ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, Ind. -- Mansell Carter is a clerk in the voter registration office. Carter is new to South Bend and wanted to get involved in the election process. Now he will be supervising 10 precincts. He has registered people to vote and be poll workers during local events, and let them know about the training sessions meant to aid the poll workers before the big day.

As Election Day nears, the St. Joseph County Circuit Court Clerk’s Office wants you to register to vote and become a poll worker.

“Theres been a systematic low voter turnout in St Joe County,” Carter said, “and I wanted to do my part to encourage people to get out and vote. Essentially, all were doing is facilitating the pool of eligible workers and the parties - the Democrat and Republican parties - will decide which people actually work the precincts. And so, we’re facilitating the process, were not making the decisions for them.”

Poll workers ensure you have access to a secure, efficient and accessible voting process. Becoming a poll worker is as quick and easy as registering to vote. There is also plenty of information online and in person regarding voter registration, poll worker registration and how to use voting machines. Some of which Kimberly Riskovitch facilitates.

“We want to encourage people to represent, and to show up on election day.” Riskovitch said. “We want them to vote. We want them to participate and be part of the process. And of course, as we’ve heard from others, voter turnout is important to us. We need the people to speak their mind, show how they feel, and the best way to do that is to show up on election day and vote.”

Riskovitch says people don’t realize how important their voice is, which is why voter turnout is so low. She says a lack of registration is a lack of voice. And it’s important for people to share what they think, how they feel and who they want.

Poll workers are paid for their time, and St Joseph County needs more. There are several different positions you can do that require different levels of training and interaction. But if you simply want to be civically engaged, the last day to register to vote is October 5th.