Poll Workers Needed

WORCESTER —  On Election Day, Susan Sereti enjoys serving as a poll worker at Webster Square Towers where she has reconnected with some old friends and met a few new ones. 

“I find it interesting and I feel good about helping some of the older folks at Webster Towers,” she said yesterday. 

But come January when the state will hold a special election to fill the seat of the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, Mrs. Sereti, 67, will be in Florida where she and her husband, Tony, recently bought a house. 

“I'm a little sorry to miss it,” said the retired nurse who has been a poll worker for the past three years. “I really enjoy doing it — I don't do it for the money,” she added, with a chuckle. 

Having some so-called snowbirds missing from their ranks in January is just one issue faced by election commissions across the state forced to stage a rare January election. 

While most local and state elections are traditionally held in September and November, election commissions find themselves having to gear up for the third election in a little more than two months. First, there was the municipal election last month, then the special primary election earlier this month to determine who will run in January to replace Mr. Kennedy, who died in August. 

While local election officials are used to having elections held in the fall, next month's special election is presenting them with a different set of challenges, with perhaps the biggest one being able to recruit enough poll workers. 

City Clerk David J. Rushford, who provides administrative and operational support to the Election Commission, confirmed many of the city poll workers are retirees who live here during the spring, summer and fall but head to points south, Florida most notably, for the winter. 

He said the Election Commission had no problems getting enough poll workers for the Dec. 8 Senate primary election because most of the “snowbirds” don't head south until after the Christmas holiday. 

As a result, he said, the Election Commission is concerned about having enough poll workers Jan. 19. 

“We will be losing a number (of poll workers) but the number of people who have stepped forward to fill those openings has been slow,” Mr. Rushford said in an interview. 

Part of the problem the Election Commission is having in recruiting replacements for the snowbirds is the length of time poll workers have to put in on Election Day and the pay they receive. 

Each of the city's 50 polling places is supposed to have one warden, one clerk and four inspectors. They are required to arrive at their polling place by 6 a.m., an hour before the polls open, and they have to remain there well after the polls close at 8 p.m. so they can complete all the necessary ballot tally work. 

In many instances, that means poll workers have to put in a day that could be as long as 15.5 hours. But there is no overtime for poll workers; they are paid a flat daily rate of $120 for wardens and clerks and $90 for inspectors. 

When broken down on an hourly basis, Mr. Rushford said, wardens and clerks end up receiving slightly more than the federal minimum wage of $7.25, while inspectors are paid less than the minimum wage. He added that what the city pays its poll workers is near the low end of the scale compared to other communities in the state. 

“The paycheck is definitely not the draw for our poll workers,” Mr. Rushford said. “They do it out of a sense of civic involvement they have.” 

In an effort to make a poll worker's schedule fit around more people's daily schedules, the Election Commission this week broached the idea of offering potential workers split shifts — instead of spending 15 hours at a polling place, people could choose to work only a half day. 

“A lot of people who might be interested in working at the polls simply cannot commit to spending an entire day there because of their schedules,” said Election Commissioner Mary Anne Dube. “Allowing people to work a split day might encourage more people to step forward.” 

Mr. Rushford said the Election Commission has occasionally allowed some split shifts when requested by individuals, but he added it has not been a policy of the commission, but rather a course of last resort. 

Election Commission Chairman John M. Stewart said while allowing poll workers to work split shifts is something that needs to be considered, he has concerns about accountability problems that could arise. 

He said there could be instances after the polls close when there are questions about balloting that occurred during the morning while there was a different set of poll workers on board. 

“It could create a very difficult situation if questions should come up about something that happened when there were different people working at a polling site,” Mr. Stewart said. “There would be no one there who could answer those questions.” 

As an alternative, Mr. Stewart suggested that wardens and clerks be required to work full shifts to maintain some form of continuity while inspectors would be allowed to work split shifts. 

While election officials intensify their efforts to staff the polls, Mrs. Sereti raised the possibility fewer voters may actually vote in person because of the time of year. 

“I've filed for an absentee ballot, but haven't received it yet. I assume they will forward it to my Florida address,” she said. “There should be an increase in absentee ballots, unless people just don't care.” 

Mr. Rushford said people interested in being poll workers for the special Senate election are encouraged to call the Election Commission office at: (508) 799-1133 or they can register on the Election Commission's Web page: www.worcesterma.gov/city-clerk/elections. 

Bonnie Russell of the Telegram & Gazette staff contributed to this report.