Hello Election Official

"Hundreds of thousands of Americans, working at polling places across the country, make elections happen. Theirs is not merely noble work. It is the essential work of democracy." - editorial in local paper

Okay, I'm preening just a little bit.

I got my official letter today for my assignment as a poll worker in the upcoming election. My curiosity has gotten the better of me yet again. For some dubious reason, Our Fair State has been targeted by "partisan operators... who seek to create confusion at polling places." The details of the shady tactic being employed at this late hour aren't completely clear to me, but experts agree that this action will create "unnecessary hardship and confusion at the polls, and at worst, the disenfranchisement of [Our Fair State] citizens with a clear and legitimate right to vote." Voting can be quite a time-consuming process as it is, especially when voter turnout is expected to exceed 90% in a national election. What justifies making this process harder for the average voter?

In addition to being curious, I'm also a bit irked. The more I look into this, the more it smacks of a politically-motivated, partisan action by an elected official who is supposed to serve the citizens of Our Fair State. You'll excuse me if I find it hard to believe that "the stakes are enormously high", as alleged by Our Elected Official. I likewise find it hard to believe that "properly qualified voters are at risk of having their votes diminished and diluted by the votes of unqualified, ineligible voters". One presumes that Our Elected Official would back up such an allegation with evidence of the possibility of such a 'dilution'. Surely there should be evidence that such a heinous thing might actually occur if one is planning to unleash chaos at the polls. The only cited statistic in the original petition is an alleged approximation of a 22% discrepancy rate that will be found in voter registration applications. Of those discrepancies, there is no mention of what percentage would indicate an ineligible voter who actually turns up and votes thereby diluting the votes of 'properly qualified voters'. No one reasonably suspects that this is a high percentage. Oh, and did I mention that Our Elected Official was/is a "co-chairman of Republican presidential candidate John McCain’s [Our Fair State] campaign." Do you hear a voice in your head screaming 'conflict of interest'? (Yeah, I'm probably not completely 'politically neutral' right about now, but this is about messing with the democratic process.)

I agree with my compatriots that the "ultimate protection for democracy comes... from the people, who the founders of this revolutionary republic entrusted to zealously defend the electoral processes... And the single best way to mount that defense is to become a poll worker." Where else would you want to be, if not the front lines?

We'll see if my zeal can make it through a 16+ hour day as a poll worker.