Behind the Scenes of an Election

The 2008 US Presidential vote is slated to become a record-breaking election in that a large number of US citizens have registered to cast their ballots in the race between Barrack Obama and John McCain. In the state of North Carolina alone, there are-by mid-October-over six million registered voters. Break that down further and in Alamance County, one of 100 NC counties, over 85,000 people are registered to vote.

This means that a large number of poll workers must be on-hand to process these voters on Election Day. However, for those who want to avoid the crowd on November 4th, early voting is available. In Alamance County, there are several places voters may go, between October 16th and November 1st, to cast their votes:

• Youth Services Building in Graham

• May Memorial Library in Burlington

• Mebane Arts and Community Center in Mebane

Although a potential voter is required to register 25 days before an election in order to vote at their precinct on Election Day, anyone who has not registered on time may visit an early voting place and register on the same day they cast their ballot.

In Alamance County, each of its 37 precincts will have a chief judge, several other judges and poll workers to assist voters on Election Day. As a judge, my day will begin early as we're required to arrive at the precinct we'll be working by 5:30 am. By the time the polls open at 6:30am-when the chief judge announces the opening of the polls-each judge and poll worker will have been sworn in and will have taken training classes appropriate for their designation. As a judge, I will have taken classes in General Training and Voting Machine Training. Plus, this election I'll be handling Provisional Voting and will have taken a special class to ensure I understand how to process voters who cast a provisional ballot. (Provisional ballots are cast when there is a question as to a voter's eligibility, such as the voter's name not appearing in the precinct's poll book).

The day before Election Day, the judges will ready the precinct so there won't be so much to do the following day before voters arrive. The voting machines will have been delivered and must be set up and checked to be sure they work. Plus, there are poll books, paper ballots, pens, signs, and other materials that must be accounted for to make sure the precinct will be ready for voters early the next day. If there are any problems or materials missing, the chief judge will contact the Alamance County Board of Elections.

On November 4th, voters will arrive to vote on iVotronic™ voting machines. Poll workers may assist voters if asked, but most of the time the voters have no problem as these touch-screen machines are self explanatory. To begin, a poll worker inserts a PEB (Personal Election Ballot) to ready the machine and the voter follows the prompts, much like the prompts used in ATM machines. After a ballot has been cast, the poll worker will ready the machine for the next voter. Each vote is recorded on an internal flash memory and will be printed out as well.

All across the country, local Boards of Election will be buzzing with activity leading up to Election Day and, especially, on Election Day. However, it doesn't stop there. In Alamance County, North Carolina, once 7:30pm arrives and the chief judges announce, "The polls are now closed," all would-be voters in line will be allowed to vote. Then, the judges will prepare certain materials to be transmitted to the Board of Elections. By now, poll workers will have worked a minimum of 14 hours. Depending on the number of people in line when the polls close and how long it takes to pack up and transport materials, the day for some could be much longer.

Working the polls during an election is a great way to see and experience a part of what goes on 'behind the scenes' of an election. I encourage you to give it a try. Working an election day at the polls, while it may be long, is also exciting. Just be sure to pack a lunch!

Contact the Alamance County Board of Elections at 336-570-6755 for more information.