Poll worker recruitment: Evidence from the Mexican case

Abstract

The success of a democratic election greatly depends on poll workers. However, our knowledge of citizen engagement in the organization of elections is still limited. This article studies the contextual factors that shape citizens' decisions to volunteer as poll workers. To accomplish this task, we take advantage of an original feature of the Mexican election system: The participation of randomly selected citizens in organizing and overseeing the operation of polling stations. We argue that the sociopolitical context in which elections take place greatly affects work at the polls. In particular, electoral competition and rising violence affect the organization of elections and citizen participation in this process. We find that competitive elections facilitate poll worker recruitment, especially in the early stages of the democratization process. However, at the same time, criminal violence depresses citizen participation in the organization of elections. This article contributes to the developing literature on electoral administration and the burgeoning literature on the political consequences of criminal activity.