County needs volunteers to help handle ‘large’ voter turnout

April 1 election

Lawrence school district voters will go to the polls April 1 to decide whether the school board can raise its local-option budget, funded by local property taxes. The district is seeking a 1 percent increase to raise about $679,000 for the 2008-2009 budget. It would result in about a 0.5 mill increase, or cost about $13.80 extra per year for the owner of a $200,000 home, board members have said.

That day, voters in Lecompton also will elect three City Council members and decide the fate of a sales tax question.

Advanced voting begins Wednesday. It can be done in person at the Douglas County Courthouse, 1100 Mass, or by mail. To participate in the election, eligible voters must register by next Monday. Polls will be open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. April 1.

Election 2008

The Douglas County Clerk’s office is conducting a major recruiting drive to bolster its roster of election polling place workers.

Clerk Jamie Shew said he has about half as many workers as he’ll need to adequately staff polling places during the Nov. 4 general election.

“The turnout in November will be so large that we’ll increase the number of workers quite a bit at the polling places,” Shew said.

The nation will elect a new president in November. Several county government positions also will be up for election, including that of clerk. Shew has not yet filed for re-election but said he intends to.

To handle the expected large voter turnout, 650 to 700 poll workers will be needed, Shew said. Currently there are about 350 workers available. He said about 400 workers will be needed for the Aug. 5 primary.

The poll worker recruitment effort began at Kansas University. Chancellor Robert Hemenway recently sent out an e-mail to students and staff informing them that the county clerk was seeking election workers.

“I invite members of the university community to consider volunteering their time for this important civic endeavor,” Hemenway said in the e-mail.

The recruiting effort will be expanded to Baker University in Baldwin City, government institutions, businesses and civic groups, Shew said. He noted that during the last general election in April some county employees worked at polling places. The county allowed the employees to work the election without getting docked for a day of vacation and they were paid for a regular day of work. He encouraged businesses to do the same for their employees.

Hemenway’s e-mail, however, said KU employees who participate will have to take a vacation day and he encouraged supervisors to approve it.

Shew is hoping state legislation approved last year will help increase the number of poll workers. Election workers now can work a half day, whereas before they were required to work the full day.

“If a student has class in the morning, they can work in the afternoon,” Shew said.

Supervising judges and one poll worker at each location are still required to work the entire day to maintain consistency, Shew said. Poll workers receive $85 for the full day and $42.50 for a split shift. Supervising judges earn $100. There will be training sessions for workers later in the year. Workers are paid $15 for attending those sessions.

Election worker applications are online at http://www.douglas-county.com/clerk/clerkforms.asp, or you can contact the clerk’s office in the courthouse at 1100 Mass.