Volunteering at the polls can restore faith in democracy | READER COMMENTARY

I humbly suggest that at some point in life everyone who is able, whether they habitually vote or not, would benefit from volunteering as a poll worker just once. Doing so is about as close as one can come to “touching” democracy (“Be kind to Maryland’s primary election workers today,” May 14).

Staffing a polling precinct is far different than campaigning for a candidate. It’s purer because it is a nonpartisan activity that puts you at the center of human-powered decision making. I learned this during the last election cycle when I checked voters in for about 12 hours straight. I returned home bone-tired, but with my faith renewed in the potential that a functioning democracy offers — if, as Benjamin Franklin said, we can keep it.

— Amy Bernstein, Baltimore

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