I had low expectations for my half-day working the polls. Plenty of my peers have lamented about the long, boring hours sitting in their polling place, occasionally dealing with rowdy voters, and I was sure my experience would be the same: a boring day barely worth the hefty paycheck.

I could not have been more wrong.

Things started off slow. I woke up at around 6:00 am to get ready, and by 7:00 am on the dot I arrived at my polling place. Still rubbing the sleep from my eyes, I signed three different papers explaining who and where I was. This is when I met my coworkers.

There were six of us in total, and we’d be spending the next seven hours acquainting ourselves with one another. I sat quietly between the two women bookkeeping; my job for the majority of the morning was essentially to watch them write out the names of voters and occasionally help when needed.

I should have hated it. The pessimist in me wishes I could complain about how mind-numbingly awful the whole experience was, but that’s simply not the case. In spite of what I’d been told, I actually found myself having fun.

My coworkers were wonderful. We warmed to each other quickly, and they were happy to explain each of their jobs to me in detail. Lively and full of conversation, we chatted through most of the morning, sharing little anecdotes here and there about ourselves and our families.

Through the sparse early morning voters, I learned one coworker lived on a farm and woke up at 4:00 most mornings to feed her animals— chickens and donkeys. My other coworker was an avid fan of volleyball, and still played recreationally even as he was getting older. Another was a teacher for decades and knew just about everybody who walked into our polling place by name.

Maybe it’s because I’m a writer, but I love a good story, and there was something undeniably enjoyable in piecing together who exactly I was sitting beside. Conversation made the hours run smooth, and without even realizing it, I had made it through over half of my shift in the blink of an eye.

At around noon, the mid-day rush picked up. My coworkers bought me lunch and the actual “work” portion of my day began. I was given the reins and charged with bookkeeping, something I never expected to be so excited about. For every person who voted under my watch, I was to mark their name in a little numbered booklet. Not a difficult task by any means, but I took the job seriously.

Then, there were the voters themselves. The majority of the day passed with a slow trickle of people, many of whom were full of pleasant chatter. The turnout was low, I’ll admit (though, local elections traditionally are), and it was mostly seniors, but occasionally I saw someone my own age and felt a small thrill of connection between us.

My coworkers would joke with friends meandering through, and several people stuck around for a few minutes after voting to catch up with someone they hadn’t seen in a while.

People got together. They discussed, sometimes about politics, but mostly about life. There were no violent political rants, no aggressive debates— it was nice, and not something I get to see every day.

Throughout the day, there were dull moments— of course there were dull moments—, but there was excitement too. I got to see democracy in action, as corny as it may sound, and I loved it.

I understand why some will not work the polls, believe me. It’s a long day, and the action is few and far between, but it is rewarding too, especially when you’re surrounded by the right people. 

It’s the power of choice. Sometimes, I don’t know if I believe we really have one, as citizens of this country. People protest and riot and petition every day, but change is so slow we barely see it. Working the polls changed things for me; it was tangible evidence that people wake up in the morning and make the effort to say their piece. Americans care, and I saw this first-hand.

There was a moment where I realized that I was a part of something bigger than myself, and that is what truly made the seven hour shift worth it. 

I know it made me wish I’d signed on for the whole day, not just half. My faith in American democracy…somewhat restored.

Check out the Westmoreland County Election Results here and search by city, borough, school district, etc.

I will never work the polls again