Marietta, OH - Although the November elections are far away, Peggy Byers, Director for the Washington County Board of Elections thinks about them all year. There are different filing deadlines and reports before and after. One of the biggest jobs, however, is to make sure there are enough poll workers for election day.
     Series of informational meetings will begin next week. She says there is a lot more to being a pollworker than people may think.
     According to a news release, every Election Day, thousands of Ohioans play an important role in our democracy by helping to operate polling places. These Precinct Election Officials (P.E.O.s) work hard to ensure their neighbors can vote with ease on Election Day, while helping to safeguard the process so all Ohioans can have confidence in the results.

To become a Precinct Election Official in Ohio:

  • You must be at least 17 years of age and registered to vote
  • You must be a registered voter in the county in which you plan to work as a P.E.O.
  • You must not have been convicted of a felony
  • You cannot be running as a candidate for the election in which you are working

What are the benefits?

  • It is a great way to learn, serve and earn extra spending money in the process (more than $100 for the day in most counties).
  • You can gain a better understanding of the election and voting process.
  • You can feel pride for serving your community and help democracy work by making sure every voter can vote.

Keep in mind:

  • All P.E.O.s are required to attend a training session scheduled by your county board of elections prior to the election.
  • You can expect to work from about 5:30 a.m. (polls are open at 6:30) until 8:30 p.m. (polls close at 7:30), though working hours vary from county to county.

Here is the schedule of meetings:
Tuesday, May 15 at 10 AM at Washington County Public Library in Marietta
Wednesday, May 16 at 2 PM at the Barlow Library
Thursday, May 17 at 10 AM at the Belpre Library
Thursday, May 17 at 2 PM at the New Matamoras library
Thursday, May 31 at 10 AM at the Beverly library

The plan is to talk about:
Checking  to see if you are registered, how do I register, what are the requirements?
Acquaint the audience with all the useful tools on our website - results, elected officials, forms, etc.
Tell them how to get their ballot when they are away from home
Recruit new poll workers