POLLING PLACE RECRUITERS FIND STOCKTON A HARD SELL.

Byline: Ann Schuyler The Stockton Record

In her effort to aid democracy, Gail McDonald has had guinea hens thrown at her, dogs sicked on her, doors slammed in her face and threats hurled at her.

McDonald's job of finding polling places is an eternal challenge. It involves knocking on doors, sending pleas through the mail and telephoning residents and registered voters to beg for a garage, office or meeting room.

Last month's election was McDonald's most difficult ever. McDonald had to assign voters in four county precincts to polling places in neighboring precincts.

``No one was willing to give up their garage for a polling place, and those that had small businesses, they didn't have enough space or didn't want to be bothered,'' McDonald said. ``We went door to door for at least 30 precincts.

``People just aren't civic-minded anymore; they don't care,'' McDonald added. ``They don't get out and vote, and they don't want to be part of the voting process. It's getting really bad.''

But Alfe Charles of the Secretary of State's Office doesn't think San Joaquin County's desperate hunt for polling places is typical.

``We haven't heard of those problems on a large scale statewide,'' Charles said.

McDonald hopes the 368 people who agreed to host voters at the primary will do it again twice more this year, including the general election Nov. 5.

The elections are arriving faster this year, leaving less time to find polling places, McDonald said. Each election, the number of registered voters and precincts rises.

McDonald's staff began hunting for primary polling places in September with letters to the 346 people who had previously hosted them. About 50 refused. In October, McDonald and her crew began knocking on doors. They followed up with letters to every registered voter in the poll-less precincts. Then they phoned.

When people complained about the inconvenience of polling places, elections workers told them, ``We've gone out in your neighborhood, and are you willing to help us out now?'' McDonald said. `` `No, no way,' they'll say. They say they don't want people they don't know in their garages. This is their neighbors that we're talking about going into their garage.''

McDonald stopped going door-to-door last year after 10 years of rejection. One person who didn't want to volunteer a garage threw guinea hens at her; people set their dogs on elections workers; and in some neighborhoods, they have to hide their county car blocks away so residents won't assume the registrar's emissaries are probation officers or child welfare workers.

But some who have offered polling places for years have no intention of quitting. Margaret Goodwin, 62, has hosted the vote in her precinct for 30 years.

Her garage is a neighborhood habit on election day, Goodwin said. She's even canceled a planned trip to make room in her summer vacation schedule so her garage can be used June 4 for a special sales tax vote on libraries.

``I know people in the neighborhood who said they probably wouldn't vote if they couldn't vote here,'' Goodwin said. ``I've just always done it. I've never had a problem. It's a good way for me to get my garage cleaned out once in awhile.''

Joe Medrano, 63, was a first-time polling place host for the primary. But Medrano said he may never do it again because the turnout was so low - 36.3 percent.

``To me, it was really discouraging because the people are not interested in our government, which is so sad,'' Medrano said.

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Photo: San Joaquin County election worker Gail McDonald stu dies a map of difficult recruiting precincts in Stockton.

Associated Press