Every Election Day, millions of Americans walk into their local polling place, show their identification, receive a ballot, make their choices and go about their day.
For most of us, the entire process takes only a few minutes.
What we don’t often think about are the people who make those few minutes possible.
They are our local election workers — our neighbors, friends and fellow citizens who get up before sunrise, spend long hours at township halls, schools, churches and community centers, and stay until the last ballot is accounted for.
They aren’t famous. They aren’t highly paid. Most will never have their names in the newspaper.
But our democracy couldn’t function without them.
I’ve spent most of my life in the newspaper business, and one thing I’ve learned is that government works best when people participate at the local level. That is particularly true when it comes to elections.
We hear plenty about presidential candidates, governors, senators and members of Congress. But elections aren’t actually conducted in Washington. In Michigan, they are conducted by local clerks and election workers in communities like Clare, Harrison, Paw Paw, Mattawan, Three Rivers, Sturgis, Allegan, Berrien Springs and hundreds of other cities, villages and townships.
These are ordinary people doing an extraordinary public service.
Election workers check registrations, issue ballots, explain procedures, assist voters, operate voting equipment, keep records and make sure election laws are followed. When the polls close, their work isn’t finished. Ballots must be secured, totals must be documented and materials must be accounted for according to established procedures.
Michigan’s election workers also have to adapt to changes in election law and procedures. Early voting and expanded absentee voting have increased the number of days and hours during which trained election workers may be needed. Elections are no longer simply a matter of staffing the polls for one Tuesday.
That makes recruiting people willing to do this work more important than ever.
Unfortunately, election workers have increasingly found themselves caught in the middle of our political arguments.
That’s unfair.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with questioning government. Newspapers do it every week. Citizens should demand transparency, accountability and accurate elections. We should insist that election laws be followed and that every legitimate vote is counted correctly.
But questioning the process is very different from attacking the people who administer it.
The person sitting behind the table at your township hall isn’t responsible for whatever controversy is dominating cable television or social media. In most cases, he or she is your neighbor who agreed to work a very long day because somebody has to do it.
Election workers come from different backgrounds and hold different political beliefs. Republicans work alongside Democrats. Independents and people who aren’t particularly political participate as well.
That’s a good thing.
Confidence in our elections shouldn’t depend upon trusting one political party or another. It should come from having clear rules, transparency, safeguards and citizens from across the community participating in the process.
And that’s where I think more of us can help.
If you’ve ever questioned how our elections are conducted, consider becoming an election worker.
Don’t just read about elections on Facebook. Don’t rely exclusively on cable television commentators or politicians to tell you what happens inside a polling place.
Go see it yourself.
Contact your city or township clerk and ask about becoming an election worker. Take the training. Spend a day working at the polls. Learn how voters are checked in, how ballots are issued, how voting equipment operates and how ballots and records are handled.
You might come away impressed with the process. You might also discover things you think could be improved.
Either way, your opinion will be based on firsthand experience rather than something somebody posted online.
Michigan needs these volunteers.
Many of our communities are small. We don’t have unlimited numbers of government employees available to staff elections. Local democracy depends heavily upon citizens willing to give their time.
And it’s getting harder to find enough of them.
Long hours are certainly part of the problem. Election work requires training and patience, and dealing with an increasingly polarized electorate isn’t always easy. But if good people decide the job isn’t worth the aggravation, all of us lose.
Our country was never intended to be a spectator democracy.
Self-government requires participation. It requires people willing to serve on school boards and township boards, volunteer for fire departments, sit on juries, attend public meetings and help conduct elections.
So here’s my challenge to our readers.
If you’re retired and have some time, consider becoming an election worker.
If you’re younger and have never participated beyond casting a ballot, consider doing it.
If you’re a Republican who worries about election integrity, volunteer.
If you’re a Democrat who worries about protecting voting rights, volunteer.
If you’re an independent who is tired of listening to both sides argue, volunteer.
We need all of you.
And the next time you vote, take a moment to look at the people sitting behind those tables.
Many arrived before you woke up. Some won’t get home until late that night. Some have been doing this election after election for decades.
Thank them.
We can disagree about candidates. We can argue passionately about policies. We can debate Michigan’s election laws and demand that our elections be secure, transparent and fair.
That’s democracy.
But we should also recognize the thousands of ordinary Michigan citizens who quietly make Election Day possible.
Democracy doesn’t run itself.
Sometimes it runs because your neighbor got up at 5 a.m., poured a cup of coffee and headed down to the township hall to do his or her part.
Michigan needs more people willing to do that.
And for those who already do, we owe them our thanks.
