Here's What It's Like To Be a Poll Worker in Nashville

Early voting for the Nov. 5 election runs from now until Oct. 31. At each of the 13 early voting locations, voters are greeted by poll workers, who help folks navigate the process. We chatted with long-time poll worker David Reeves to get the scoop on how it all works.

What is a poll worker?

“Poll workers, or poll officials as they’re often called by the Davidson County Election Commission, are the people that go through the training to be qualified — both from the standpoint of background checks and skill — to operate all of the components that you may encounter when you come in to vote.

“To be one legally in the state, you have to be a registered voter of your county, if you’re over 18. If you’re 16 or 17, you just have to be a resident of the county. Yes, you can actually work as a poll official before you can vote!”

What drew you to being a poll worker?

“I originally did it in high school. And for anyone that is 16 or 17 out there, or if you have a 16- or 17-year-old, it looks great on a college resume. I restarted it a couple of years ago. I came back down to take care of my dad. Shortly after he passed away, they were saying how they had fewer election workers, and I was like, ‘Oh, I’ll do it again.’

“I’m a geologist and planetary scientist by training. If it needs to be done, and needs to be done well, I enjoy doing it.”

What does an average day of early voting look like for you?

“My life is just early voting. That is all I do. I wake up, and I get to the polls. When the polls close, I generally don’t have any option other than to sleep, because you need sleep for the next 11-hour day. When we get there, we make sure that we have everything open, and that everything is functional. If we’ve had computer failures, we’ll be doing it analog-style. I will say the most fun part of the day for me is when I’m the greeter outside. It’s the only time we really get to have small talk, because every other time, we’re all business.”