It’s almost time for Americans to vote. In Nebraska, some residents go a step further. They must help run the election too! 

In Nebraska, election workers are drafted. This happens in no other U.S. state. 

It’s kind of like getting your name drawn out of a hat to do a job. When your name gets picked, you have to show up. What happens to people who ignore the summons? Police could charge them with a crime and fine them up to $100.

Twenty years ago, Dawn O’Brien was busy teaching and shuttling kids to school and practice. She received a letter. It told her she’d been selected for election duty. 

“I was surprised,” she says. “I do remember thinking, ‘Boy, how am I going to juggle this?’”

But after serving, Ms. O’Brien understood how much helping in elections matters. She now volunteers to work most elections.

“I just learned so much about what it takes to pull off free, fair elections,” she says. “It is a massive effort to do this and to do it right.”

So far, only two counties in Nebraska use the election draft. The state has 1.25 million registered voters. Nearly 500,000 of them live in those two counties. Those areas need thousands of workers.

Can you get out of election service? People 70 or older, those with documented health problems, and people with young children can skip it. There is one other way to get out of it. That’s to remove yourself from voter registration rolls. But most people don’t want to give up their right to vote.

Draftees don’t have to work just one election. They’re on the hook for four. They get paid $12 per hour. 

Someday you’ll be old enough to volunteer as an election worker. Officials say they need young people in those roles—especially if they’re good with iPads and tablets.

Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution. — 1 Peter 2:13