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Because my community centre is used as a polling station and I'm therefore not allowed to go to work on election day, and because the City Counil give any staff helping with an election the day off in addition to their annual leave entitlement (and pay them for the work on elections), I spent yesterday staffing a polling station, from 6.30am - 10.30pm.
My parents apparently did this when they were younger and warned me that I'd probably be bored, but I loved it! It's so cool, sitting there watching all these people come in and engage in the democratic process. People voting for the first time, coming with their parents, or in groups from university. Parents bringing their kids to walk them through the process. People who've voted at that station every year for the past fifty years. People who don't want any of the candidates but come and write this on their ballot paper because they *want* to be part of the process anyway, not apathetic. Turn-out at my station was 75%, which is about 2500 people, so about 150 an hour, so it was busy and lively, and I got to sign in some people I knew, which is always cool, and, I know this makes me such a geek, but it was so much fun. I can't wait for next year when I can do it again, and I totally recommend it. It restored my faith in the democratic process, even with the hung parliament.
Then I spent most of today helping at the count for the local elections, which is really weird, because the candidates and their agents stand over your table and watch you count ballots without blinking, and don't speak to you. So odd. But the three elections I counted were all called for my preferred party, so yay!
Of course, now I'm completely exhausted, but it was so worth it :)
My parents apparently did this when they were younger and warned me that I'd probably be bored, but I loved it! It's so cool, sitting there watching all these people come in and engage in the democratic process. People voting for the first time, coming with their parents, or in groups from university. Parents bringing their kids to walk them through the process. People who've voted at that station every year for the past fifty years. People who don't want any of the candidates but come and write this on their ballot paper because they *want* to be part of the process anyway, not apathetic. Turn-out at my station was 75%, which is about 2500 people, so about 150 an hour, so it was busy and lively, and I got to sign in some people I knew, which is always cool, and, I know this makes me such a geek, but it was so much fun. I can't wait for next year when I can do it again, and I totally recommend it. It restored my faith in the democratic process, even with the hung parliament.
Then I spent most of today helping at the count for the local elections, which is really weird, because the candidates and their agents stand over your table and watch you count ballots without blinking, and don't speak to you. So odd. But the three elections I counted were all called for my preferred party, so yay!
Of course, now I'm completely exhausted, but it was so worth it :)
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