Muncipal clerk’s offices around the Commonwealth are struggling with an overwhelming workload due to the pandemic during upcoming elections. Ensuring the functioning of clerks’ offices is going to require more hands on deck than ever before.
Project Spirit!, as in the Spirit of 1776, is a volunteer initiative from your local Rotary club to lend a helping hand during this time of a pandemic, social unrest and elections.
Do you have a spare hour or two a day, a week or a month where you can help the Town or City Clerk's office keep pace with challenging requirements of conducting regular business while answering residents' inquiries about the COVID-19 pandemic and running both a Primary Election and a General Election?
Clerk's offices are short-staffed, overworked, overwhelmed and worried about being able to do their job since the pandemic began. They need help to do their regular duties plus the increase in election-related duties due to House.Bill 4820, "An Act relative to voting options in response to COVID-19," signed recently into law by Governor Charlier Baker.
They have been at the city and town halls, working behind closed doors while receiving non-stop questions from visitors and phone calls. They know COVID-19 is not going away anytime soon, and expect last-minute surges of resident requests right before the Primary Election on September 1 and the General Election on November 3.
What can you do to help?
Reach out to your city or town clerk and help alleviate some of their work burdens due to the extended voting options for the Primary and General elections.Some examples are: stuffing envelopes; and, counting ballots. Your local clerks will know best how they need assistance. This may take place at your town or city hall, your own home, a school gym, or other agreed-upon venues.
Think of Rotary as being a safety net for municipal clerks in their time of need - now through November 3.
For more information, contact Robert A. Bussey, MBA, president of the Rotary Club of Southborough, at 617-833-9915 or bussey@vurohege.com.
