*URGENT APPEAL*

Governor Evers Calls for Citizens to Volunteer as Poll Workers

April 7^th – Election Day Still on as Scheduled

Governor Evers has issued an urgent request for citizens to volunteer as poll workers on April 7^th – Election Day.  I am sharing with you his office’s appeal that contains the simple steps anyone can take to volunteer. 

Also, in recent days the Wisconsin Elections Commission and the Department of Health Services have been sharing protocols with municipal clerks that can be used to minimize health risks to poll workers and voters on Election Day.

The request from Governor Evers’ Office:

Citizen involvement is essential to our election process, and with the potential spread of COVID-19, we anticipate many veteran poll workers who faithfully serve every Election Day may not serve this year due to their age and high risk to COVID-19 exposure.  With as many as 30,000 poll workers needed to support an election, many Wisconsin cities, towns, and villages are looking for volunteers to assist with the April 7, 2020 election. Governor Evers is asking our private, non-profit, and public sector partners to please consider helping their local government election process during the COVID-19 health emergency by encouraging their employees and members (who are able and who are not at high risk themselves) to participate in this election. 

Poll workers do everything from check-in voters, help people register to vote, check photo IDs and process absentee ballots.  Local clerks will provide poll workers with training prior to Election Day.  Please note the Wisconsin Elections Commission and the Department of Health Services are also developing protocols to make the polls as safe as possible for voters and poll workers. 

To be a poll worker, a person must:

• Be a qualified elector of the county in which the municipality is located (i.e., an adult citizen of the United States who has resided in the election district for 10 consecutive days and is not otherwise disqualified to vote)
• Be at least 17 years-old
• Be able to read and write fluently in the English language
• NOT be a candidate for any office to be voted on at the polling place at that election. 

If you have employees or members who are interested in serving as a poll worker, please have them contact their municipal clerk’s office, which they can find on the MyVote Wisconsin website: 

https://myvote.wi.gov/en-us/MyMunicipalClerk

There they can enter their address in the search fields and the system will tell them who their municipal clerk is and provide a phone number and email address.  They should put “Poll Worker Applicant” in the email subject line so that their clerk will be able to easily sort the requests.

Please forward this message to your members, employees and others associated with your organization. This is a great opportunity for citizens to get involved with the democratic process.