Despite 2019 lawsuit, Memphis poll workers again denied access to restrooms at voting sites
Despite having been sued over the same issue in 2019, employees of the Shelby County Election Commission are again blocking poll workers from using restrooms in polling places.
The Commercial Appeal has received multiple reports of workers for various campaigns being told they could not enter a polling place to use the restroom.
According to state law, only “election officials, voters, someone assisting voters, minor children of voters accompanying the voter, poll watchers with credentials, and news media” can enter polling places.
Update: Shelby Co. Election Commission offers fix for issue of campaign workers using voting site restrooms
“The reason this law exists is to maintain the security and integrity of the Election materials,” said Shelby County Election Commissioner Linda Phillips in a written statement.
That law was also in effect in 2019 when a U.S. district judge issued a temporary restraining order for that year’s Election Day, saying the Election Commission and the state may not forbid campaign workers from entering polling places to use the restrooms “or for other legitimate purposes such as voting.” Campaign workers still had to forego wearing or possessing campaign materials when entering the buildings.
That ruling was in response to a lawsuit filed by Memphis City Councilwoman Patrice Robinson, who was campaigning for reelection, several campaign workers and the Greater Memphis Democratic Club.
The judge at the time said forcing workers “off the premises to find a restroom” resulted in the silencing of their free speech.
Because the injunction was temporary, it only applied to that election in 2019, but leaves the door open for future lawsuits on the same topic.
State Rep. Karen Camper and State Sen. Raumesh Akbari proposed a law in 2022 that would have required county election commissions to designate restroom facilities in polling places for the use of workers or volunteers on campaigns, but that failed to pass into law.
More: Memphis voter guide 2023: The hub for mayoral, City Council election coverage
For poll workers this year, the ban on using restrooms in polling facilities has been an inconvenience as they often work long hours in the sun.
Barbara Burchett, who is working with Van Turner’s campaign for Memphis mayor, said she heard multiple reports of workers being turned away and that she herself was blocked from going into Anointed Temple of Praise, with election commission employees there referring her to the state law.
“People are having to leave and go to a gas station, and that’s just not right when there’s a restroom in the building,” Burchett said.
Billie Sallie, a poll worker for Incumbent City Councilman Edmund Ford Sr., said she started working the polls at Abundant Grace Fellowship when early voting began on Sept. 15. At first, poll workers were allowed into the restroom, she said, but that message changed Wednesday.
“If they had a rule set, they should have told us Sept. 15 and not the 27,” she said.
Election Day for Memphis City Council and the Memphis Mayor’s race is Oct. 5.Katherine Burgess covers Memphis City Government and religion. She can be reached at katherine.burgess@commercialappeal.com or followed on X, formerly known as Twitter, @kathsburgess.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Memphis poll workers again denied access to restrooms at voting sites
