Poll workers brace for a record turnout
The line already stretched into the parking lot of the Harris County Elections Technology Center — a warehouse in northwest Houston — when workers for the county clerk’s office opened the doors Saturday.
Sylvia Pitri was the first of the hundreds of election judges who came to pick up voting equipment and supplies for Tuesday.
County clerk’s office staff talked Pitri through the contents of the boxes — each marked with an American flag, a Texas flag and a serial number — and watched as she sealed them with a green zip tie that will remain untouched until Pitri cuts it in the presence of witnesses Tuesday at Mitchell Elementary in northwest Houston. The measure is meant to prevent tampering.
Pitri, who has worked as an election judge for 18 years, knows this year will be different, as a record 1.5 million people are expected to cast ballots, shattering the county’s previous record of 1.2 million. Nearly a million people in Harris County voted early, outpacing 2012’s 767,000. Harris County Clerk Stan Stanart said election judges received an additional box of supplies that included provisional ballots and “I voted” stickers to meet demand.
About 9,000 voting machines and 6,000 poll workers will be dispatched to 764 polling sites in Harris County.
“A lot of logistics go into running an election,” Stanart said. “It takes a huge army of people.”
The warehouse buzzed with activity as election judges — a group diverse in age and race — waited to gather the materials. Joe Pelati, a Republican pre- cinct chairman, accompanied his wife, Leslie May, an election judge in Memorial, to load supplies.
Pelati first became involved in judging elections about six years ago, inspired by the Tea Party movement. He has since stopped serving as a judge, but May continues to do so.
“I do it to make sure (voting) is done properly, according to the law,” said May, who is bracing for a busier-than-usual Election Day.
“We’re expecting a madhouse with record turnout,” Pelati said.
Sam Herrera of Pasadena began serving as an election judge eight years ago after he heard that many locations were understaffed.
“I saw the need,” Herrera said. “It’s important to do more to protect the vote.”