In response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Fayetteville-Manlius School District is incorporating additional health and safety measures into its polling site logistics to provide residents with a safe in-person voting experience.
Logistical Changes
The district’s vote will be 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday, May 18 at Fayetteville Elementary School. The school will shift to remote instruction for students on this date to reduce the number of individuals who are physically present in the building.
All voters must enter the polling location through the wheelchair-accessible front entrance, which is adjacent to the building’s main entrance. The school’s front, double-door entryway will not be in service in an effort to maintain social distancing. If a line forms, participants should follow social distancing guidelines and maintain six feet of space from any non-household members. Signs will be posted around the polling site and volunteers will be available to assist voters.
Unlike in previous years, the 2021-22 school budget vote and board of education election will not include an optional exit survey for voters to complete. This temporary adjustment aims to reduce the amount of time that voters occupy the facility and the number of high-touch surfaces that frequently require sanitization. The district plans to collect feedback from residents at a later date through an alternative method.
Voter presence will be limited to 50% of the cafeteria’s maximum occupancy at all times. High traffic areas will be monitored, floor markers will be placed six feet apart near the check-in tables and polls will be spaced out.
Additional Precautions
To ensure the health and safety of others, residents should refrain from in-person voting and instead cast an absentee ballot if they are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms or recently tested positive for COVID-19 and have not
yet been cleared by a medical provider or the local health department to appear in public.
Additionally, residents who have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 on or after May 4 should not vote in person.
Absentee ballot applications are available online or at the Fayetteville-Manlius School District Office, 8199 E. Seneca Turnpike, Manlius.
Poll workers, volunteers, voters and anyone accompanying voters must wear a face covering at all times while visiting the polling location.
Disposable face coverings will be available for anyone who forgets to bring their own. Staff will disinfect and clean high-touch surfaces frequently; shared objects will be sanitized after each use.
