Poll worker warriors: Federal government offers more training for election workers

Election workers in at least two southwestern Pennsylvania counties are receiving federal guidance on how to stay secure at the polls on Nov. 5. 

Poll workers in Allegheny County and election workers in Butler County received training or guidance from the federal Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, or CISA, this year. In Allegheny County, training for poll workers now includes how to determine what may be an imminent threat and how to de-escalate a situation if an aggressive person enters the polling place.

“We have CISA staff across the country working every day to deliver more resources to state and local election officials than ever before,” said Dave Tackett, a CISA election security adviser, responding to questions by email. 

“This includes trainings to address one of the most pressing security issues this year – threats of physical violence and harassment against election officials and poll workers,” he said.

CISA, the lead government agency working with elections officials on security, has conducted more than 400 trainings nationwide since the beginning of 2023. 

There are two new offerings this year: training related to influencing elections and security for election workers, according to CISA.

Pennsylvania is key in this presidential election between Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican nominee former President Donald Trump. With 19 electoral votes, the commonwealth ties with Illinois for fifth-most votes among all states and Washington, D.C.

Polling nationally shows a close race between Harris and Trump. A poll released over the weekend gives Harris a 3-point edge over Trump in the Pennsylvania. 

Allegheny County is offering CISA’s de-escalation training for the first time this year. 

While the county was not required to add the training, local officials determined that it was in the poll workers’ “best interest to be prepared based on the current political climate,” county spokesperson Abigail Gardner said. 

New poll workers are required to complete the training in Allegheny County. The usual training prepares a poll worker for what a polling day looks like and the various tasks they will need to carry out, including opening and closing the polls. 

Allegheny has received no credible threats of violence, but a few poll workers have brought up security concerns, Gardner said.  

Allegheny County Council member at-large Bethany Hallam served on the board of elections in 2020 and said she received threatening messages from people who did not accept the results of the election between President Joe Biden and Trump.

“I am definitely concerned about that since this is the first presidential election since 2020,” she said. “But other than that, I know we do a good job having Elections Division folks who are on call all during polls being opened on Election Day, who are ready to respond to any issues at the polling places, along with all the constables who have been trained to make sure everything goes smoothly.”

A CISA representative spoke with the Butler County Bureau of Elections in July about building security and employee safety, Director of Elections Chantell McCurdy said. 

Butler has received verbal threats, typically about getting a ballot on time and the occasional accusation that Butler is “ruining the country,” McCurdy said.

In Beaver County, poll workers are receiving the same training as in prior years since there is “not a strong sense of tension,” said Director of Elections Colin Sisk. 

He said he is “cautiously optimistic” about the election.

Beaver County is working closely with law enforcement to safeguard the election process, he said, adding that the county has not received threats of violence.

“We’re all very cognizant of the environment. We’re cognizant of the emotions that all people on all sides of the political spectrum feel,” he said.

 “We know that folks feel very strongly on both sides.”

The last day to register for the election in Pennsylvania is Oct. 21. Learn more through the Pennsylvania Department of State or your local elections division.

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