Example of Making an Actual Vote Plan as a Poll Observer
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If you’re currently not a poll observer or poll watcher in your area for the next election, consider becoming one!
If you are going to be a poll observer or poll watcher, and your precinct tabulates votes onsite and prints poll tapes, you are highly encouraged to explore video-recording the poll tapes at your precinct with Actual Vote. (If the tabulation is done in a different location, like at the supervisor of elections office, there won’t be poll tapes for you to record at your polling location).
This method is particularly powerful for two reasons:
- It captures the data on the poll tape right as it’s being printed—that is, right at the beginning of the chain of custody
- You can record poll tapes in places where the general public can’t, which gives more places in which the Actual Vote process can be done
- You may be able to observe the tabulation of votes from a method other than election day voting (like absentee and early voting), and use Actual Vote on those poll tapes
Here’s a picture of a poll observer in Granville County, North Carolina holding a poll tape as it’s printing:
Now you need to make sure you have permission to video-record the poll tape (or tapes) at your precinct as a part of closing procedure. So you contact your supervisor:
Hi, my name is [name]. I’m a poll observer in [your polling place in our county]. I saw in our training materials that our closing procedures include tabulating the votes onsite on election night and printing poll tapes right after.
For the sake of election transparency, I’d like to video-record the poll tapes with my phone as they’re printing, or right after. It’ll just take a second, and it definitely won’t get in the way of everything else going on. What’s more, the information on the poll tapes is a matter of public record, and observing poll tapes is legal in the US.
So I’m hoping that me recording the tapes in this way won’t be a problem. Let me know! Thanks.
If you are observing vote tabulation that takes place somewhere other than at polling places on election night, you could use this:
Hi, my name is [name]. I’m a poll observer in [our county]. I saw in our training materials that our election procedures include tabulating the [election day, absentee, early, etc.] votes at [a specific location] on election night and printing poll tapes right after.
For the sake of election transparency, I’d like to video-record the poll tapes with my phone as they’re printing, or right after. It’ll just take a second, and it definitely won’t get in the way of everything else going on. What’s more, the information on the poll tapes is a matter of public record, and observing poll tapes is legal in the US.
So I’m hoping that me recording the tapes in this way won’t be a problem. Let me know! Thanks.
Ideally, your supervisor replies with “Sure, no problem!”. If it turns out that you recording the tapes is explicitly forbidden, there’s nothing more you can do.
If your supervisor doesn’t immediately give you permission but doesn’t rule it out, it’s up to you how much to push back. In many cases, proceeding in a friendly, assertive, and professional way, and citing things like our Get Started! page and an example of an Actual Vote Analysis Report, can help convince people that Actual Vote really does help improve election transparency.
Once you receive permission, you get the Actual Vote app, test it out, and look over the information on our Get Started! page. All this takes about 10-20 minutes.
Next, consider dropping us a line to let us know that you’re going to use Actual Vote as a poll observer:
Hi, my name is [name]. I’m going to be a poll observer at [Y precinct in X county]. I’m all set to go with the Actual Vote app. Please expect to receive Actual Vote recordings of the poll tapes from my precinct on election night! Thanks.
Then on election night, you record the poll tapes with Actual Vote as planned.
You can also consider additional ways to help us get poll tape recordings:
- After you’re done with your election day responsibilities, if you live in a state that posts poll tapes in public, you could visit a few other polling places on your way home to record the poll tapes there. Check out our example of how to do this for more details.
- You could reach out to other poll observers in your county, explain how you’re going to use Actual Vote, and encourage them to use it themselves
Whatever you choose to do, your efforts are greatly appreciated!
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