Politics & Government

Lists of Village Poll Workers Could be Politically Stacked

The clerks for both Sturtevant and Mount Pleasant confirm they received names of potential poll workers from Bill Folk, chair of the Republican Party of Racine County.

If the recall elections and the 2012 election cycle weren't interesting enough for you, lists of village poll workers could be politically stacked.

It appears both parties are taking advantage of a little-known state law that allows the political parties to submit lists of poll workers to municipal clerks. The clerks are required to use those names in place of current poll workers and use a majority of workers (half plus one) that hail from the party whose candidate received the most votes at that particular polling location.

The law was enacted to give each party representation at polling locations to ensure the accuracy of the voting process.

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Mary Cole, clerk/deputy treasurer for the Village of , has never heard of the law, and she did confirm one name has been submitted by the Republican Party of Racine County. She said she received via email a request from Bill Folk, chair of the county Republicans, for a list of approved poll workers.

"This is the first I've seen of this," she said, admitting that at first, she wasn't quite sure of what procedure she should follow. "My list goes to committee on Dec. 13 so I'll just be sure to include this person and keep them informed about taking the oath and training."

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Cole did say that a list from the Democratic Party of Racine County has not been submitted as far as she knows.

She usually plans for five workers during a local election and anywhere from seven to 11 for larger elections.

"With all the changes in state law recently, including Voter ID, we're going to need a lot of training to learn everything anyway," she said. "And I think with all all the new requirements, we're going to need more people."

Debra Salas, clerk/treasurer for the Village of , is a former Kenosha Deputy Clerk and said list-making is business-as-usual in that city.

"I was surprised to learn that the parties haven't really done this in Mount Pleasant," she said.

Republicans gave her a list of 20 names and Democrats submitted two.

Salas is working on a letter to village poll workers, asking if they're still interested, and getting in contact with location chiefs to get a feel for how many workers are needed at each location. Her list is expected to go before the board on Dec. 12, and workers will take the oath on Dec. 21.

When asked why names were submitted this year when it hasn't been common practice, Jane Witt, chair-elect for the Democratic Party of Racine County, said it could be further example of the polarization of the state's political climate, but also said it should have been happening all along.

"We're trying to make sure our voters aren't challenged when they go to the polls," she said. "We should have been doing this all along, but people weren't paying attention."

Folk said he always thought poll workers were chosen by municipalities, but learned about the state statute last summer from the state party.

"Both parties, Democrat and Republican, have fallen out of this practice for the last ten years or so," he admitted. "But when I learned about the statute this summer, I started contacting people who are Republican-leaning even if they aren't full members of the party."

According to Folk, if more names are needed to fulfill the half-plus-one majority at a location, lists submitted prior to Nov. 30 can be amended to fill the municipality's need.


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