I’m Going to Be An Election Judge, and then I’m Going to Write About It

My Next Story Will Be About an Election Judge & I’ll Tell You Why:

But first, a disclaimer. I have multiple stories that need revision, and then they will hopefully be published & released soon. So it will probably be a while before this “Election Judge Story,” which is just a glimmer of a thought in my muddled brain, will come to life.

But Anyway.

Why do I plan to write about an election judge? Well…

1. A few weeks ago, I signed up to be an election judge for both the primary and November midterm election. I saw the posting when I was looking at the City of New Hope job board site, hoping to find a lifeguard position for my son. But instead, I found something for myself. Now I’ll have firsthand experience doing something cool.
2. Wait, you say. Being an election judge is not actually cool. WRONG! The civic process fascinates me. I guess I’m a geek, but yeah, I LOVE voting. I even love standing in line to vote. That sticker in the photo? I saved it from the last time I voted. The “I Voted” stickers are so awesome, and now I’ll get to hand them out!
3. Still, I wouldn’t have thought that my humble little experience of being an election judge in a first-ring Minneapolis suburb might inspire a compelling story. But then, I saw Wandrea Shaye Moss’s testimony yesterday in the January 6th hearings. It was impossible not to be moved.

If you didn’t see it, here’s a recap: Shaye and her mother were election judges in Georgia. After Trump lost the state, Rudy Giuliani targeted them and he lied, saying they had an elaborate ploy to destroy ballots cast for Donald Trump and then to steal votes for Biden. Trump called them out on Twitter and called them hustlers. It ruined their lives when they received multiple death threats and racist attacks, and it was no longer safe for them to go out.

Now, I know I can’t tell Shaye’s story. An African American election judge from Georgia who receives racist death threats is not my story to tell. But some of what she said, and what the media said after her testimony, really inspired me.

• • Shaye Moss became an election judge because she believed in the system. She wanted to help the senior citizens who were confused figure out how to vote. She wanted to give back to the democracy she believed in.
  • And, as the media remarked, our democracy is in a fragile state right now. If anyone is going to save it, it will be everyday people like Shaye Moss who are also quietly heroic.

• Favorite Daughters is about democracy, but it focuses on the stars, on the people in the limelight. Next, I want to write about how one average person, working behind the scenes, can make a difference.

So, I’ll go to my training and I’ll be an election judge, and hopefully I won’t have to experience anything close to what Shae and her mother went through. I will do my part to make sure that election day goes smoothly, and I will also brainstorm ideas for my next story.

I can’t wait!