Flurry of Election Activity Coming Up in Marblehead

Marblehead will hold two elections and a Town Meeting over three weeks between April 30 and May 13.

That's a flurry of political activity that poses hardship for poll workers, many of whom are of retirement age and will be working long days at the polls.

And it's not unusual for polling place issues to emerge, problems that demand resolution. 

Machines malfunction, voters make mistakes on ballots or show up at the wrong precinct or do not show up on the voter lists.

The problems can cause stress.

Still, Town Clerk Robin Michaud expects to fill all the poll worker slots. That would be 36. Six precincts and six people at each one of them, checking voters in and out and otherwise keeping the election moving.

There is one caveat, the town clerk said. She will be fine filling the posts so long as her pool of poll workers are back from Florida by then.

The state primary is April 30. It is being held to nominate candidates to run for the US Senate seat that was vacated by John Kerry when he became Secretary of State.

A week after the senatorial primary, Marblehead hosts its Town Meeting, on May 6.

And a week after that, May 13, the town holds it voting on town and school races.

The extra election, the senatorial primary, comes with a cost, an estimated $7,000, money to pay for poll workers, police details, voting machines and other expenses.

The state has yet to announce what expenses it will cover, or even if it will cover expenses beyond the cost of printing ballots.

Oh yes, and there is a third election in the not so distant future.

The winners of the senatorial primary will square off in the senatorial race on June 25.