WASHINGTON, Aug. 24, 2022 — The American Bar Association is collaborating with the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) and the National Association of State Election Directors (NASED) to once again issue a call aimed at mobilizing lawyers to assist as poll workers for the upcoming 2022 election. The Poll Worker, Esq. Initiative encourages lawyers, law students and other legal professionals to assist in upcoming elections by serving as poll workers.
“We’re calling on lawyers and law students to step up this November to serve as poll workers,” said ABA President Deborah Enix-Ross. “Every day lawyers work to protect the rule of law and the Constitution, so it makes sense that they would be essential for us to have a free and fair election.”
The initiative kicks off today with the release of a video, posted at ambar.org/vote, that details how to sign up to be a poll worker. There will also be a social media campaign on the ABA’s Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn accounts, which will run through the fall. The hashtag for the effort is #PollWorkerEsq.
Interested lawyers and law students can go to www.canivote.org and click on the “Become a Poll Worker” tab to find out how to serve in their jurisdictions. Depending on the state or territory, tasks may range from staffing polling places to processing returned ballot envelopes, and more. Poll worker training for lawyers may be eligible for Continuing Legal Education credit.
“As a lawyer and former administrative law judge, I know first-hand how important the American Bar Association can be to activate their members. Serving as a poll worker continues to be one of the most impactful ways to serve your community,” said Tahesha Way, NASS president and New Jersey secretary of state. “I look forward to another successful collaboration and appreciate their willingness to help election officials across the country.”
“Every election, big or small, election officials across the country struggle to find poll workers to help staff voting locations, process and tabulate ballots, and perform other important duties. We’re excited to work with the American Bar Association again to encourage lawyers and law students across the country to step up and take on this critical responsibility to our democracy,” said Meagan Wolfe, NASED president and administrator of the Wisconsin Elections Commission.
The ABA’s Standing Committee on Election Law is dedicated to developing and examining ways to improve the federal electoral process in order to permit the broadest, least restrictive access by all eligible Americans to the ballot box and to ensure all those votes are counted.
National Association of Secretaries of State is the nation’s oldest nonpartisan professional organization for public officials. NASS serves as a medium for the exchange of information between states and fosters cooperation in the development of public policy. The association has key initiatives in the areas of elections and voting, state business services and state heritage/archives.
National Association of State Election Directors is a nonpartisan, nonprofit membership association for state election directors in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and the five U.S. territories. In each of their jurisdictions, election directors are responsible for implementing election laws and policies, maintaining the voter registration databases, working with local election officials to ensure a successful voting experience for all voters and more. NASED facilitates the distribution of election administration best practices and information across the states and territories
The ABA is the largest voluntary association of lawyers in the world. As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law.