The New Hanover County Board of Elections relies on civic minded members of the community to help administer voting during an election. If you are interested in working as an Election Official in any of the below capacities please apply by using our electronic application or contact the New Hanover County Board of Elections for more details.
Election Day Workers staff each of the polling places in New Hanover County on Election Day. There are multiple statutory and administrative positions that an election official may be assigned. Below is an explanation of the positions, qualifications and compensation details.
Each precinct is headed by an appointed Chief Judge. They are responsible for managing all Election Day activities within their precinct, picking up and returning Election Day supplies, setting up and breaking down the polling place and resolving any issues that may arise during Election Day.
Two Judges are appointed to each precinct and work closely with the Chief Judge to manage the polling place. They sign off on all official documents, aid the Chief Judge in resolving challenges and assist with polling place set up and break down.
Assists the Chief Judge and Judges on Election Day. Assistants are assigned by the Board of Elections to work numerous administrative positions in the polling place including laptop operator, curbside coordinator, ballot distributor – among others.
Maintains the check-in station that a voter gets to upon entering the polling place. Laptop operators are specially trained in checking voters in and updating voter profiles.
Ensures that all voters who need to vote a provisional ballot or who need some type of update to their information are processed quickly and efficiently.
Matches voters with the correct ballot style to ensure that each voter is receiving the candidates and issues they are legally allowed to vote. The ballot station is the point in the precinct where voters receive their paper ballot.
Responsible for assisting voters who are unable to enter the voting enclosure due to age, physical disability or physical barriers. The curbside coordinator assists the voter to ensure the voting process is accomplished just as if they had voted inside the voting enclosure.
Ensures that voters have their questions answered while they wait in the main check-in line. The elections greeter maintains proper flow of the entrance and exit lines at the polling place and hand out the “I Voted” stickers.
*Additional compensation details are not listed above and will be discussed upon assignment to an election.
One-Stop Workers staff each of the One-Stop “Early Voting” locations in New Hanover County during the 17-day “Early Voting” period. during One-Stop Voting, there are fewer polling places open and the schedule differs than that on Election Day. The location(s), dates and times are decided on and approved by the Board of Elections prior to each election. There are multiple positions that an election official may be assigned to at a One-Stop site. Below is an explanation of the positions, qualifications and compensation details.
Each One-Stop site is headed by a Site Lead. They are responsible for managing all One-Stop Voting activities within their location, picking up and returning One-Stop supplies and resolving any issues that may arise during the day.
Two Judges are assigned to each One-Stop site and work closely with the Site Lead to manage the location. They sign off on all official documents, aid the Site Lead in resolving challenges and assist with management of the One-Stop location.
Assists the Site and Judges during the One-Stop period. Assistants are assigned by the Board of Elections to work numerous administrative positions in the One-Stop location including laptop operator, curbside coordinator, ballot distributor – among others.
*Additional compensation details are not listed above and will be discussed upon assignment to an election.
Qualified high school students interested in working the polls on Election Day are able to serve their communities as Student Election Assistants (SEA’s). They are paid for training and their work on Election Day when Student Election Assistants serve alongside New Hanover County Election Officials to ensure full staff coverage of all polling places.
Most SEA’s serve as laptop operators on Election Day. In this role, the Student Election Assistant maintains one of the check-in stations that a voter gets to upon entering the polling place. Laptop operators are specially trained in checking voters in and updating voter profiles.
*Additional compensation details are not listed above and will be discussed upon assignment to an election.
A Multipartisan Assistance Team (MAT) is a group of voters who have been appointed by the New Hanover County Board of Elections to provide assistance with absentee-by-mail voting to voters living at assisted-living facilities. MAT’s consist of at least two voters of different party affiliations who visit assisted-living facilities as needed throughout the Absentee Voting period.
*Additional compensation details are not listed above and will be discussed upon assignment to an election.