MARIETTA, Ga. — With another election day here and the November Presidential Election approaching, one local elections director is speaking up about the need for poll workers, as well as the strain the role can entail.
"One thing about being a poll worker that I always try to stress is that it's really customer service," Cobb County Elections Director Tate Fall shared with 11Alive. "We're providing a service to our customers, and that service has become a lot more tension-focused."
Between the COVID-19 pandemic, election disinformation and concern over threats and safety of election workers, election teams like Fall's have training and retention top of mind as the nation looks towards the November presidential election.
"I think we've heard a lot about poll worker safety in the past few years," Fall said. "But it's almost become desensitized. So I want to remind people that this is still a very real concern for our poll workers, our seasoned poll workers who are saying, 'Hey, I'm going to take the year off. I'll come back in the municipals when it's a little bit quieter.'"
"It's really going to affect us in November," Fall added. "And so I want the community to know that this is still a large concern, and we're going to need people to step up in November."
The struggle to recruit and retain poll workers amidst the current political climate is not just a problem in metro Atlanta, Fall reiterated, but across the country. But within the challenges, she emphasized that there's a lot of solution-sharing that's happening as a result.
"Looking to states in similar situations, we're always calling each other up and say, 'How did you handle it,'" she said.
As a result, the county is brainstorming ideas ahead of the general election to increase poll worker participating and may offer civic groups or businesses the change to adopt a precinct, with the hope groups can work the polls together.
Training, Fall said, also continues to evolve.
"We implemented de-escalation training for the first time prior to the May election at the request of poll workers, and now we're going to have to do a lot more of that for November," she said.
Fall said she doesn't blame the poll workers or those in her own staff who have opted for a break this election cycle. She knows things can get intense.
Ultimately, Fall remains optimistic and hopes those interested in participating or learning more about the process will take the time to reach out to their county elections office.
"There's a lot of turnover here, but there's so much passion for what we do," she said. "We're making it work, and it's going to be a great election. We're just really relying on the community to help us."
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