Elections office does its best
Since the April 26 primary election, there have been a few editorials criticizing Washington County Elections Office and poll workers who dedicate their time and efforts to making sure our elections are fair and unbiased. While I understand voter frustration with the last-minute changes to the voting process, people need to understand that these decisions were the result of court cases and legislative decisions and not because of the elections office or any poll workers.
What I do take issue with is a letter to the editor that appeared on May 4 criticizing the poll workers for supposedly not providing correct voter information. While I don’t know what polling location that person voted at, I can tell you that, as the judge of elections for our precinct, we were provided with numerous signs and forms explaining the changes to the ballots for the primary election. That information was placed in several locations within the polling location, including right at the table the voters signed in at. Additionally, I explained to every Democratic voter the reason and purpose of the paper ballot and how that vote would be counted. I also explained to all voters the change on the constitutional question, even though the information was right in front of them to read.
I know that not all precincts may have been as thorough in their explanation to voters, but I believe that all of us who dedicate our time to the process do our best to make sure voters have the information they need to have their vote properly counted.
Every cycle for the last 10 years, I’ve seen the elections office put out requests for people to help at the polls. There have been articles in the newspaper, notices posted in various locations, and yet the office has been shorthanded season after season. The elections office has gotten creative in trying to fill the holes and to bring new and younger people into the process. I commend them for that.
Why is it that people feel it is OK to criticize the process and those who work to ensure fair elections, but are the last ones to offer to help fix the issues? We do the best we can with the staffing we have. I’ve not heard any complaints from our precinct in over 10 years, but with the number of precincts throughout the county, I’m sure there are plenty of locations that would benefit from the help.
Richard Ward
McDonald
Ward is judge of elections for Washington County’s Third Precinct.