Kamilah Kashanie (KK): It’s the StoryCorps Podcast from NPR. I’m your host Kamilah Kashanie. When the election year started, one thing was clear—it was gonna be complicated. 

Between COVID-19 and voter suppression, our country faced some very real — though not altogether new — challenges.  As we approach inauguration day, we’re looking back at a very intense election cycle and getting to know a few folks who were deeply involved in the process.

Cherie DeBrest (CD): Your vote is your currency. It’s what you use to make things happen and it should not be wasted.

KK: That’s Cherie DeBrest. She’s a social worker in North Philadelphia. The first time Cherie cast her ballot was over 30 years ago. But in 2018, she decided to take it a step further. 

She spoke with her 18-year-old daughter, Naima, over StoryCorps Connect, about what inspired her to become a poll worker.

CD: I remember I saw pictures of Martin Luther King and Coretta Scott King casting their vote for the first time. So those images were in my head, and I was actually getting to do that for the first time. And then once I got in the booth, I felt a little overwhelmed because I’d never seen a ballot before.

I remember the poll workers being older. I wondered where were the young people? It stuck in the back of my head, but it wasn’t until a few years ago that I actually decided to become a poll worker myself.

Walking in that polling station on my very first day, which was a beautiful church, there was one gentleman there, Mr. Kevin, doing everything. And he was so happy to see me. It’s a very busy polling station and the poll was gonna open in half an hour and then we realized that we were it. I felt a lot of pressure. I’d never done it before. I wanted every vote to count. There were times when the line was out the door, so that’s when I called you.

Naima DeBrest (ND): I walked from home to the polling place and you weren’t kidding. It was just you and Mr. Kevin. So I just sat down and got to work.

CD: Oh, I felt so relieved to see you walk in that door. We do things together all the time, but this was a time where we could work shoulder to shoulder doing something for our neighbors to make a difference.

ND: Do you have any fears about working the polls this year?

CD: I can’t allow myself to have any fears about Election Day. I know what’s going on in the world right now. I know that tension is high, but think of all of the people like John Lewis getting ready to walk across Edmund Pettus Bridge. If they can do that, I can show up at the polls and work.

And If you’re willing to take the chance to come out in the middle of a pandemic in order to cast your vote in person, I’ll be there for you to make sure that you’re safe.

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KK: That’s Cherie DeBrest and her daughter Naima, last October, in Philadelphia.

We’re gonna catch up with them again a little later in the episode, but first we wanted to spend some time getting to know the person who’s been holding it down at their polling station for the last 15 years, Kevin Jones,  also known as, Mr. Kevin. So I spoke to him over StoryCorps Connect.

Kamilah Kashanie (KK): Cherie and Naima spoke really lovingly about the role that you played when they were volunteering at the polls and it was just the three of you. Do you remember that day? 

Kevin Jones (KJ): When I was working the polls, I would normally have two gentlemen who would have worked with me. One passed away. The other gentleman moved out of the city. When Cherie came in to vote that day, she looked and she said, ‘You’re by yourself?’ And I looked flustered. But she said ‘Can I work? Can my daughter work as well?’ And both of them were saviors that day and have been working with me ever since then.

KK: Do you remember the first time you worked the polls?

 KJ: [Laughs] I do remember the first time I did work polls, yes. And I was actually a machine inspector. Back then, it was mechanical machines where you had the knobs where you turn and you knew you were done with the curtains would fling open. 

I really wasn’t keen on the politics side of things; I was more interested in getting involved with the community, and I’ve been involved for about 15 years now. 

KK: What would you say is the most rewarding part of your job? 

KJ: Well the most rewarding part, uh, is to ensure that people have the ability to vote. I want to make sure that they know and they understand the process, uh, not be intimidated, and let them know that they have that right. 

KK: I also heard you still have your original voter registration I.D. 

KJ: Yes, I do.

KK: Is there a reason that you’ve kept it?

KJ: I, I keep that as a reminder, believe it or not, to not give up. Don’t lay down on the job, that I continue to stay involved and engaged. 

KK: Cherie, talked a little bit about being kind of concerned that younger folks aren’t really involved in the process. And I definitely proved her right coming in here being like ‘I don’t know what district I’m in.’ [Laughs] Um, is that something that you think about?

KJ: That does worry me. Um, I know I won’t be doing it forever [laughs]. You know, I always say, if not me then who, and it would be nice to get more young people involved.

KK: If you could stand on a soapbox and, like, give a shout out to Gen Z, what would be your slogan or your sentence to like, pull them in to caring more, and wanting to be a part of the process and wanting to vote.

KJ: I would let them know there were thousands and thousands of people that have paid the price so that they could benefit. And they should want to be able to pay it forward.

KK: I like that. Mr. Kevin — 2023 — hashtag payitforward. If I was a Philly resident, I would definitely roll up with you. Mr. Kevin.

KJ: Thank you. I appreciate that.

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KK: That’s Kevin Jones, former machine inspector, current Judge of Elections, paying it forward in Philly. After the break, we’re looking back at election day and looking ahead to inauguration day, with Cherie and Naima. Stay with us.

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KK: Welcome back. When Cherie and Naima first sat down for StoryCorps, they were gearing up for Election Day. It was going to be historic for a lot of different reasons and for Naima, it was also going to be personal, 

CD: So Naima, this was your first time voting in a presidential election. How did that feel?

ND: It felt very good to be included. I’ve always watched the elections and been excited to see the results. So I felt a sense of pride knowing that I was one of the numbers. My vote was in there. And that made me think that that’s going to be an election that I remember forever.

CD: I was very proud because we also worked together that day at the polls. Can you describe what the energy was like at our polling station on November 3rd?

ND: The energy was high. There were a cast of characters there the whole day. We did have a couple people who had some little issue that we just had to clarify and make sure. And they’re like, ’I’ll go home. I’ll get the papers. I’ll fill out whatever I need to do.’ So I saw how strongly people felt about voting.

CD: I would agree. People were very committed to the process. I felt like everyone just seemed to be so happy that day to be able to accomplish something so very important. 

ND: It was a long day, like 12 hours. But we were working at a church. And I find solace and peace and calm in churches, so it was a nice way to, like, take some of that stress off. 

CD: How do you feel in this week leading up to Inauguration Day?

ND: I’m very excited about seeing a woman of color inaugurated into one of the highest positions in the country. But then you have destructive acts that are happening by people on the opposite side. 

CD: It’s very painful to watch the country fracture on itself. As Malcolm X put it: ”the chickens have come home to roost.” And what he meant by that was, you can’t hide what is in some people’s hearts. It will bear out. And we will have to deal with that as a country. But I’m not going to let that steal my joy. As a black woman, I feel a lot of pride. So I am excited about inauguration. I have a lot of hope for what is to come. 

ND: What are your hopes for me?

CD: My hope for you is that you become even more committed as time goes on. Watching you grow and seeing your maturity actually play itself out, it makes me feel good, not only because you’re my daughter, but it makes me feel good for the future of America. So four years from now, can you see yourself working the polls again?

ND: Definitely. Maybe one day I will be the Mr. Kevin of the bunch, like I will be the oldest in the room. And I just hope that I’m able to help as much as I can, whether it be here in Philadelphia or wherever I end up as an adult. 

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That was Naima and Cherie DeBrest, making their voices heard and their votes count, in North Philly, Pennsylvania. 

That’s all for this episode of the StoryCorps podcast. To read about the music you just heard, and to see original artwork created by Lindsay Mound, go to StoryCorps – dot – org.

This episode was produced by Eleanor Vassili and Sylvie Lubow. It was edited by Jud Esty-Kendall. Our technical director is Jarrett Floyd, who also wrote our theme song. Natsumi Ajisaka is our fact checker.

Special thanks to all the poll workers who were out there during COVID this year.

For the StoryCorps podcast, I’m Kamilah Kashanie. Catch you next week.