Voting: Let’s celebrate civil servant excellence

I recently spent large parts of three days as an observer at the Pierce County Elections Center. I was impressed with the complexity of the system to send out, take in, count, reconcile and protect the ballots of local voters.

I was even more impressed with the integrity and energy of the workers in the Elections Center. They put maximum effort into ensuring that every voter has the opportunity to make his or her voice heard.

Damaged ballots are repaired. Wrongly marked ballots are carefully scrutinized to attempt to discern and honor the voter’s intent. Voter declaration signature discrepancies are followed up by letters and phone calls, giving people a chance to have their votes counted.

Ballots and correction letters were still being received and counted a full month after ballots were mailed out.

The dedication and scrupulousness of these election workers is second to none in keeping our democracy honest.

However, these wonderful people can only count what is returned. Citizens must match their efforts, learn about issues and candidates, and then do their civic duty and vote.

This story was originally published September 6, 2018 at 2:31 PM.