll Worker Handbook at the ready, I walked two blocks from home to the Pittore Justice Center in Lambertville to report to duty at the 2014 general election. Pre-dawn arrival didn’t help my orientation, but adrenaline and strong coffee helped. When I entered, it was obvious that I was the only one who didn’t know what from wherefore. I was the sole new poll worker there that day, and most everyone else had not only worked the polls before but they had worked together, at this polling station, for years. New girl syndrome hit like a ton of bricks. Fortunately, my itinerant past served me well, and two gems showed me mercy and the ropes, and offered kindness to a stranger that I appreciate to this day. 

Greeting strangers and neighbors alike is a key role of workers at the polls. As recognized by Indivisible National, “Poll workers are an essential part of our election system. They staff polling places and help voters on voting days. Poll workers interact face-to-face with voters, and are often the first people to help troubleshoot if there are any issues.” Many arriving voters know the drill, including not only what district they live in and exactly which table to approach but which poll workers have manned that table year after year. But for all of those in the know, there are that many again who are new to town (I see you!), who mix up which district table or even which polling station they must use, or who need assistance to understand or engage in the process. The ability to engage with everyone generously and effectively is an important element to making voting easy and exciting.  

As I moved among various polling locations from 2014 to 2018 – the Justice Center in Lambertville, Kingwood, Ringoes, and circling back to the Union Fire House in Lambertville – I had the opportunity to engage in a variety of polling station tasks. Attention to detail came in as a handy skill for traditional poll worker table responsibilities: verifying signatures, numbering and handing out voting machine tickets, guiding voters through the process of submitting provisional ballots. Gentle reminders regarding order importance in queueing up to vote are sometimes needed. Operating the voting machine honestly made me incredibly nervous, but after hands-on demonstrations by my experienced co-workers I settled in and got the job done. Handing out “I Voted” stickers doesn’t get old, and from most voters’ reactions, neither does receiving them. Focus for turnout surges, the ability to keep quietly busy during quiet waves, and general stamina are key to making it through 14 or so hour days, as is a good balance of indulgence and self-control around ever abundant snack tables in back rooms and kitchenettes. The zero calorie icing on the cake at the end of every election? Printing and precisely packing up the district’s vote tabulations and publicly posting the results. For me, every one of those votes represents not only a New Jersey voter’s selections on the day, but also all of the voices whose votes are not heard in places where elections are free and fair in name only or, in still too many corners of the world, not accessible at all. At the end of the day, this reminder is why I became a Poll Worker. 

Perspective

My sense of home is stronger in Lambertville than anywhere else I’ve been. That may be because – at only six years – this is the longest I’ve lived in one place. I also believe it’s because of my commitment to engagement in civic life. Participating actively in the local election process has contributed to my feeling truly connected here. But old habits do die hard, and the pandemic has heightened my dreams of (postponed) travel to new faraway places. With Poll Working 101 now under my belt, I wonder what the mechanics of foreign elections look like up close and personal. My passport is current, and my passion for spreading the word about both the duty and the privilege to engage in the election process is packed and ready to go. These are the organizations I’m reaching out to to explore possibilities: 

The Carter Center Democracy Program works globally to support democratic elections and strengthen participatory democracy, consistent with human rights. 

The National Democratic Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, nongovernmental organization that upholds the idea that democracy is a human right – a principle enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights – and supports democratic institutions and practices throughout the world.

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) provides support, assistance and expertise to participating States and civil society to promote democracy, rule of law, human rights and tolerance and non-discrimination. ODIHR conducts election observation missions with the support citizens from all OSCE participating States.

(Much love to Indivizzies Audrey Frankowski and Polly Anderson who could not have known the nerves I was fighting when I showed up at the polls to work that first day, anxious about getting my job done right and still at sea in finding my local community after relocation. Every election thought reminds me of you.)

Contributed by Michelle Harris.

Among other responsibilities related to the operation of district polling places on election day, the Board of Elections is responsible for the hiring, education and assignment of approximately 500 poll workers. Due to health safety concerns related to the ongoing pandemic, the number of polling stations open this year for in-person voting will be reduced. In turn, fewer traditional poll worker positions will need to be staffed. This reduction in election day staffing combined with the return of a robust number of experienced poll workers and high interest already expressed by new applicants, the Board of Elections stopped accepting Poll Worker applications as of September 1, 2020. 

If you have already submitted an application but have not heard back yet, you may still as specific activity staffing is ongoing and late day substitutes are sometimes called on to backfill for people who have conflicts arise and need to bow out. Also be prepared for the possibility that Board staff may call indicating that traditional roles are filled and asking you to consider filling an alternate role. Keep an open mind as these roles are great ways to support voting operations and gain a unique view into the process from the inside. Two examples of these opportunities:

• Ballot strippers are particularly in-demand during an election year with record numbers of mail-in ballots expected. Strippers are handed trays of ballots that have already been removed from the outer envelopes. Their sole task is to tear off the signed flap on the inner envelope, taking care to arrange the two newly separated parts in identical order. If you are an organizer, piler, tick-and-tier by nature, this role is for you. 
• Runners hand carry trays of ballots from one step in the mail-in ballot processing queue to another including, for example, taking the “stripped” inner envelopes from the stripping room to another room where the inner envelopes are opened and the ballots are scanned. Especially in comparison to ballot strippers and other roles, runners are quite literally marathoners. And did I mention that stairs – many stairs – are involved? Supporting the election process and getting in a good workout… surely that is a win-win. 

It also remains a possibility that additional hands may be required for opening outer envelopes and separating outer from inner envelopes prior to election day. Passage of New Jersey Senate bill S-2819 would allow New Jersey counties to start this mail-in ballots process up to five days before the election. This measure, one of several that lawmakers are considering to make sure that votes count, would help to count the large number of anticipated mail-in ballots in a timely manner.  

Every Vote Matters, But Only If It Can Be Counted

If working the polls is not your gig, or opportunities with the county are all filled for this election, you can support the election process by making sure that your mail-in vote counts: 

1. Machine voting (remember that?) prevents a voter from selecting too many candidates for a particular office. For example, if two candidates are running against each other for office, the voting machine prevents the voter from selecting both candidates. If a mail-in voter chooses two candidates for a single office, neither vote can be counted. Read the instructions for each question carefully and select only the number of candidates allowed to be chosen for each office. 

1. All mail-in ballot signatures are verified against those in records at the Board of Elections. Signatures on file may have come from a paper voter registration form, the NJ Motor Vehicles Commission, party change forms or other forms completed in the course of doing business with the County Clerk’s office. Signatures change over time. The signature on your ballot must reasonably match the one on file with the County. If you are not certain which signature is on file for you, you may contact the Board of Elections for guidance on how to confirm your signature.

1. Remember to sign the inner ballot envelope. If a ballot arrives with no signature, or if the County Clerk identifies a concern or question about the signature that they have on file for you, the ballot will be set aside and the Board of Elections will mail the voter a Signature Cure Form in an attempt to obtain verifiable signature. If the completed Signature Cure Form is not received by the Board of Elections by the deadline identified by the county, the vote cannot be counted. 

1. Do not use your mail-in ballot as a coffee coaster or in lieu of a post-it. Stains, tears or stray marks outside of the areas where you are instructed to complete or sign could disqualify it. Return your ballot in clean crisp condition to ensure that it can be counted. 

1. If you make an error while completing your ballot, ask our local election officials what to do. Rather than have you fix the original ballot, they may advise you to start with a new ballot and help you to get one. 

1. Finally, before mailing your ballot or dropping it off at one of twelve (12) vote-by-mail drop boxes located throughout Hunterdon County, check and double check that put your ballot in the inner envelope, then the inner envelope in the outer envelope. The Board of Elections staff can’t count votes that they don’t receive. 

In the coming weeks, the Hunterdon County Clerk is sending postcards to better engage and inform those who may not be click-savvy, engaged in social media, or have access to online information regarding the election and voting process. If you are confident that you are informed and well-prepared to cast your own ballot, you can support the county’s efforts to spread the word and help ensure that an even wider circle successfully engages in the voting process. Make your know-how available to others. Support the vote, get out the vote, and vote (once ;-))!