What's at stake?
A hiring spree ahead of the November statewide special election will help Fresno County have enough staffing at voting centers across the county.
Fresno County’s voting office is hoping to staff up with at least 50 more poll workers ahead of the statewide special election in November.
Individuals interested in the temporary work on election day have until this Friday to apply. Fresno County Clerk/ Registrar of Voters told Fresnoland that the goal is to better staff voting centers across the county, and also have backup workers just in case.
“This recruitment will let Fresno County better staff our Vote Centers and if we have enough new hires, potentially open additional locations,” Kus told Fresnoland via email. “In both situations, these hires will lead to direct improvements in the in-person voting experience for Fresno County voters.”
Kus said the swift hiring spree is to make sure hires are made in time to put them through training for the November election.
“That would add, on average, two additional workers at each expected Vote Center across the County for this election,” Kus said over email. “Even just 20 new Election Workers, strategically utilized, will improve service delivery and help to reduce potential lines on Election Day.”
California’s statewide special election has set the stage for voters to decide whether California should change the boundaries of congressional districts to favor Democrats. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s attempt to redistrict in the middle of a decade came in the wake of Texas doing the same thing.
However, state legislators in Texas didn’t rely on the will of the voters before redistricting — Gov. Greg Abbott just approved a new congressional district map for Texas last Friday on Aug. 29. The new map is expected to increase the Republican presence in the U.S. House of Representative by five seats.
Texas’ redistricting effort has already been challenged in court, with a hearing set for October. Legal challenges to California’s redistricting efforts have already been rejected by the state’s supreme court.
California’s redistricting effort is meant to respond to efforts in Texas by increasing the Democrat presence in the U.S. House by five seats, and make it harder for Republicans to mount a significant challenge for other seats with tighter races.
But that’ll only take shape if California voters approve a redistricting ballot measure this November.
The State of California is expected to pick up the local cost of the statewide special election. Kus said his department estimated that cost to be just over $4 million, and that the state will pay for the cost up front before the November election.
Kus added that the temporary work could lead to full-time employment down the road.
“Election Worker roles are extra-help positions with the greatest need during the Spring and Fall of even years,” Kus said. “They are a great first exposure to the County process and we have Election Workers every cycle that are picked up by a variety of County departments for full-time positions.”
