Community Government

In the Margins | Elections workers are democracy’s foot soldiers

Posted on August 22nd, 2024 By: Chris Phillips

During the final months of any presidential election cycle, it’s tempting to grow cynical about politics and the process we use to propel our democracy. My own Grinch-like outlook toward elections began during the 1980s when, as a community reporter and editor here in Gig Harbor, I stayed glued to my desk into the wee hours while awaiting partial vote counts to emerge from calculator-armed crews at county headquarters.

Occasionally, it was exciting, but mostly it was a laborious waiting game dependent on a methodical (aka slow) system of vote collection and counting. Equipped with junk food and a blank computer screen, I found myself mired between the opposing forces of relentless press deadlines and painstaking vote counts.

Then, during the 1990s, the Peninsula School District suffered a series of disheartening tax levy failures that deepened my grouchiness. Just as my kids were entering elementary school, local voters chose to repeatedly withhold support from our public schools. Some blamed a growing demographic of senior citizens who no longer had kids “in the system.” But I could tell that the temporary contagion of “no” votes was broader than any one age group.

Thankfully, our community’s allergic reaction to school tax levies was short-lived. Last year, more than 64% of voters backed a three-year tax levy supporting Peninsula School District’s programs and operations. A simultaneous but separate tax levy for technology and security systems earned a similarly robust nod from local voters.

Tip-toeing back into the election process

Eventually, I too realized that my own election-season cynicism was mostly a selfish excuse for not being able to have information when I wanted it. I’ll blame it on that newsroom junk food. I also realized I was not engaging enough in a process that can be both painful and empowering — sometimes both.

In my experience, most cynicism is usually a result of a reluctance to engage or understand something that’s difficult, uncooperative, or uncomfortable. Elections can be all of the above.

On the warm evening of Aug. 6, our 2024 Primary Election Day, I tip-toed back into our election procedures at the grassroots level. Since I am no longer tied to a desk or deadlines, I wanted to test my gut response to the inner workings of the election process.

After agonizingly researching and filling out a lengthy primary ballot, I was within an hour of the cutoff for ballot submissions. I drove swiftly (mostly legally) out to Nichols Community Center on Fox Island, where the slot of a newly relocated public ballot box was open for business until 8 pm. I deposited my vote with 20 minutes to spare.

While visiting the drop box, I chatted with Bob “Stubby” Huey, a recent acquaintance of mine and a fellow gray-haired gent who now works seasonally as a Pierce County election worker. He and his work partner were preparing to close the ballot box, collect voters’ ballots, and securely transport them to the Pierce County Elections Department in Tacoma.

Bob “Stubby” Huey helps manage some of the 55+ ballot drop boxes throughout Pierce County. Photo by Chris Phillips

Scouting for our votes

Bob is one the vest-wearing, authorized election scouts who helps manage more than 55 community drop boxes and collects ballots for Pierce County Elections. Up to 300 election workers, most seasonal or part-time, can be enlisted in the overall election process during a high-volume year like 2024. Fewer are needed during interim years. The county Elections Department employs 13 full-time staffers to maintain the system and keep voters’ records current.

Bob, who retired a decade ago after 27 years of teaching art and photography classes at Goodman Middle School, has been a part-time election worker for eight years. He gets assigned to drop box locations ranging from Eatonville to Longbranch. He loves the work and relishes being part of a process that serves a vital community need.

“I like doing this. Ninety-nine percent of the time we get a lot of appreciation,” he said. “This year for the general election, we will be going out to the boxes every day. It’s going to a high-traffic election.”

Closing time at the ballot box

Bob’s brief encounters with voters are usually cordial and rewarding. He recalls once receiving an angry one-finger salute from a bitter passerby who apparently was sorting through some Grinch issues. But his next encounter was with a pair of 20-something Asian women who came to the voting box with their mother. They were so excited that they asked Bob to capture their moment with a photo. Bob took the family’s photo and immediately forgot about the earlier grouch.

During my brief time on Fox Island, voters arrived in a steady stream as the 8 p.m. deadline approached. Some wore the stoic faces of someone just wanting to complete a diligent task. Others were beaming with pride, like Fox Island resident Tamar Mar, who said she was dropping off her 18-year-old’s first-ever vote.

Fox Islander Tamar Mar drops off her ballot and includes her 18-year-old’s first-ever vote.

A few voters arrived late, only to learn that the deadline is unforgiving. Once the election workers lock the box at 8 p.m., latecomers are not accepted. No exceptions. Bob and his partner carefully transfer the ballots into specially designed cargo boxes, which are sealed and photographed for transport in marked Pierce County vehicles.

“You have to have a cut-off for voting,” said Bob. He said he was unloading sealed tote boxes at county headquarters one night at 10:30 p.m., when someone stopped by to add their ballot to the incoming stream. No go. “Those won’t get counted,” he said.

On Fox Island, the latecomers accepted the rejections with a resigned nod, no debate. Like me, they made a mental note to avoid cutting it so close. Missing out on the primary is one thing; missing the general election would really sting.

Decades of voting by drop box or mailbox

In Pierce County, our voting by either drop box or mailbox has been humming along nicely since the county first experimented with mailed ballots from the ferry-dependent residents on Anderson Island in the 1980s. By the early 2000s, some 80% of voters opted for voting via mail when given a choice between remote or in-person polling places. By 2005, our state gave all counties the option of conducting elections entirely by mail. In 2011, state legislators enacted vote-by-mail as a statewide requirement; all but one county had already made the change.

Today, about 75% of voters in Pierce County opt to use the Election Department’s dedicated drop boxes rather than the U.S. postage system. “They like the drop box program,” said Kyle Haugh, elections manager at the Pierce County Auditor’s Office. “I don’t see any real evidence of people wanting to move away from this method of voting.”

If voter volume and turnout are any indications, he’s right. Pierce County now includes nearly 559,000 registered voters, a 14% increase in the number of registered voters since 2016.

Expect a high turnout

In the 2020 presidential election, our county saw its highest-ever voter turnout when a whopping 82.3% of voters dropped a ballot into the box. That year’s turnout was about 6% higher than the average voter turnout (77.8%) generated during the past 10 presidential election years (1984-2020). Only twice since 1976 has Pierce County voter turnout surpassed the 80% mark. In 2008, when Barack Obama defeated John McCain, we saw 81.2% turnout in Pierce County.

A local voter at Nichols Community Center seals and submits his ballot with minutes to spare before the 8 pm cutoff. Photo by Chris Phillips

Kyle expects another robust showing this November. When I asked him to predict upcoming election turnout, he said he anticipates 75-80% of voters will participate. I’m betting he might even be a hair low. Based on my entirely unofficial survey of local pub patrons, I’ll wager a pale ale that we might again surpass the 80% mark.

The combination of high turnout numbers and a ballot brimming with significant federal, state and local choices means that Kyle, Bob and their cohorts will be scrambling come November. Kyle, who moved here from another elections job in West Virginia six years ago, is confident that our local elections systems can withstand the influx.

Small talk: Seahawks vs. Raiders

Both Bob and Kyle explained that election workers make a point to check their politics at the door when working as part of the process. “We really don’t talk about politics at all. We tend to talk about the weather or sports — things like the Seahawks vs. Raiders,” said Kyle. (Beware, that latter topic can make a bitter political debate feel like child’s play.)

Kyle emphasized that the Elections Department welcomes public observers during the vote compilation process. Some improvements to operational signage and clearer visibility of the vote-handling process have been introduced based on feedback from observers.

“People want to scrutinize what we are doing, and rightfully so,” he said.

The Elections Department also works to safeguard the vote. When asked about added security measures, Kyle opts for generalities. “Let’s just say we do a lot of things to increase security by working with law enforcement and the post office,” he said.

In November 2023, the Elections Department received a mailing of suspicious white powder and was forced to treat the incident as a potential threat. After a three-hour closure, police cleared the building and identified the incident as a hoax that originated from out of state. Workers were given the choice to go home or work; they went back to work.

A salute to the foot soldiers

My rushed visit to the drop box on Fox Island reminded me of the importance of our election workers. Bob and his co-workers are the unsung foot soldiers who allow our messy but essential democratic process to function.

It’s shameful when activists of any partisan ideology decide to take out their Grinch-like frustrations on workers who are essentially allowing each of us to have a vote and voice. Fortunately, from my brief glimpse of the process, our election workers in Pierce County receive mostly words or waves of gratitude from local voters.

Once the drop box is closed, all collected ballots are sealed in totes and transported directly to the county Elections Department. Photo by Chris Phillips

As for me, my grouchy attitude toward election season has been relegated to the distant past. Like the Grinch, I have learned how to better appreciate those things that are difficult, uncooperative, or uncomfortable.

Now, what can we do about all those obnoxious campaign signs and mailers that clog our intersections and mailboxes? Well, maybe I still have some work to do when it comes to this democracy stuff.