Poll Workers - Global

An SNHU Global Days of Service Official Project

Event details: March 1-April 30, 2024 | DIY

Learn more: Members of the SNHU community volunteered in various capacities to ensure local and state elections ran smoothly. Poll workers play a crucial role in ensuring the strength and integrity of the voting process. As a poll worker, during the early voting period or on Election Day, there are different volunteer roles available. While your responsibilities will vary by jurisdiction and position, there are certain aspects of working at the polls that you can count on:

• You will be trained by election staff in the county or municipality in which you’re working. They will give you an overview of election rules, your responsibilities, and common situations that you may encounter at the polls. This training may take place either in-person or online, and will likely last a few hours.
• Poll workers help prepare their polling place for Election Day. You may be asked to report early on Election Day to assist in setting up the location before voters arrive.
• During your shift, you will interact with voters. You may be in charge of greeting voters, ensuring orderly lines, checking in voters to receive their ballot, or helping voters who request assistance.
• When the polls close, anyone in line at the closing time will be permitted to cast their vote. As a poll worker, you must remain at the polling location during your shift. Some jurisdictions allow poll workers to work part of the day, but others require them to remain for the entire day.
• After the polls close, you may be asked to help with cleaning up the polling place or securing and transferring voting materials to local election officials. Some poll workers may deliver ballots to a designated location.
• After that, you are free to leave and enjoy watching the results unfold, with the knowledge that you played an integral part in making the election possible.

Most states recruit poll workers by county or municipality. Visit https://workelections.org/states/ if you're interested in learning more. Not sure when your next election is? Search for your state at https://www.usa.gov/when-to-vote.

Please note: details on age requirements, training, shifts, voter registration requirements, and compensation will vary based on location. Volunteering for election work or voting campaigns that do not have party affiliations is an acceptable use of SNHU's Volunteer Time Off (VTO) Program. Review any VTO requirements with your employer.

Meet your project leader: Alumnus John Wescott '15 is your volunteer project leader for this event. If you have general questions about SNHU Global Days of Service, please contact Alumni Engagement. Check out more ways to get engaged with the SNHU community!

Share your story: Remember to use #ServeWithSNHU to join the movement and share your experience on social media. Please report your hours served and provide us with more details on the Share My Story page.

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