SLO County Elections Office needs March 5 poll workers 

Dan Beck, a temporary employee at the San Luis Obispo County Elections Office has been committed to performing his civic duty since 2008.

He's helped out as a poll worker for almost 16 years and had a similar experience in Santa Barbara County before that. He told New Times that his favorite part is all of it.

"I just want to make sure people have a chance to vote and have no issues," he said.

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• Photo Courtesy Of San Luis Obispo County-clerk Recorder's Office
• SEASONED AND CONSISTENT With almost 16 years of experience as a local poll worker, SLO County Elections Office temporary employee Dan Beck (left) said that he wants to make sure people have a chance to vote without any hiccups.

Beck previously worked as a precinct inspector during his poll worker stint with SLO County. Now, he's a precinct assistant who oversees all the inspectors of the precincts he's assigned to. Just as he's done in every prior election cycle, Beck will now train a new batch of poll workers in March while they help with the primary.

SLO County's Elections Office issued a final call for poll workers on Jan. 16. Those selected will set up precincts before polls open, help voters when they sign in, issue ballots, accept vote-by-mail ballots cast in person, and pack up and account for ballots and supplies when polls close at 8 p.m. on March 5.

County Clerk-Recorder Elaina Cano told New Times that the county has recruited 400 poll workers as of Jan. 18. They need between 100 and 150 more people. Interested community members can apply on slovote.com/pollworkers, contact the program coordinator at [email protected] or call (805) 781-4989.

County resident Leo Kennedy helped people file their ballots at a Paso Robles church in 2022.

"There were two precincts in the same building, so we had to sort out which precinct," he said. "Sometimes people would want a paper ballot. They didn't want to use a mail-in ballot."

Kennedy told New Times that national stories about the plight of election workers made him want to sign up.

"It was all the hubbub about voting and threats to people who were poll workers, and it felt like I had a duty to go down and be there," he said. "It's not like I wanted to be brave and go down there and stand up to anybody. It was more like, 'What the heck is going on here?'"

The four hours Kennedy worked turned out to be peaceful but busy, he said, because of the thinning and swelling number of voters throughout the day. But the county helped him and the other poll workers prepare for the rush through training sessions.

For Kennedy, the most eye-opening element of being a poll worker was the county's security level.

"You have to know how many ballots the precinct gets," he said. "It's complicated. There's zip ties on everything. If you want to open a box, you have to snip the zip tie, get authorization to put a note in there that explains something, then put another zip tie on. Just the security over making sure there aren't any stray ballots going around was really surprising to me."

Those who work as clerks on March 5 will receive $48.50 for a half day's work and $97 for a full day. The county will pay people working as inspectors between $117 and $142 depending on the assignment. All clerks and inspectors who attend the training session will receive an extra $20.

The County-Clerk Recorder's Office encourages high schoolers to apply too. They must be at least 16 years old, attend a public or private high school, and have a minimum 2.5 GPA. Cano said that students who maintain that GPA requirement or higher usually show high personal responsibility and commitment to their work, which are crucial traits to succeed as a poll worker.

"However, although GPA is a useful indicator, there may be circumstances that could be taken into consideration should a student possess other outstanding qualities to be a poll worker but does not have the required GPA," she said. "It would be on a case-by-case basis and a conversation would be required between myself, the student, the parent, and/or a school administrator."

The ideal poll worker, according to Cano, is neutral, unbiased, and doesn't let their political preferences favor any party, candidate, or voting method.

"They should be able to follow the instructions provided to them during training and ask questions to ensure that mistakes aren't made," she said. "They should be able to be respectful of all voters, regardless of their background or political preference.

"Most importantly, they should have a strong commitment to the democratic process and a desire to contribute to fair and free elections."

Fast fact

• Science fans ages 21 years and older can enjoy the Science After Dark lecture series at the Central Coast Aquarium on the last Tuesday of every month through May. Attendees can enjoy local wine and appetizers from 6 to 6:45 p.m. Meteorologist John Lindsey will conduct the lectures at 7 p.m. Register at centralcoastaquarium.square.site. Δ

Reach Staff Writer Bulbul Rajagopal at [email protected].