The Denver Post Feb. 5 - Montezuma County is pulling voting booths out of schools partly because of concern for the safety of students in the wake of the Columbine massacre. A state Republican Party leader said he wouldn't be surprised to see other counties follow suit. It's unfortunate that it has gotten to that.
Political parties supply judges at polling sites.
Kaufman said officials want to ensure that people don't roam around the schools after they vote. The Montezuma County Clerk's Office announced this week it will pull voting booths out of schools by the next election, the March 10 presidential primaries. The southwestern Colorado county historically used three elementary schools as polling places. But heightened awareness of school security in the wake of violent episodes such as Columbine made the county clerk think twice about arranging for hundreds of adults to mill through schools unsupervised, Deputy County Clerk Carol Tullis said. The clerk's office has received a few calls questioning the decision and the implication that the schools couldn't be kept secure and remain a bastion of the democratic process.