Election Judge

Tuesday, November 4^th was Election Day. Once again I served as an election judge. Today I want to focus on that day and what thoughts came to mind during and after the day’s events.

First of all, four precincts were included in our polling place. Over 3000 registered voters were assigned to our location. Eleven election judges staffed the site and we needed every one of them! Two were young, a high school junior, and a recent high school grad awaiting entry to college. The other nine judges were retired citizens, mostly from our immediate area. All were trained, some were new to the role, and half of us were experienced.

Fifteen voting stations were set up including one electronic voting machine. We were located in a banquet hall and the dining room contained many dinner tables with 8 chairs each. All the voting booths were in use much of the time and spill over traffic used the dining tables.

Of the 3005 voters eligible to vote at our site, 1232 cast their ballot. That is a turnout of 41%. Of course there are voters in the 3005 number who have moved or died. Probably as many as 8% fit that category. Adjusting the registered voter count for these our turnout was nearly 45% of eligible voters.  That is too low for a major election. 

In our precincts the normal voter turnout is 55 to 70%. That voter participation rate is well above national averages, but we can do better still. Democracy is both a duty and a responsibility. If the governance system is to work properly it needs voters to vote. Pretty simple.

Now comes the more complicated part: voter preparation and understanding of the candidates and issues contained on the ballot.

In our case each voter had two ballot pages with both sides of the ballot filled with candidates, offices and propositions. It took a long time to vote each ballot. Had we had more voters, voting lines would have been much longer and closing the polls much more difficult. Each voter spent at least 5 minutes actually voting while some took 15 minutes!

The usual culprit in voting complexity existed: voting for judges, and voting to retain judges in the court system. This area of democracy is so complex that only practicing attorneys active in the local court system would understand the candidacies and retention issues. The average voter simply cannot prepare adequately for these election questions.

Then again we had two state constitution amendment propositions and at least four advisory referenda on the ballot. Reading through these items is chore enough. Understanding them is more taxing. Having a good workable opinion on the issues is not likely and of course one has to have that to vote appropriately. Most don’t; on these issues most voters take a wild stab at a choice and move on.

The offices and candidates running for them in township and county positions provide a long list. In a weak two party area like ours (mostly republican, weakly democrat), republican candidates are slated for every office. Most of those offices do not have a democrat challenger. If you are a democrat you most likely didn’t vote for those offices. You just skipped over them. If you are a republican you most likely voted for each and every one.

Voting for governor was a more direct issue. Same for many state offices. As usual we had the normal contested positions and most voters understood who they were supporting before entering the polling place.

Congressional offices were also well known. Each congressman is elected every two years. If voters feel the incumbent performed well, he or she was likely retained. If an issue were at contention for the position, the voter generally understood that well before entering the voting booth. The federal Senator position was up for re-election in our state this year. Again, voters were pretty well schooled on the candidates and knew who they were going to vote for before parking their cars.

Here are some comments I heard during the day that gave me pause to consider how well the voters prepared for their duty:

-Why is part of the ballot printed in Spanish? Shouldn’t it be all in English? After all we are in America!

Answer: because we have citizens who have varying degrees of fluency in language; they are more adept in their native tongue and it is best for all to understand the issues and candidates they are voting on. Besides, it is the hospitable thing for America to do for their newest citizens!

-Raise the minimum wage? Why? Who has to pay for that?

Answer: Oh please! We all pay for the minimum wage whether it is raised or kept artificially low. Too low and public aid services are relied on to make up the difference in income. Too high and those who want to work can’t find a job. Then we all pay for unemployment benefits for those individuals.  The more who work the more taxes are collected, the more retail sales are supported, and the more jobs of other people are supported. The minimum wage is a no brainer. It is a non-issue. A family of two cannot be supported on $10/hour let alone $15/hour. It will take two workers and perhaps a third wage earning position part time to earn enough to pay the bills for a two person household. Imagine the need for a four person household! Either we are serious that our system works and supports our people adequately or we are not serious about it. Not caring means what we say publically about our religious beliefs is also a lie. Think about it.

-I voted George and cancelled out your vote!

Answer: well that’s how the system works. For years my wife and I cancelled each other out on many votes. We didn’t divorce over that! At least I don’t think so.  Hmmm. I wonder?

-Thank you volunteers for making the polling place functional!

Answer: we are not volunteers. We are paid. Considering the number of hours we worked and the hours of training we received, the pay is less than the minimum wage! But then we don’t do it for the pay. We do it because it matters that ordinary citizens get involved and care enough to help the system work openly and freely for everyone’s benefit. That alone is reward enough. And then we get a check a couple of months later!  Just in time for Christmas in this case!

Not heard at any time during the day: why are the lines so long?  No, our voters came for the duty and stayed to complete it. They recognized the task as important and welcomed the lines as an indication that others cared as much as they do. That’s important. And that’s what counts in our country whether you agree with each voter or not. It is all of us doing the right thing in the best manner possible.

Congratulations for a job well done, voters. Now for the rest of you…

November 10, 2014