by Karen Telleen-Lawton, Noozhawk Columnist (read the original in Noozhawk by clicking here)
You may have thought it would never come, but at last it’s Election week, or month, or whatever. Many Santa Barbarans never approached the polls, casting ballots at secure boxes around the county. That’s my habit, too, but it doesn’t keep me from the polls. I’ve volunteered there often since age 18.
This election I was a poll observer in Arizona. My job was monitoring voting difficulties. I reported to a boiler room the actual opening and closing times of the poll, the hourly length of the line, and any voting issues.
Our first day, the poll location assigned my husband and me was a shuttered store in a shopping plaza in Mesa. A preschool operated next door; a smattering of kids and parents arriving and departing. On the other side was a closed salon. A Filipino restaurant on the corner enjoyed some business, including ours.
We checked in with the inspector: the top position at the poll. She told us, “My focus is on customer service. I want everyone who comes in here to be happy about the voting process.”
Indeed, the poll was both an efficient and pleasant place. Voters were welcomed and guided through the several-step process. First-time voters were celebrated with claps and cheers while problems were attacked with persistence.
Dave hung out inside while I waited 75 feet outside the poll for follow-up. “Ask the white guy in the green cap and cargo shorts if he had any problems voting,” he’d text. Or, “The Asian woman in the yellow dress left without voting.”
I sat in a folding chair in the parking lot, in a triangular island of gravel supporting an overhead streetlight. I shifted my chair every half hour or so to take advantage of the light pole’s slender shadow.
There were no wait lines at the three polls we worked, except before the poll opened. People seemed relieved to be completing the task, and especially satisfied that the process was quick and easy.
More than half of them were returning their green early-voting envelopes, which the poll workers diligently checked for a signature. They would later be compared to a signature on file by a handwriting expert.
Random observation: Most people who had trouble walking didn’t park in the handicapped spots in front.
Dave noticed one woman who spoke to the inspector and left without voting. I approached her outside, explained I was a poll observer, and asked if she had trouble voting. I couldn’t quite understand her limited-English explanation, but she said she was told she could bring someone back with her to help her vote. I affirmed this and she left.
Dave tipped me off to another pair who left without voting. They were a tall, elderly Native American man accompanied by a volunteer election driver.
The voter apparently was registered in the next county. I said I was sure he could cast a provisional ballot anyway. They agreed but said the poll workers advised that casting a regular ballot within his county was a better bet.
Was the volunteer planning to drive him there? The young man replied that he was not allowed to leave the county. Turning to the older man, he asked, “So you’re 100% sure you’ll be able to get to Pima County?” He answered yes, he would be able to vote.
The majority of time, nothing was happening but voters moving through the poll and cars maneuvering parking spaces, trying not to bump one another. Some of the more exciting moments were the marshal’s evening announcements to the parking lot: “Hear ye, hear ye, the polls will close in five minutes!”
People-watching was pretty interesting. Even deep in Trump country, 95% wore masks in public. The occasional person who didn’t mask up was not turned away.
Few voters displayed party paraphernalia. One excited young couple with a baby were decked out all in red, the woman wearing a “Black women for Trump” t-shirt. They had their photo taken in front of the polling sign.
There is no standard voting outfit. People arrived in jeans and sweats, kaleidoscope colors and platform heels. Men and women wore suits with ID lanyards around their necks. Voters toted kids, limped with crutches, or sported hairstyles from ponytails to pony-tailed goatees.
One person rode a scooter he’d likely created from leftover parts. One young family made it a party: the two little redheaded boys dancing around with red, white and blue flag masks and balloons.
It is good to celebrate Election Day. It’s a strong sign that, despite some body blows, our democracy is still working. My desire is that everyone votes and that every vote is counted. If these polls were indicative, I would be satisfied that U.S. citizens are getting the chance to vote.
Karen Telleen-Lawton, Noozhawk Columnist
Karen Telleen-Lawton is an eco-writer, sharing information and insights about economics and ecology, finances and the environment. Having recently retired from financial planning and advising, she spends more time exploring the outdoors — and reading and writing about it. The opinions expressed are her own.