Becky Peterson (center) has been helping area voters for more than three decades. Perida Hollifield (left) and Mamie Blevins (right) were on her team during early voting in Spruce Pine this election season.
Fred Rogers, the man known to generations as Mr. Rogers of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, famously said, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’”
Who are the helpers in our community? Where can we find them? How can we each be a helper in our own way?
If you voted during the early voting period at the Spruce Pine Fire Department or on Election Day at the Bradshaw Fire Department, you were probably greeted at some point by the smiling face of Becky Peterson.
For more than 35 years, Peterson has been a poll worker assisting voters in Mitchell County.
“It’s rewarding,” Peterson said. “I enjoy seeing everybody, people I’ve known for years and went to school with. People thank you for being here so they can vote.”
Peterson says helping neighbors and how everyone seems to know each other are what make being a poll worker in Mitchell County special. She tells about the year when there was some confusion over if voters had to present ID to vote.
“Someone asked a man for ID,” she recalled. “He says, ‘You know me, you know who I am and where I live!’”
Peterson is from Bakersville and was raised on Mine Creek. Her husband’s grandfather introduced her to poll work in the early 80s.
“Then I was handing out cards at the polls,” Peterson said. “After that, I got a call and started doing this. Back then, we actually counted the votes by hand and checked each other.”
These days, more than a few Mitchell County neighbors need a hand at the polls.
“They may be a little shaky filling in the ballot and want to make sure it is clear and their vote counts or they may have trouble reading the ballot or not be able to read the ballot,” she said. “They can get some help from someone they bring with them or from one of us. They do have to state their name and address and that they want whoever is with them to help them vote.”
North Carolina law provides that husbands and wives may occupy the same voting booth if both wish to do so and may assist each other. Any person may have assistance from a family member.
Disabled and blind voters and voters who can’t read can ask for and receive assistance from any person they choose, including poll workers.
“We’re here to help,” Peterson said.
Would you like to learn how elections work and help your neighbors as they cast their votes on election day? Be a poll worker like Becky Peterson.
To qualify, you must be a registered voter or a high school student who is at least 17 years old and in good academic standing.
Poll workers can’t be a candidate or relative of a candidate in the election.
They can’t be an elected government official, hold office with a political party and they can’t serve at the same polling place as a spouse, child, spouse of a child, sister or brother.
Everyone who works at the polls must complete a two-hour training. If you are interested in being a poll worker in 2023, contact the Mitchell County Board of Elections at 688-3101 during business hours Monday through Friday.
They’ll jot down your name and give you a call next year when the training schedule has been set.