Convened by the American Association for the
Advancement of Science
Main | Participants
The League of Women Voters is interested in the design and operation
of the 21st Century polling place.
The League believes there is need for research to establish
baseline date on current practices (which might be called the 20th
Century polling place), with particular emphasis on how minorities (racial,
ethnic, language, disability and age) move through the polling process
and on those practices that improve both efficiency and the voter’s perception
of the voting experience.
The polling place is where most election processes come
together. A well-managed polling place with well-trained workers is vital,
on Election Day and as part of the early voting process in many states.
Often, too little direct attention is paid to this issue. We have more
than 200,000 polling places staffed by 1.4 million poll workers, many
of whom receive modest training. The polling place is where workers organize
the polling process and manage the equipment, assist voters with new machines,
ensure the proper handling of provisional ballots and deal with sometimes
confusing check-in and verification procedures. Polling place management
is central to the election process.
Two major areas would benefit from research: organization
and training.
Polling place organization might focus on such issues
as:
1) the
flow of voters through the process, including check-in, verification.,
voting, second-chance-voting, and trouble shooting;
2) the
number and type of machines needed to deal with capacity (including the
number of voters and the type and length of ballot);
3) the
number and assignments of poll workers and supervisors; and
4) back-up
systems in case of problems (ballots, workers, etc.).
Training and supervision for the polling place might
focus on such issues as:
1) types
of skills needed for various tasks at the polling place;
2) training
requirements and methods for those types of skills;
3) supervisor
skills and training;
4) performance
standards for poll workers and supervisors; and
5) post-election
audits of polling place performance.
With research on current practices in these areas, followed
by an examination both of current best practices and new models, the next
steps could then be taken to develop the 21st Century polling
place.
Submitted by Lloyd Leonard
Senior Director for Advocacy
League of Women Voters of the
United States
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