CLERKS, ELECTION JUDGES PREPARE FOR BIG DAY

Voters head for the polls only a few times each year, but that's plenty for county clerks and election judges.

This Election Day, predicted to be one of the largest off-year elections ever for some counties, the clerks and judges will rise long before dawn, get to the polls before 6 a.m. and go home at 10:30 p.m. or later.

Work begins weeks before, however, and Scott County Clerk Bob Kielhofner and Cape Girardeau County Clerk Rodney Miller both spent the latter part of last week dropping off supplies at various precincts.

The counties use machines to tally the votes -- a computer in Scott County and a punch card reader in Cape Girardeau County. Those machines must be publicly tested before they are put to use on Election Day.

Kielhofner said Scott County's machine did well in each election since its first run in April's municipal election, saving time for judges who once counted ballots by hand.

"We don't use near as many judges, and we can't get covered up because of all the amendments," he said. "Before, if there were a lot of amendments, it was touch-and-go as to whether we would get everything counted before midnight."

The clerk sent five ballots from each of Scott County's 30 precincts to the vote-counting machine's manufacturer. Computer programmers there developed special boards for the election and tested them. Those boards and sample ballots were sent back to Scott County for a few trial runs and then a public test scheduled for Monday morning.

Cape Girardeau County publicly test its system Friday morning.

At least one Democrat and one Republican must be present for the tests to make sure the machine favors no one.

Out of 20,300 registered voters in Scott County, Kielhofner predicts about 9,500 will vote. Miller predicted a higher turnout in Cape Girardeau County, with 60 percent of 35,700 registered voters expected to visit the polls.

With such a high turnout expected, it is vital election judges be thoroughly briefed on procedures. Both counties have about 160 judges each, who check for voters names on the register and hand out and collect ballots.

"We go over the details with them and talk about issues on the ballot," Kielhofner said. "They need to make sure no one is closer than 25 feet from the outside door of the polls. They also have to pick up election cards inside the polling place. People actually try to scotch tape their cards inside the booths."

For their 13 or more hours of Election Day work, judges get $60 each. Many, like Ada Wagoner of Chaffee, remember when the job was even tougher. Forty years ago, she received $4 a day for her labors. Polling places were sometimes so cold that she had to wrap her feet to keep them warm.

Now, at age 76, she enjoys the warmth of the polling booths at Chaffee Nutrition Center. Wagoner will meet with Kielhofner in Benton Monday morning to get this election's instructions.

"People are going to turn out in the big way over all these amendments," she said. "We usually have 300 or 400 in my precinct, but I expect about 500. We're even helping some people who can't drive get to the polls."

When everything is over on Tuesday, Wagoner expects to travel with the sealed ballot box back to the Scott County Courthouse.

Her Scott City counterpart, Martha Elliott, hasn't been at the job so long. Elliott said she has enjoyed her six years of work as an election judge at city hall in Scott City.

"It's hard work, but very interesting," she said. "You have to be careful how you do it. It's easier now because of the ballot-counting machine."

She said Kielhofner called her Thursday for some additional help, because he was having trouble finding an equal number of Republican judges in heavily Democratic Scott County. Elliott knew of a prospect, but the person wasn't available to work.

The polls will open at 6 a.m. Tuesday and close at 7 p.m. Vote-counting machines should make results available around 10:30 p.m.