As the last voters trickled into the Cupertino Library’s upstairs voting center at 6:00 p.m. on Nov. 4, Vote Center Lead and longtime Cupertino resident Rami Kumar walked over to assist them with scanning their ballots. Kumar was just one of the many poll workers assigned to work at the library’s voting center, but for him, this isn’t just a job—it’s a way to give back to the Cupertino community.
“I am very involved with the community, and I wanted to make it easier for people to vote,” Kumar said. “I love meeting new voters to make sure they will have a smooth process through the voting cycle.”
Voting centers were established in all of the Santa Clara County libraries on Election Day, Nov. 5. However, the Cupertino Library, along with the Milpitas and Saratoga Libraries, opened up on Oct. 26 as 11-Day vote centers, allowing for people to cast their ballots early. Out of the 103 total early vote centers in the County of Santa Clara, 26 of them were 11-Day vote centers, and 77 were 4-Day vote centers, with four being located in Cupertino. The County of Santa Clara allows for people to provide extra help in various ways at these centers through work as polling Leads and Aides.
Leads oversaw processing of the voter registrar, recruited local officials for the center, responded to community inquiries, and were expected to learn election material in order to support voters and answer questions. On the other hand, Aides were responsible for the operations of the voting center, ensuring that ballots were safely delivered to be counted at the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters office.
For those eleven days, Kumar took on the role of a Lead, guiding the library’s group of volunteers through the hectic busy weeks leading up to Election Day. Each morning, Kumar and his team helped prepare the voting center for the hundreds of Santa Clara voters who come each day.
“As a lead, I get the team together, and we talk about the previous day and anything we can do to improve the process, and we tell people about what to do and what not to do,” Kumar said. “If there are any updates, we do that as well. We open the voting center around 10 a.m. each day.”
Community volunteers also assisted at the voting center, helping Leads and Aides with their tasks and welcoming people who come in to vote, serving vastly different yet crucial roles. As people entered the upper level of the library and approached the voting center, they were met with volunteers who ensured that voters were properly registered and met all guidelines before they were able to enter and cast their ballot.
Edward Chong, Field Trainer for the Registrar of Voters (ROV), worked to ensure that these volunteers were fully able to provide for and answer voter questions through intensive staff training classes, consisting of videos, volunteer manuals and other resources. Chong first got involved with the voter registration scene as a cyber-security worker in the early 2000s.
“I’ve semi-retired, and I’ve been volunteering since 2004,” Chong said. “Since 2000, they’ve been looking for trainers, and because of my daily routine doing cyber-security, we’ve been involved, which is how I signed up to work here now.”
Chong originally joined the voting center’s team in Cupertino, of which he is a longtime resident. Using his voice to create change in a crucial time is a defining reason why Chong participates in American elections, which has motivated him to help assist voters to do the same.
“The most important thing for me is being recognized,” Chong said. “We did something to this community and for the county. Our contribution makes a difference. Whoever has been elected, that is the people’s wish, we fulfill it. And whatever the result might be, I did my job.”
As active employees who have been deeply involved with assisting the voting center, Chong and Ravi acknowledge the importance of voting and how it impacts both the community and the country as a whole. They urge young people, who are eligible to vote, to contribute and make a change through voting and working at voting centers.
“I think it’s a great experience,” Kumar said. “I would encourage all youngsters to be a part of the process. This is a privilege, and this is something that you need to make use of, and you should be really fortunate to have this experience for yourself.”
