Beaufort Co. needs 600 poll workers in November. What if there aren’t enough?
Carolyn Shamlin and her friends take democracy seriously.
As in, work every single election from sun-up to sun-down, seriously.
And this year, Beaufort County needs a lot more people like Shamlin and her friends. The county is hurting for poll workers for the November presidential election as groups around the country advocate for mass voter turnout and raise the alarm about suppression.
The county is advertising the paid poll worker positions to account for a group of older poll workers who are opting out this year to stay safe during the coronavirus pandemic.
Shamlin, who is 75 and retired, said her friends who worked the June 9 primary felt on edge throughout the 12-hour shift interacting with hundreds of people.
“At the time, the governor wasn’t requiring masks ... I did not agree to do it because yes, I was concerned that there was no mask requirement,” she said. “This time our town council is requiring masks.”
During the June 9 primary, poll workers told The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette that they were worried about the pandemic, but also that they wouldn’t have enough workers to keep up with the number of people expected to vote in November.
Residents of all ages, from high school students to retirees, work the polls. There’s a sense of camaraderie among poll workers, as the older workers coach the younger ones on how to set up polling stations and when to take down the posters (it cannot be before 7 p.m., as one teenager at Joseph S. Shanklin Elementary learned the hard way last year).
“We’re very committed to it,” Shamlin said. “I really believe in voting. I really want everyone to vote.”
But the pandemic is challenging for the most dedicated group of poll workers: Those over 60 years old.
In the 2018 general election, the U.S. Election Assistance Commission found that 58% of poll workers were over 60, an age group at higher risk for complications due to COVID-19, NPR reported.
Poll worker shortage
In the June primary, Wendell Roberson, deputy director of the Board of Elections, said the state recommended that Beaufort County have 414 poll workers.
They had just 286, Roberson said.
Still, he said things ran smoothly because the primary was a smaller election. In November, it will be quite different.
Aside from the presidential election, 25 local races are on the ballot.
Roberson estimates the county will need around 600 poll workers to keep things moving. He said numbers of poll workers are in flux, and whether people agree to work in September and October is “going to be based on their feelings and anxieties” leading up to the election.
A shortage of poll workers could mean longer lines at polling places, threatening voter turnout. Fewer poll workers also could lead to slower results reporting for Beaufort County, which is traditionally one of the last in the state to report election-night results.
As the national conversation about the election focuses on fears of voter suppression and the coronavirus pandemic, the board of elections has also added a place on Hilton Head Island to vote absentee, according to Kristina Weitz.
The Beaufort County Government Center, located at 539 William Hilton Parkway, will open as an absentee voting center starting in early October. Registered voters will be able to go to the center, apply to vote absentee and fill out an absentee ballot in order to avoid driving to Bluffton or Beaufort to vote absentee.
More information about the Hilton Head absentee center is coming from the board of elections in the coming weeks, Weitz said.
Poll worker pay, hiring in Beaufort County
Poll workers in Beaufort County get paid $165 to work Election Day.
You have to be at least 16 years old and be registered to vote in South Carolina.
To work, you must register and complete and online training. You can do that at the South Carolina election commission website.
Personal protective equipment will be provided to poll workers, according to the board of elections.
