These Married Poll Workers Put People Over Politics
Part 3 of 3
Kristina and Stephen Reisinger are a married couple who serve as poll workers in Chester County. Stephen owns a construction company and is a registered Republican. Kristina is a schoolteacher and registered Democrat. This is the third in a series of three posts about their experiences as poll workers, and their commitment to serving their communities.
The Reisingers are both politically moderate, but they are registered with different political parties. They don’t always agree on everything, but the one thing they always agree on is the importance of democracy, and a sense of duty to help people in their communities make their voices heard at the ballot box.
“We work hard to try not to talk politics after 9 p.m. to protect our sleep,” Stephen said with a smile. “But one of the great things about living with Kristina is she gives me great perspective on a broader view of different topics.”
“It’s always good for me to hear perspectives from my husband,” Kristina agreed. “I think we are coming from really different worlds between his work and my work, and we try to look for common ground, and we try to help each other see different perspectives.”
They understand the importance of policy, and they have their policy preferences, but ultimately they recognize that democracy functions best when everyone is able to weigh in, and they are proud to be facilitating that process in their local community.
“What I love is with our little group of poll workers at our precinct, the rivalry amongst us is how many people from our respective neighborhoods are going to show up and show out.” Stephen said. “That’s the competition. It’s not about politics or partisanship, we just want to see our neighbors come in and use their voice. Everyone who works in our precinct, we are all about giving back to our community, and we just want to see everybody come out on election day.”
“At the end of the day, the big thing for us is democracy itself,” Kristina said. “People coming out and voting is like our community having a conversation about the kind of world we want to live in, just like the conversations Stephen and I have at home that lead us to better understanding, but on a larger scale, and then that local conversation is part of other, larger conversations at the state and even national level, and it is a privilege to have an opportunity to help make sure our neighborhood’s voice is heard.”