Poll workers are still needed for the general election in November. About 15,000 precinct election officers are needed to work on Nov. 6, according to Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes.
Poll workers must be 18 and registered voters. An individual may not serve if he or she is a candidate, if their spouse or an immediate relative is a candidate, or if they have changed their party affiliation within the last year. Duties include attending mandatory training, setting up the polling station, processing voters, and completing and returning paperwork to the county clerk’s office on election night.
Poll workers are paid a minimum of $10 for attending the mandatory training session before Election Day and a minimum of $60 per Election Day, as well as additional payment for mileage. Each county board of elections sets the rate for compensation.
“We appreciate the thousands of Kentuckians who further their civic participation by serving on the front lines on Election Day as precinct election officials,” Grimes said. “We have recently faced shortages, so I encourage Kentuckians to sign up to help support our democratic process.”
She says you can sign up by contacting the county clerk, or your party’s county executive committee. You can find out more at this website.
Grimes also says absentee voting has now opened for those unable to vote in person at the polls on Nov. 6.
“I will continue to petition our legislators in the 2019 General Assembly to remove the requirement to provide an excuse to vote early in-person, and I hope all Kentuckians will join me in this effort. As low turnout persists, we should be doing everything we can to make it easier for voters to make their voices heard.”
Currently, individuals who may be eligible to vote by mail-in absentee ballot include:
— Military personnel, their dependents, and overseas citizens
— Students who temporarily reside outside the county
— Voters who temporarily reside outside Kentucky (e.g., vacationers)
— Voters who are incarcerated but have not yet been convicted
— Voters whose employment takes them outside the county for all days and hours the polling place is open
— Voters of advanced age or who suffer from disability or illness
— Voters who are participants in the Secretary of State’s Address Confidentiality Program
Voters may request an absentee ballot application from their county clerk in person or via telephone, fax, or email.
Qualified military and overseas voters may also use the online portal at GoVoteKY.com to request and receive their blank absentee ballots.
Applications for mail-in absentee ballots must be received by the clerk’s office no later than Oct. 30. The completed absentee ballot must be returned by mail and received by the county clerk by 6 p.m. local time on Election Day.
