Poll worker Palm Cards to Ease Problems at Polls
Voter Protections Newsletter Volume 3 Issue 2
September 5, 2008
Based on its investigation of poll-worker error in several states, Advancement Project attorneys have drafted palm cards (or reference guides) to aid poll workers in Colorado, Florida, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia. The palm cards should ward off potential problems on Election Day.
Advancement Project first developed poll worker palm cards in 2006 to provide poll workers with succinct guidance on problems commonly encountered on Election Day in a one-page format. With rapid changes in election laws and voting systems, poll workers may benefit from a palm card that assists them in responding to the myriad problems that crop up on Election Day. Poll workers often receive very limited training and preparation for elections. Also, the training does not sufficiently emphasize common problems or distill complex election laws. Poll workers in some jurisdictions must rely on lengthy, detailed manuals to answer their questions on Election Day, whereas poll workers in other jurisdictions are supplied with only cursory materials.
The palm cards are drafted based on research of previous poll-worker errors and problems at the polls on Election-Day problems. Attorneys narrow the issues down to 10 primary concerns that could occur on Election Day and then present the palm cards in an easy-to-read, easy to-understand format.
“We're trying to give poll workers tools to aid them on Election Day and reduce errors that could lead to unnecessary disenfranchisement of voters,” said Elizabeth Westfall, deputy director of Advancement Project’s Voter Protection Program.
Once the palm cards have been drafted, Advancement Project seeks input from election officials on the content of the cards. In some instances, election officials request copies of the palm cards for use in training their poll workers. Last month, Advancement Project announced that Duval County approved the distribution of palm cards to its 3,500 poll workers, in time for the August primary and the November election.
Counties in Ohio and Pennsylvania are currently considering approval of Advancement Project's palm cards. In states where election officials have declined to adopt the palm cards, Advancement Project will identify other means of distributing palm cards to poll workers, such as distributing them to organizations whose members serve as poll workers. We hope to be able to distribute palm cards in 21 states in time for the November election.
