EMERSON—Registered voters here heading to the polls on Primary Election Day, June 4, might see familiar faces at their local polling places.
The Bergen County Board of Elections said those familiar faces will be Emerson Jr./Sr. High School students assisting at local polling places, most for the first time, in a pilot program expanded this year by the Bergen County Board of Elections.
And in Emerson, which is one of the high schools participating in the program to recruit and train high school poll workers for Election Day, at least two dozen high school juniors and seniors may be staffing the local polling places.
Bergen County Board of Elections Chair Richard Miller recently told us he believed this was the only program in New Jersey recruiting high school students to work as poll workers on Election Day.
Elections officials said they presented to and sought student poll workers in Teaneck, Emerson, Lodi, Wood-Ridge, and Mahwah, and at Bergen County Academies.
“You hear so many negative things about elections. And this was such a positive thing overall with students participating,” said Miller. “We’re going to pick up over 200 poll workers with these students involved.
He said, “I think the primary is going to be busy. There’s a lot of interest, with people wanting to go out to vote for Trump and Biden, as well as other county committee races.”
In Emerson, he said 24 high school students showed up at a training session they held to recruit poll workers. Over the years, as poll workers have moved away, passed on or became unable to help out at the polls, they needed to be replaced, he said.
The student poll workers generally work 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and are paid $160 for the eight-hour day, which includes breaks. They workers are paid $50 for attending required training.
Most of the student poll workers are aged 17 and below. A poll worker 18 and older grosses $300 for a day, or 16 hours.
“This is something new. We did this last year with Teaneck High School and it was very successful,” Miller told us.
He thanked Emerson High principal Brian Hutchinson for allowing his department to present at the school and to recruit poll workers. He said district superintendent Philip Nisonoff also attended the session.
Miller said that county workers helped set up a voting machine at the school so students who had not yet voted could see the process of voting on the new Dominion voting machine.
For voters unfamiliar with the new machines, the county has posted videos of how to vote using the new machines on the Bergen County Clerk’s Office website and most municipal websites.
“The students appeared most impressed with the integrity of the election, and also impressed by how we made sure everything was double-checked, plus how important it is to check on the voter’s registration status,” Miller told us.
He said despite the constant drumbeat of misinformation and disinformation about election fraud online, the students had asked important questions about how the voting machines operated, vote tabulations, and ballot security.
He said all students who take the poll worker training will be assisting in every related position on Election Day, from greeting voters and assisting at the vote tabulation machine, to registering voters, and helping to answer voters’ questions.
Voters who are voting in person for the first time—whether during early voting or on Election Day—might consider bringing their sample ballot to the polling place, officials suggested. This can help reduce confusion and clarify the choices before them, they said.
Sample ballots show the new block office format for registered Democrats and the county line ballot format for Republicans. Sample ballots are due prior to the start of early voting, from May 29 through June 2. Miller said students will only be assisting during the June 4 Primary, not early voting.
Miller said a letter was sent to all public school district superintendents countywide to alert them to the opportunity to hold a recruitment session for high school poll workers. He said some responded quickly, while others said the timing was not good, and could conflict with upcoming senior night or graduation ceremonies.
Miller said the Emerson students “took quickly” to registering voters on the iPads, and he said those attending the sessions showed a strong interest in helping the voters.
Miller said any students interested in becoming a poll worker could contact the county Board of Elections and then come to a poll worker training class in Hackensack.
He said getting students involved in the Primary Election June 4, and the General Election Nov. 5, was good for Democracy. And he urged voters to exercise their right to vote by using a mail-in ballot, early voting, or voting on Election Day.
“There has to be some responsibility on the voter’s part. They can vote by mail, early vote, or vote on Election Day (June 4). They have all these options to participate,” he said.
Voters can apply for a mail-in ballot by application to the County Clerk not later than seven days prior to the election, or in-person at the county clerk’s office no later than 3 p.m. the day before the primary election.
