The Starke County Election Board will soon be surveying poll workers about the quality and timing of the meals provided to them on Election Day. This comes after Starke County Democratic Party Chair Kenny Wallace raised concerns about poll worker meals during Wednesday’s election board meeting.
He said it wasn’t fair that some poll workers get home-cooked meals, while others get restaurant food. “I think the inspector in all 21 precincts, if they want home-cooked meals, you can find somebody to cook them, they should have that right,” he told the election board. “And if you’re going to a restaurant, why give it all to one, when you’ve got, like in Knox here, you’ve got three restaurants? In Judson, you’ve got four or five.”
How the food is provided appears to vary widely by precinct. Election board member Peg Brettin said that while some use restaurants, others have local churches prepare their meals. Poll workers at other precincts agree to bring in their own food, and split up the meal reimbursement payment among themselves. Although Brettin and Clerk Vicki Cooley said that’s been a longstanding practice in certain places, Board President Harrison Fields said he never knew that was an option.
He added that poll workers have complained about the food. “One big complaint – which I worked and maybe all of us has worked an election: Why can’t they be provided a large meal at noon, instead of 4:00, 5:00 in the afternoon, when they’re busy, and they don’t have time to eat it? That’s the biggest complaint I’ve heard,” Fields said.
He wanted to take a survey on Election Day, to get poll workers’ input for future elections. “I’m asking the board for a vote, to furnish one sheet of paper with four questions or five questions, on a survey for the meal for each poll worker,” he said.
Cooley wasn’t sure the survey would get a good response, since poll workers are often busy with other duties on Election Day. She noted that past attempts to survey poll workers ended up with many questionnaires being left blank.
Still, Fields felt it was worth another try and suggested that poll workers be asked about four specific issues related to meals: “Timing, first of all. If they got the meal on a timely basis,” he said. “If the food was palatable, tasty. If the food was quality. The large meal at noon, the small meal later in the day.”
In the end, the election board voted two-to-one to survey the poll workers, with Brettin opposing. Fields said he also wants to emphasize the importance of providing good meals, during upcoming training sessions for inspectors.
