Poll Workers Honor Beloved Colleague Doris Thrasher

Former election colleagues gathered in Milwaukee to remember Doris Marie Thrasher, who died in September after a short battle with cancer.

Updated on Nov. 4, 2026 in Elections

A navy canvas tote bag rests on a folding chair in a plain school auditorium, with empty rows of chairs behind it in soft window light. — Former Milwaukee poll workers gathered on Nov. 3 to remember colleague Doris Marie Thrasher, 73, who died Sept. 20 after a short battle with cancer. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

Poll workers held a memorial for Doris Marie Thrasher, 73, after the Nov. 3 election in Milwaukee. Thrasher worked the polls at 2765 N. Fratney St. in Ward 134 before she died on Sept. 20.

Why it matters

The gathering highlights the personal commitment of volunteer election workers who spend long shifts running polling places in Milwaukee neighborhoods. It also reflects how much local poll workers come to mean to one another over the course of their service.

Election workdays at the polls lasted 14 to 15 hours, and Thrasher had spent 30 years as a personal banker before volunteering. The stub does not state how many former poll workers attended the memorial.

The players

Doris Marie Thrasher

A 73-year-old former personal banker who spent 30 years in the industry, including at State Financial Bank, and volunteered as a poll worker starting in August 2020.

Philip Taterczynski

The election official who received Thrasher's request two days before her death to remove her name from the list of active election inspectors.

The details

A small group of former colleagues gathered in the Riverwest Elementary School auditorium to honor Thrasher, each wearing a badge with her photo. Speakers took turns sharing stories, ending each with 'Hail, Doris,' a tribute inspired by an old Viking ritual of remembering someone through praise rather than mourning.

August 2020: Thrasher began working the polls alongside Sam Kay.
Sept. 20: Thrasher died after a short battle with cancer.
Nov. 3: Election held, and voters shared memories of Thrasher.
After Nov. 3: Poll workers held the memorial at Riverwest Elementary School.

Big Picture

Milwaukee's election administration depends heavily on volunteer poll workers who staff long shifts at neighborhood polling places. Stories like Thrasher's show how that volunteer base builds lasting bonds that outlast any single election cycle.

Milwaukee voters rely on a steady supply of trained poll workers, and each volunteer who commits to 14 to 15 hour shifts helps keep neighborhood polling places open. Residents who want to help can look into serving as an election inspector in their ward.

The takeaway

Election administration in Milwaukee rests on people who give long hours with little public recognition, and remembering them is part of keeping that system running. Volunteering as a poll worker is one concrete way residents can support their community's elections.