Election Officer Duties

During the day, election officers should be prepared to perform the following duties:

  • GREET VOTERS & MONITOR DROP BOX: An officer, often referred to as a greeter, should be stationed near the voting room entrance. They greet voters and confirm they are in the right polling place, remind voters to have their ID out and ready, and direct voters to review the sample ballot before checking in. This person should answer any voter questions before they get to the check-in table. This officer should also monitor the absentee ballot drop box, if it is stationed outside the voting room.
  • CHECK-IN VOTERS: Officers stationed at the check-in tables will use the Poll Pads to check in voters. There is usually one check-in officer per Poll Pad.
  • ISSUE BALLOTS: After a voter is checked in, an officer will issue them a ballot in a privacy folder and provide instructions on how to mark the ballot.
  • MONITOR VOTING BOOTHS & VOTING MACHINES: An officer should be stationed near the voting booths and machines to direct voters. If a voter has questions about how to mark their ballot, they may ask this officer. This officer should also maintain any line that forms at the DS200 scanners. They stand at least 5 feet away from the scanner at all times for the privacy of voters and should not look at a voter’s ballot for any reason.
  • ASSIST AT EXPRESSVOTE: An officer should guide a voter who chooses to vote with the ExpressVote to the machine. The officer should provide instructions and be prepared to show the voter the ExpressVote’s features.
  • ASSIST CURBSIDE VOTERS: If you have a voter who is voting curbside, officers will take a Poll Pad outside to check-in the voter. They will issue a ballot to the voter, and then return to the voting room to cast the ballot on the DS200 scanner.

As you take turns performing these duties throughout the voting day, remember that your job is to efficiently process routine voters, who will be more than 95% of all voters. If you encounter a non-routine voter, just send them to the Chief or Assistant Chief!