Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com

poll worker

American  
[pohl wur-ker] / ˈpoʊl ˌwɜr kər /

noun

  1. a person who volunteers and is officially appointed or trained by a local board of elections to facilitate and oversee elections, including checking in voters, issuing and collecting ballots, and explaining and monitoring the polling equipment.


Etymology

Origin of poll worker

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Three months after Tired_Thumb learned of the government investigation, a New York poll worker named Paigelynne Gonyea received a voicemail from a man identifying himself as an agent with Homeland Security.

From The Wall Street Journal Aug. 4, 2026

If you filled out your vote-by-mail ballot, walk into a vote center and ask a poll worker where you can submit your mailed ballot.

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 1, 2026

Sunil Singh*, a poll worker in Ghaziabad, said that his "platelet count had dropped" sharply in the past couple of days but he wasn't being allowed to take leaves because of SIR duties.

From BBC Dec. 7, 2025

The new contest had been called after a poll worker allegedly made a mistake in telling voters that one of the four candidates had died, which could have swung a race decided by eight votes.

From Salon Apr. 4, 2023

The group offered to make a presentation during a poll worker class following last year’s midterm elections, but the Chicago Board of Elections declined, she said.

From Seattle Times Apr. 2, 2023

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Join 12,000,000 vocabulary learners

Start learning new words today on VocabTrainer.
You'll remember them forever.

Start training