WAYLAND, Mich. — As the midterm election draws closer, counties are shoring up their poll staff and getting them trained before the November 8th vote.
State law only requires two hours of training for election inspectors but on Thursday in Allegan County, a handful of workers underwent an 8-hour marathon session with hands-on training at the Wayland Carpenter and Millwright Training Center, who hosted the event. The idea is to cover every scenario so poll workers can troubleshoot problems the day of the election.
“We find that the more familiar they are with both the materials, the ballots, and the machinery, the more things will flow smoothly on November 8th,” said Allegan County Clerk Bob Genetski, who added that the election chairpersons requested more training after the August primary vote. “Their commitment helps and is going to make Allegan County elections work really smoothly.”
Thursday’s training was comprised of election chairpersons from each of the county’s jurisdictions. In most cases, election workers aren’t paid outside of a small stipend in some cities and townships. Most of the workers present for the training were volunteers.
“Nobody does this for the money,” said Genetski. “They’re here because they want to be and because they want elections to run smoothly.”
Poll worker trainings are conducted in jurisdictions across the state in some fashion before each election but have become especially prevalent in the face of election skepticism after the vote in 2020. Genetski, who says the county is always looking for more volunteers to help, says election workers are just well-intentioned individuals who want to help run a fair process.
“These are neighbors and your fellow churchgoers,” he said. “These are good civic-minded people who care deeply about the process. They’re Republicans and Democrats working together, and some other parties as well, who just really care about making sure that the law is followed.”
