October 23, 2022
Atlanta- The first of three weeks of Georgia’s Advance Voting ended with predictably high turnout. The strong early numbers would typically excite me, but my experience working the polls has me concerned. My county has voted blue the last few elections, but this time the republicans seem to bringing the numbers. Their behavior in the precinct indicates they don’t understand how our government is structured and yet they’re overly confident they’ll be the hero who finds fraud in the system.
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Some (generally, white) voters question every step you make. They require explanation for each move but lack understanding of the system. We have to calmly explain to the suspicious how our government is structured and why they can’t vote for the extreme candidate in another district. They take down our names and try to illegally photograph the voting machines and layout of the precinct. They’re collecting evidence as if we’re trying to cheat them.
My assigned precinct is staffed by people of color and one big white dyke (me, of course.) This causes great concern for rural whites who are convinced minorities are stealing their birthright. One older white man promised to come back and vote again in a few hours so “the n***** don’t take over.” I was shocked by his language and explained that would constitute fraud which carries significant criminal and financial penalties. For a moment he had seen me as an ally, something I was unaware of until I watched anger and betrayal take over his face. I am an honorary white, only welcomed when whites are in the minority. Most times, being gay relegates me to second-class citizen.
Older white people often treat me as suspect, as when I simply asked whether a voter is Junior or Senior, because their driver’s license and voter registration were not an “exact match.” (Georgia recently purged more than 300,000 voters, mostly people of color, for failing to meet this standard, but this name was not one of them.) The woman accompanying him defended him with, “Don’t you try to stop us from voting.” If the purge had been conducted fairly, he would have been removed. His license said one thing, his voter registration another, but neither are correct, he is actually the third in his family to carry the name. Rather than understanding their white privilege kept them in the system, they viewed my question as someone trying to take something from them. They view our activities through this lens.
Another man responded with frustration when his candidate did not have a number one behind his name, as his other choices did. He wanted us to change the entire system to include the number one he thought his candidate deserved. It took a minute to realize he meant the (I) for incumbent. When I explained what the “I” stood for, and then had to tell him what the word meant, he responded as if I was trying to trick him. He would return later with a notepad, taking down names, and pressing the precinct manager for details, making promises to follow up if things didn’t go “right.” He never noticed he was not supposed to be in the building at all. (Only poll workers, poll watchers, and active voters are allowed.) Answering his questions was a courtesy extended to quell any potential dissatisfaction over the election outcome.
Heading in to week two has me a bit concerned. Progressives, please get your people to the polls. The other side is fired up, ready to fight, and showing up at the polls. We have to be equally intentional.
Debby Yoder 