I'm a poll worker in the Atlanta area and I'm already looking forward to the election.
The Georgia State Elections Board has become partisan and is now made up mostly of (unelected) 2020 election deniers. Their job is to set rules for poll workers and elections, and they have done so with gusto: new, more complicated ones are added every year Rules, some of which conflict with their older, more antiquated rules. But last month they outdid themselves. The Republican-controlled board's latest rule allows county officials to delay certification if poll workers don't fully comply with its long list of new and old rules – irregularities they can call “misdemeanors.” And if that wasn't intimidating enough, the board also voted on this survey observerThese watchdogs, who volunteer from both the right and the left, should have closer physical access – even if most have only had two hours of training, although most are not familiar enough with the protocol to know how ” should look “normal”.
I don't know how to interpret Georgia's new law or what exactly it means by “irregularity” or “misconduct.” I suspect no one does.
Here's what most people forget. We pollsters are not professionals. Georgia's vast army of poll workers report for duty only about three days a year and are paid about $7.25 an hour. Every time we come in the rules have changed, so we train for eight hours to learn the new protocols. Election Day itself, including setup and dismantling, begins at 5:30 a.m. and ends at 9:00 p.m., two hours later when you, as the manager, drop off the ballots at the regional office. Most of us are retired and many are older (read: not tech-oriented). The main reason most of us do this is wonderfully quaint: We want our state to have smooth, viable elections.
And yet. Things go wrong all the time.
Suppose the school janitor oversleeps and doesn't unlock the polling station doors in time to set up. Suppose the power goes out on the morning of the election. Let's say Georgia lawmakers rearrange polling places in urban areas to such an extent that voters end up confused and upset. Suppose a nefarious organization sends fraudulent letters “informing” voters that their precinct has moved to an incorrect location. Say you can't get set up on time because the gym needs to be cleaned. (Don't ask. It's about third graders, cupcakes, and voting machines worth thousands of dollars.) Say that two counties have similar names and that there's a rush. Programmers in the understaffed, overloaded election office are programming the software incorrectly (supposed to be District A in District B or is it the other way around?) Suppose this error results in every single one of your 7 a.m. voters being incorrectly classified as “out of district.” Suppose a pandemic breaks out unexpectedly and your team must work to protect older workers and constituents. And my favorite: Suppose ten Dominion voting machines go missing the night before the election. (You'll find them later in the closet where the school stores cafeteria tables. My theory: The teachers were so focused on the fifth grade graduation parade Monday morning – imagine parents, grandparents, and little girls in white dresses – that one of them said, “What are all these big old machines doing on my parade route?” They went into the closet and were completely forgotten by Monday afternoon.)
All of this has happened in my area in the last five years. My point: There are always irregularities.
And poll workers aren’t perfect. One of them puts on a sweater and accidentally covers her name tag (not allowed). Another is showing a new person how to work at the check-in station (not allowed). Another tells a nonprofit that they can put their food bank inside the building to be protected from the rain (which is not allowed). And at some point during the 15-hour workday, it happens that you all accidentally come into contact with each other (also not allowed). Likewise, the clerks socialize with voters (you guessed it: not allowed), which at worst is like being smothered in grandmas. (“Baby, what does that say on your shirt? Is that some kind of barbecue, baby? Or does it have something to do with that football team? Because my son goes to every game.”)
And that doesn't even take into account the many honest mistakes that can and do happen when filling out mountains of embarrassing paperwork after a 16-hour day.
And yes, those election observers are there all the time, bored, cross-eyed and eager to record anything they might consider an irregularity. After all, that is their job.
I don't know how to interpret Georgia's new law or what exactly it means by “irregularity” or “misconduct.” I suspect no one does. But I do know this: Given the constant redistricting in urban areas, anyone who looks closely can and will find districts where protocols are not followed perfectly. If the CA has the power to decide which of these violations should be considered “misconduct,” then God help us all.
When county officials withhold results for certain counties, It is likely to undermine trust, create instability and harm outcomes in court. Worst case scenario: Results from Georgia cannot be certified By the federal deadline of December 11, the state's voters are disenfranchised and our 16 electoral votes cannot be counted for either side.
And I'll still cringe.
Editor's note: This article is part of US Democracy Day, a nationwide collaboration on September 15, the International Day of Democracy, in which news organizations report on how democracy works and the threats it faces. To learn more, visit usdemocracyday.org.
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