The times they are a-changin’.
This post seems to be older than 16 years—a long time on the internet. It might be outdated.
I watched a very fascinating documentary on PBS called “By the People: Democracy in the Wild”:
From www.rmpbs.org:
A behind-the-scenes documentary that exposes who and what it really takes to put on an American election, the film’s subjects battle against time, lack of resources, and political obstacles to get the polls open and the votes counted. The program unfolds over the 11 days leading up to the 2004 Presidential election, following a young County Clerk in Marion County, Indianapolis, her small crew of government employees, and the dedicated volunteer poll workers, as they race to prepare for one of the most anticipated and divided elections in American history. It captures average Americans of all political stripes working side by side to insure that everyone in Indianapolis–including quadriplegics and prisoners awaiting trial–are allowed to exercise their fundamental right to vote.
Here are some numbers (and information) I learned, and more I looked up later:
3076: Number of counties (or county-equivalent) in the United States
2001: The latest country created in the United States: Broomfield, Colorado
2: The number of states that don’t use counties: Alaska (borough) and Louisiana (parish)
2000000: Number of volunteer poll workers needed for election day, nation wide
1500000: Actual number of poll workers
72: Average age of those poll workers
3: The number of people required by Washington State Law to open a polling precinct (one inspector and two judges) [RCW 29A.44.410]
122293720: Number of people who voted in the presidential election in 2004
202809000: Number of eligible voters
Help at the polls: King County Poll Worker Application
Register to Vote [http://www.rockthevote.com/]
Sources:
“By the People: Democracy in the Wild”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/County_%28United_States%29
http://www.usatoday.com/news/politicselections/nation/2004-08-08-voting-workers_x.htm
http://apps.leg.wa.gov/rcw/default.aspx?cite=29A.44.410
http://elections.gmu.edu/voter_turnout.htm
[tags]vote, election, poll, precinct, turnout, king county, rock the vote, pbs, By the People: Democracy in the Wild[/tags]
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