I vote in every election and am proud of the dedicated professional election officials in my county. I always smile and say thank you to the patriotic folks who work tirelessly at the polling place in every election to support our democracy.
Our election judges learn our complicated election laws and dedicate themselves to providing a safe and secure environment for the voters in their polling places. The judges should not be distracted by untrained partisan poll watchers who have
no rules or limits placed on them and who have total access to voters. Let’s keep our polls peaceful and protected places for citizens, like me, to exercise our freedom to vote. Partisan poll watchers should be observers of the election process, not free to possibly intimidate voters.
Who will work at polling places if election officials are threatened with crimes if they make a mistake? Safe and secure elections need election judges, clerks, ballot board reviewers, ballot counting and processing teams, early voting clerks, elections administrators and county clerks. If the Texas legislature makes innocent or unintended mistakes by these election officials a criminal offense, it will be much harder to find folks to work our elections.
If the Texas legislature really wants to secure and improve our elections, they should invest in upgraded equipment, expanded staffing for election administrators, and required training for poll workers.
Sincerely,
Sharon Swanson, Harlingen
