RALEIGH, N.C. -- Some counties in North Carolina are short on precinct officials, or poll workers, and need your help.

Wake County Board of Elections recruitment coordinator Spencer Berg said 40 percent of their veteran officials are choosing to sit out this election.

"We knew we were going to have a high number who may not want to return, understandably, due to concerns of COVID-19," says Berg. "Again, these people typically are in that high risk category. They're retirees. They're senior citizens."

This caused recruitment to look a little different this year. Usually, Wake County has five or fewer Student Election Assistants -- this year they have over 100. Student Election Assistants are high schoolers who will be at least 17 years old on election day. 

"They get trained just like all our poll workers. They get the same position," says Berg. "We're just really excited to work with these high school students, get them involved with the process, and hopefully make them a life long poll worker going forward."

Berg says the response to Wake County's call for help has been great. The Board of Elections has received 2,400 precinct worker applications just in the past month which exceeds typical applications for the year. They have received 4,500 applications for the year.

While Wake County has enough workers to be fully staffed during the election, the same is not true for all counties in North Carolina. Reach out to your local Board of Elections and see if they need help and additional staffing.