State workers needed to assist with Nov. 3 election
This message is from Joel Brennan, Secretary, Department of Administration:
Citizen involvement is essential to our election process, and with the potential spread of COVID-19, we anticipate many veteran poll workers who faithfully serve every election day may not serve this year due to their age and high risk to COVID-19 exposure. With as many as 30,000 poll workers needed to support an election, many Wisconsin cities, towns, and villages are looking for volunteers to assist with the November 3, 2020 election. This administration values and encourages employees to participate in this election if their local government unit needs assistance, and I am asking you to please consider helping your local government election process during the COVID-19 health emergency.
State employees who are able and who are not at high risk themselves are encouraged to work as a local poll worker on November 3. State HR policies provide that you may serve as an election official on state time without loss of pay. State employees may be paid for their normal work schedule on the day the employee works as a poll worker; additional hours are encouraged on a voluntary, unpaid basis. See more about your options as a state employee who serves as a poll worker. Interested state employees will then be matched to a need in one of the communities within the county in which they reside.
To be a poll worker, a person must:
- Be a qualified elector of the county in which the municipality is located (i.e., an adult citizen of the United States who has resided in the election district for 10 consecutive days and is not otherwise disqualified to vote)
- Be at least 17 years-old
- Be able to read and write fluently in the English language
- NOT be a candidate for any office to be voted on at the polling place at that election.
Poll workers do everything from check-in voters, help people register to vote, check photo IDs and process absentee ballots. See more details from the Wisconsin Elections Commission. Your local clerk will provide you with training prior to election day for the job you will be doing. Please note the Wisconsin Elections Commission and the Department of Health Services have developed protocols to make the polls as safe as possible for voters and poll workers.
This is a great opportunity for State employees to get involved with the democratic process!
If you are interested in serving as a poll worker in your county, we ask you to take the following actions:
- Contact your municipal clerk’s office, which you can find at MyVote Wisconsin. Enter you address in the search fields and the system will tell you who your municipal clerk is and provide a phone number and email address. Put “Poll Worker Applicant” in the email subject line so that your clerk will be able to easily sort the requests.
- Please complete the survey no later than Oct. 2, 2020. This will help us better identify and manage poll worker needs.
Thank you for your service to the State.
