Charlotte County Electoral Board approves bonuses, staffing and training plans for Nov. 3 election
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Summary
At its Oct. 7 meeting, the Charlotte County Electoral Board accepted Officers of Election lists, outlined training and canvass logistics, noted equipment and procurement issues, and decided to pay bonuses to election-day workers funded from CARES Act dollars.
The Charlotte County Electoral Board approved staffing and training plans and additional pay for election workers as the county prepared for the Nov. 3, 2020 election. The board met Oct. 7 at the Registrar’s Office.
Registrar Eric Goode presented lists of Officers of Election for each precinct and for the early voting poll; Vice-Chair Lawrence Clark moved to accept the lists and Chair Glenwood Foster seconded. The board passed the motion to accept the lists as presented.
Goode told the board that early voting and mail-in ballot processing was proceeding smoothly and that, as of Oct. 7, there were no provisional ballots. New voting machines had been delivered and logic-and-accuracy testing was scheduled for the afternoon; however, electronic poll books (EPBs) had not yet been procured.
Goode said a manned drop box is located at the Registrar’s Office and that he had received guidance from ELECT to open the box at the end of each business day and register ballots as received. He also said he would arrange for maintenance personnel to construct drop boxes for use at each precinct on Election Day.
The board reviewed technology and procurement matters: new laptops were in use and desktops were expected the following week, but Vice-Chair Clark raised questions about whether county procurement had delivered machines meeting the registrar’s specifications and asked that the issue be placed on an upcoming meeting with the County Administrator. Goode also said he would complete floorplans for precinct voting equipment and staffing and e-mail those to the board by Nov. 3.
To prepare poll workers, Goode presented a training calendar. Introductory training for new workers was scheduled Oct. 21, and precinct-specific training for Nov. 3 duties was set for Oct. 26–30 at the Historic Courthouse, with a final precinct inspection scheduled Oct. 22. The board also set a multi-day plan to retrieve voting machines and precinct materials and to begin canvassing and reporting to ELECT immediately after the election.
The board decided to provide additional compensation for workers on Nov. 3: a $50 bonus for each election-day Officer of Election and $60 for each precinct chief. Early-voting officials were set to be paid $10 per hour and chiefs $11 per hour. The minutes state those funds will come from CARES Act funds provided for that purpose.
The board discussed pandemic-related adaptations and agreed to review procedures after each election to identify process improvements. The meeting adjourned after the board completed its agenda.