Nancy Mayer, an attorney and longtime Democrat, has spent dozens of hours at polling places across Durham County since early voting began two weeks ago. Some days, she arrives as the sun is rising at 7:30 a.m. and leaves after dark, at 7:30 p.m.
She’s a poll observer, one of many statewide who volunteered to monitor the election process on behalf of the parties. Mayer has lived in Durham since 1977 and worked as a Democratic poll watcher for more than a decade.
“Whenever there’s something weird going on, it’s on us to get involved,” she said.
At precincts around the state, poll observers will monitor voting with greater agency this year compared with past elections. That’s due to a voting law, SB 747, that passed the Republican-controlled legislature in 2023.
The bill brought sweeping changes to the voting process, including new rules for mail-in ballots, photo IDs and same-day registration. Perhaps the most visible change involves poll watchers.
In the past, they sat in a chair with only a partial view of the voting enclosure. Now, they can move around the precinct, take notes and listen in on conversations between election workers and voters. They may also take photos, with permission from voters and the chief precinct judge. But the observers cannot speak with voters or read filled-out ballots.
Some Democrats worry that poll watchers could be a source of disruption and intimidation under the new rules.
“No one could ever be intimidated by me, and that’s never my intent,” said Mayer, referring to her short stature. “But now that we can walk around, if you’re some tall guy who wanted to be obnoxious and scary, you could.”
Gerry Cohen, a member of the Wake County Board of Elections, said intimidation likely won’t be an issue in Durham, where Democrats dominate. He’s more concerned about disruptions in smaller, rural counties, where politics is “more of a blood sport.”
Cohen has worked in elections for decades — as an observer for the Democratic Party in Orange and Wake Counties in the 1970s and ’80s, and later as a paid poll worker. He found poll observing boring but important.
“If there isn’t an actual problem going on, there’s nothing to do,” he said.
Mayer agreed, noting that she’s spent much of her early voting shifts tracking wait times at precincts.
“In Durham, most of the shifts are like watching paint dry,” she said.
There are few barriers to becoming an election observer in North Carolina. Volunteers must be registered to vote in the county and, per state law, “have good moral character.” A poll watcher cannot be a candidate on the ballot.
Vetted by their political party, observers receive no training from county or state officials. Each polling place can have up to three observers per party present at once, including “at-large” volunteers who work at multiple precincts throughout the day.
As the election nears, the bill responsible for empowering North Carolina poll watchers has stirred fierce partisan disagreement.
State Republicans, led by Republican National Committee chair Michael Whatley, have rolled out a “Protect the Vote” campaign. The push includes four lawsuits against the North Carolina Board of Elections. One suit alleged that elections officials “deliberately declined” to enforce a portion of the law intended to prevent non-citizens from voting. Another asked the state to kick 225,000 voters off the North Carolina rolls — which the board said would violate federal law. A federal judge dismissed a part of the suit earlier this month.
Democrats, meanwhile, say the law is an attempt at voter suppression.
“This legislation has nothing to do with election security and everything to do with Republicans keeping and gaining power,” Gov. Roy Cooper said in a video last year. Cooper vetoed the bill, though it was later overridden.
Mayer said that despite debates, she’s committed to her role as an observer.
“I don’t care who people are voting for,” she said. “I just want to make sure people can vote.”
Photo at top: Nancy Mayer, a Democratic Party poll watcher. Photo by Abigail Bromberger – The 9th Street Journal
