[EL] financial cost of physical polling places

[Christian Robert Grose]

Hi: As has been discussed on this listserv as elsewhere, many polling places have been closed down in the last few years in localities, especially in Texas, Georgia, and elsewhere.  Those shutting down the polls often point to costs. Due to COVID, local election officials are making choices regarding physical polling locations too.

I am trying to find a ballpark estimate, perhaps per capita given costs will vary based on population, of each individual physical polling place - especially in the South.  What is the cost of one additional polling location in the average small county in a place like Georgia or Texas?  What is the cost of one additional physical polling place in a mid-to-large size urban or suburban county?

The only research I have been able to find on the topic is Sarah Hill's research on California ("Election Administration Finance in California Counties", The American Review of Public Administration). As she reports, "There are costs to the county for establishing each polling site, including finding the site, recruiting and training workers, providing the necessary voting equipment, and so on, and these costs can be considered relatively fixed and independent of the number of voters who use the site."

Specifically, I am interested in the ballpark estimate of costs of local election administrators in small-populated counties and larger counties for the costs of finding sites, training and recruiting workers to staff the polling sites, providing the equipment to vote -- and not the costs for other parts of the administration of the election.

Does anyone have any anecdotal evidence/data; or can point me to a recent study or expert who may be able to answer this question? Feel free to reply off list or on list.

Thank you,
Christian Grose
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Christian Grose
Academic Director, USC Schwarzenegger Institute
Associate Professor of Political Science and Public Policy
University of Southern California
http://dornsife.usc.edu/cf/faculty-and-staff/faculty.cfm?pid=1032675

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