Roughly 60 people apply to be poll workers

♦ Elections board members also looking into the possibility of having workers designated to help disabled voters.

Roughly 60 new poll worker applications have been processed for the August runoff election. Voters and poll workers alike had voiced the need for more help at precincts during the last Floyd County Board of Elections meeting.

At a special called meeting Wednesday, board member Melanie Conrad attributed the rise in applications to growing social media posts and campaigning.

Board members discussed scheduling training sessions for the new poll workers to go through before the Aug. 11 runoff, where two races from the June 9 Republican primary will be settled.

Poll workers will be able to sign up for the training sessions, which will be limited to 20 people at a time. More details will be sent out to the applicants as it gets closer to the July 20 start of the early voting period.

Applications are still being accepted from county residents who are at least 16 years old and don’t have a family member on the ballot. The form can be found on the county website under Elections, under “Become a poll officer.”

Elections Board Chairman Dr. Tom Rees also addressed the potential need for translators to work at precincts — an issue raised during the previous meeting.

While the board members were receptive to the idea, Rees said precinct translators would have to be certified by the state. He went on to say that the board will start looking into that for future elections.

Board member John Scott also said they are looking into the possibility of having workers designated to help disabled voters at the polls. These workers would be given training beforehand and make sure they meet criteria for both state and federal elections.

Board members also went into closed session to discuss hiring another employee to replace an office worker who has been out on medical leave.

Early voting for the runoff election begins July 20 and ends Aug. 7. Voter registration has been extended through July 13 for both races.

Absentee ballots for the runoff may be requested now from the elections office. Applications are available on the website at www.romefloyd. com/departments/board-ofelections-absentee-voting.

For any questions, contact Chief Elections Clerk Robert Brady at rbrady@ floydcountyga.us.