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Just a
thought,
Having worked well over two decades of
elections in Galveston County, I believe
there are many things that need to be done
to improve and secure the election process
in our county.
The number one problem during the process is
determining if a person is a registered
voter or not. During the last election in
pct. 455 I had 23 voting inquiries. I spent
an average of 6 minutes waiting for an
answer for each one. A little over three
hours.
1.) Election officials at each pct. need
computer access to the latest registered
voting list. Does that mean we need to train
and certify personnel? Yes it does.
2.) All polling locations should be scouted
out and a "plan" for each polling place
should be formulated. By plan I am
addressing the design of the sight as well
as the "Flow" of the voters. This insures
the integrity of the site as well as the
integrity of the voting process.
3.) Election officials should be selected a
year in advance and trained by their
respective parties. All workers lists should
be finalized two months prior to the
election. ALL WORKERS.
4.) ALL POLL WORKERS need to complete
training from the county that will include
the basic knowledge of how to look a name
up, the different signature pages required
as well as the basic "flow" process for the
voter. It should also include:
a.) A map of the complete county voting
places with addresses
b.) From memory, an understanding of the
lines of their pct. As well as the knowledge
of the immediately surrounding pcts. And
where they vote at.
c.) Shut down procedures for the workers at
closing. Too much time is being lost after
the polls closed due to varying closing
procedures.
5.) It is extremely important that EACH pct.
have at least one bilingual worker. These
individuals must be trained to understand
the process from start to finish. Because of
the great need for such a skill maybe we
should offer a dollar an hour more. These
individuals need to be secured for
employment many months before an election.
6.) A panel of
experienced election judges (10 years +)
should be assembled to assist with input on
the process.
Please note that "leaving it up" to the
appointed pct. Judge does not insure
uniformity or even if all the rules are
known and followed.
Please do not
misunderstand what I am saying, I have known
many pct judges that know what to do and do
it correctly and consistently. However I
have seen many individuals who may have been
a clerk in one other election "thrown to the
wolves" because their party cannot find
anyone to run the election in that area.
This is how problems occur.
Many of the problems we, as election
officials, encounter can be resolved with
some assistance from the county and some pro
active initiative. The security and
integrity of the voting process in Galveston
County must be assured. These are just a few
points that I am making here.
There are many
more Ideas that will ensure that the "human"
factor in the voting process of Galveston
County does not fail.
Sincerely,
Chris John Mallios
League City
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