Andover’s January Primary Election Day Runs Smoothly

Everyone involved deserves recognition and thanks

By Jon Warzocha and Lee Wells

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

An election couldn’t happen without the help of so many people, all of whom deserve our recognition and thanks.

Being able to use AE/MS for our polling place upends their regular routine. Parents need to find care for their children for the day. Teachers need to create special remote learning lesson plans. The administration helps coordinate all of this. The staff gets the school ready for all of us to come in and vote and cleans up afterwards. 

The Town Clerk and Deputy Town Clerk handle most of the paperwork and logistics in registering people to vote, sending out absentee ballots, posting notices, and sending the results to the state. Other members of the Town Hall team help with copying forms and providing supplies.  The Select Board Members help out in many ways in the course of Election Day. 

The Supervisors of the Check-List keep the list of registered voters up to date and accurate, register new voters on Election Day, and help to make sure the numbers add up at the end of the day.

The Police provide security and deliver the results to the state at the end of a very long day.

Finally, and most importantly, there are the volunteers. The volunteers greet you when you arrive and steer you in the right direction, the ballot clerks check you in and give you your ballot. Dozens more help sort and count the ballots at the end of the day.

The hard work and cooperation of hundreds of Andover people make our elections run smoothly. We can’t help but think that this is democracy at work.

Sincerely,
Jon Warzocha, Moderator
Lee Wells, Deputy Moderator