calling for supporters to \u201cenlist\u201d in an \u201carmy for Trump.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\nAt the mention of voter intimidation, Bowens\u2019 jaw clenched.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\u201cWe\u2019re doing everything we can to create a safe voting environment in Durham,\u201d he said. \u201cThe issue of voter intimidation is very important, and it certainly won\u2019t be tolerated.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\nFor years, Durham County has dispatched unarmed security guards to polling places to protect voters from instances of intimidation. Two weeks ago, the North Carolina State Board of Elections told elections officials that law enforcement could not be assigned to a polling site. But Bowens appealed the decision and got Durham\u2019s policy reapproved.<\/span><\/p>\nIn addition to the unarmed security guards, if a precinct in Durham does see an instance of voter intimidation, \u201cI\u2019ll be the first one out there, I can tell you that,\u201d Bowens said.<\/span><\/p>\nDurham\u2019s approach to voter suppression is largely an expression of its racial and ethnic diversity. The county\u2019s \u201ccultural melting pot\u201d allows Bowens to feel at home here, which he said wasn\u2019t always the case in Wilmington.<\/span><\/p>\n\u201cThere were some difficulties there, in terms of feeling like I belonged,\u201d he said. \u201cIn Durham, I see other people that look like me. I feel like I belong.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\nDurham elections officials welcomed his arrival in 2016, after years of turnover in an office \u201cflying by the seat of its pants,\u201d according to Lehman. Before Bowens, they had no written manual of office procedures. Within months, he wrote a manual.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nDuring Baker\u2019s interview for the position of deputy director, her first impression of Bowens was of a \u201cpretty serious and very precise person.\u201d At first, she worried he would be a tough boss.<\/span><\/p>\nBut after 5 p.m., when the phones finally stop ringing and the office closes for the night, his employees see him at his most comfortable. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nHe takes off his shoes and wanders the office in his socks. He whistles to himself and blasts Michael Jackson\u2019s greatest hits from his phone. When Gedman worked in the office, they\u2019d turn on the <\/span>Dirty Dancing<\/span><\/i> soundtrack.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nBowens says unwinding together at the end of a long day helps the office build comradery.<\/span><\/p>\n\u201cWe spend more time together than we do with our own families,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\nHe doesn\u2019t see his own family much these days. He says his wife, Andrea, doesn\u2019t always agree with his commitment to the job, \u201cbut she understands the importance of it,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nHe misses his 3-year-old daughter, Harper, most of all. When trying to describe her, Bowens shook his head in awe.<\/span><\/p>\n\u201cNo words,\u201d he said. \u201cI just love being a papa.\u201d He wishes he could spend more time with her.<\/span><\/p>\n\u201cBut this is our democracy,\u201d he said. \u201cIt requires sacrifice.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Every Election Day, Derek Bowens wakes up and plays the most motivational song he can think of: CNN\u2019s Election Night theme. The song provides an…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4372,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[135,136,271],"class_list":["post-4371","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-election-2020","tag-elections","tag-the-vote","entry"],"yoast_head":"\n
\u2018The first one out there\u2019: How Durham\u2019s elections chief gets ready for the biggest day of the year - 9th Street Journal<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n