Election Day 2020

For the first time in almost two decades, I am not working the election. When we moved to Windermere, I assumed I would continue my career but spending 16+ hours in a room with other people seemed too risky in this Covid era. I did still get up at 5:00 AM, not to drive to my precinct where I was clerk, but to call a friend to be sure she woke up in time to get to her election job. It is her first time volunteering. Dealing with the American public is odd in the best of times; these are not those. I hope she gets a competent clerk who can keep control of the process. I know people are on edge, with poll watchers checking every move. Crossing my fingers for her and for our country.

When I clerked, my precinct shared a rec center with 2 other precincts, so we had 20-25 volunteers. There were the good, the bad, and the incompetent, but volunteers are hard to find. Most were even older than I. We were called volunteers, but as clerk, I got $200 for 4 hours of training plus working Election Day, which started at 5:30 and went until I turned in my equipment and the paper ballots to the Supervisor of Elections personnel at a nearby library. Not even minimum wage for my time. The others positions paid less, but those workers got to leave as soon as we processed the last voter and put the rec center back in order. Absolutely exhausting for us all.

Grant and I opted to vote by mail rather than being exposed to others. We dropped our ballots off on the first day of early voting, then got free flu shots at Publix which gave us each a $10 store card for our trouble. Being paid to take care of ourselves! By the next day, I’d received an email from the SOE that my ballot had been received. 

I’d like to say it’s all over but the shouting. We should be so lucky.