U.S. Election Assistance Commission

WASHINGTON- U.S. Election Assistance Commission Chair Rosemary E. Rodriguez today renewed her call for citizens to serve their community and their country by volunteering as poll workers.

“Our country needs two million poll workers this Election Day to assist the record number of voters we expect to participate. The success of elections depends on the effective mobilization of this massive, temporary one-day workforce,” said Chair Rodriguez. “Poll workers who are bilingual or have a facility with technology are also needed.”

During the last presidential election, 5.8 percent of polling places and 4 percent of precincts among jurisdictions reporting data indicated they had shortages of poll workers, according to the EAC’s 2004 Election Day Survey.

“We all have a role to play on November 4th – election officials, civic groups and citizens – in ensuring our election goes smoothly. For citizens, that role includes volunteering as a poll worker, and in two easy steps, you can sign up to serve.”

Those two steps require finding out if you are eligible to serve, and then calling your local election office to sign up. Contact information for every state is available at www.eac.gov.

Step one: Determine the poll worker requirements. State poll worker requirements on age, residency and party affiliation vary. Some states also require poll workers to be registered to vote in that state.

Step two: After confirming eligibility, contact the local election office to sign up to serve as a poll worker.

Poll workers check-in voters, issue regular or provisional ballots, and provide instructions on how to use voting equipment. They keep lines moving and ensure every voter who is on the registration list, or believes they should be on the list, is given the opportunity to cast a ballot.

In addition to a list of state poll worker requirements, the EAC provides training videos for election officials and poll workers on how to manage a polling place. These videos demonstrate how to keep lines moving, make polling places accessible for those with disabilities and prepare for emergencies. The EAC has also published a poll worker recruitment and training manual for election officials and civic organizations. These resources are available at www.eac.gov.

The EAC is an independent commission created by the Help America Vote Act (HAVA). The EAC serves as a national clearinghouse and resource of information regarding election administration. It is charged with administering payments to states and developing guidance to meet HAVA requirements, adopting voluntary voting system guidelines, and accrediting voting system test laboratories and certifying voting equipment. It is also charged with developing and maintaining a national mail voter registration form. The four EAC commissioners are Rosemary Rodriguez, chair; Donetta Davidson, vice chair; Gracia Hillman and Gineen Beach.