Who are the poll workers and how many? New data provides insights into important Election Day activity

Election Day is on the backs of poll workers. But what makes voting work?

The Pew Research Center recently published a list of poll workers, what they do, and their statistics across the country. Supporters of Vice President Kamala Harris are more likely than supporters of former president Donald Trump (62% vs 36%) to say they trust the poll workers more. However, even though the country may be divided, 90% of all voters say they trust poll workers, while only 81% trust government officials to manage the election.

Here are some key insights from the Pew report:

• What do poll workers do? Poll workers are temporary workers who work on the floor on Election Day. They set up equipment such as voting machines, greet voters and explain the process, check voters and make sure they have valid ID, make sure ballots are entered into the voting machine correctly, and count the votes. They are different from election observers who are appointed by third parties to watch the counting of votes and ensure that nothing untoward happens.
• How many poll workers are there? There were about 774,000 workers in the 2020 election, according to Pew. Most sites have an average of eight, but the range is 2 to 23 servings per site. Washington, DC, had the highest number of poll workers per precinct. Alaska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Iowa, Mississippi, Alabama, and New Jersey had the lowest rates, ranging from two to four per site.
• How much do poll workers earn? It depends. According to Pew, each state sets a minimum using state or federal minimum wages as a guideline. Delaware offers a $300 stipend; Alaska pays $20 an hour.
• What are the requirements to be a poll worker? These also vary from state to state. Most are 18 years old, a few are 16. A total of 41 states require poll workers to be registered to vote, and at least nine states require poll workers to be part of a party. All states except Hawaii have residency requirements—that employees must live in the state.