In preparation for the extraordinary elections in Riga, significant problems have arisen: it turns out that it is difficult to recruit staff for polling stations. The shortage is large – at the beginning of the week, almost a third of the required staff or 500 people had not yet been found.
For the elections to be successful, polling station commissions must be staffed. But this has caused problems. 1800 employees are needed in 156 districts of Riga. But at the beginning of the week, 500 employees or 30% were missing.
There are also polling stations where there is no leader at all, says Juris Kokins, Chairman of the Riga Election Commission.
“The most difficult thing is that we could already find members of the polling station, but there are polling stations where there is no head for the polling station. Therefore, it is more complicated, because there must be qualified people there, ”says Juris Kokins, Chairman of the Riga Election Commission.
Kokins points out that it has always been difficult to find employees of the precincts. He cites pay as the main reason. Polling station managers receive around 580 euros before taxes for election week, ordinary employees pay around 200 euros “on hand”.
But the Central Election Commission (CEC) draws attention to another problem – not everyone has the opportunity to give up their main job during the election period.
“It must be taken into account that work in polling stations is not just on holidays today, as it used to be. But there are also, for example, previous voting days. And that means that for those people who are so responsible, politically motivated and want to help with this election work, they have to give up their main job. This is not always possible, ”says CVK chairman Kristīne Bērziņa.
In addition, due to Covid-19, it is even more difficult to complete the stations this time. “Yes, in the beginning people” slowed down “, I can judge from the previous time. But now that everyone has come to terms with Covid and yet there is no such resistance. One cannot already know what will happen if there is a second wave. It is already difficult to predict. If there is a more serious wave of diseases, then it may already be refused, ”Kokins worries.
Additional safety requirements can also discourage work in the stations, says the head of CVK. “This means that polling station staff will also have to comply with these safeguards. We have to work perhaps in such unusual conditions – face masks, counting votes in gloves, and accordingly we have to help the voters to observe a distance of two meters, ‘says Kristīne Bērziņa.
And in order to be careful, more people also need to be employed in these elections.
On Monday, the head of the Riga Election Commission will compile the latest data on how many employees have been found. It will then also be decided whether the search for staff should be extended by one week so as not to jeopardize the elections.
–
