Testimony on HB 350
High School Seniors Working as Precinct Officers
Before the Senate State and Local Government and Veterans Affairs Committee
The Honorable Gary Cates, Chair
By Megan Adams and Katie Cole, Upper Arlington High School
April 30, 2008
Chairman Cates, Ranking Member Fedor and members of the Senate State and Local Government and Veterans Affairs Committee, we are Megan Adams and Katie Cole, seniors at Upper Arlington High School and election machine judges in the past two elections.
We are speaking in support of H.B. 350 as students with first hand experience as election officials. Last fall, 65 seniors from Upper Arlington were among the nearly 800 student poll workers in Franklin County. Our experience last fall, and that of other students at our school, encouraged the two of us and 90 of our classmates to work again for the Ohio primary March 4th as did 500 other students from other schools.
As two stereotypical high school students, when first approached with participating in Youth at the Booth, we considered the opportunity in view of our busy schedules at school. However, after discovering it was a paid position, there was a greater incentive for us to participate.
At the polls, we were trained and worked as machine judges. This opportunity allowed us to understand the voting machines and have personal contact with many of the voters through assisting them with the new technology of the machines.
While working at the polls, we received many comments from the voters as well as our co-workers. The voters were appreciative of our help and knowledge of the new voting machines. The other judges were interested in our academic and social interests. They also complimented us on the vibrancy and enthusiasm we brought to the job.
Working at the polls allowed us to see what members of our community actually voted. We were extremely disheartened at the low turnout of young voters. All in all, we saw very few voters under the age of 22. We believe this low turnout is due to the incredibly busy schedule college and high school students maintain.
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Many times, high school students feel intimidated by the voting process including not knowing where to vote, how to register, or how to vote. If high school students are allowed to work at the polls, they will be experienced and feel less ignorant of the voting
process. Allowing more young people to work at the polls will promote a better voter turnout for younger voters in future elections.
Now that we have experienced working at the polls, we can share this knowledge with friends and peers. We both are extremely encouraged now to take advantage of our constitutional right to vote in the upcoming election. We strongly feel that other high students will do the same if given the opportunity to be part of the voting process.
High school students are also used to working long hours at school with extracurricular activities and homework. The amount of time we worked each Election Day is similar to the amount of time we spend in school and on commitments outside of school. Therefore, we were able to maintain our enthusiasm and congeniality throughout the day. We are also confident that our fellow high school students will be able to maintain this stamina throughout Election Day and be a positive light for voters to see.
High school students can be very energetic and optimistic. Many people confuse this enthusiasm with immaturity. When high school seniors are employed as paid poll workers, we realize the implications of the position and the ramifications of failing to fulfill this duty. We sincerely believe that the new poll workers will act appropriately.
We encourage this committee to pass H. B. 350, and thank you for the giving us the opportunity to testify. We will be happy to answer any questions you may have.