BRAINERD — Secretary of State Steve Simon presented awards to Crow Wing County elections workers on Monday, June 2.
Helen Burgstaler earned the Excellence in Elections award after serving as an election judge in Crow Wing County for 75 years. She's the county's longest-serving election judge and thought to be the longest-serving in the state.
Burgstaler is an amazing woman who has always taken the job seriously, Simon told KAXE.
"She was not even of voting age when she started, because back then the voting age was 21, and she wasn't yet 21 when she decided to be an election judge," Simon said. "She had enough time away from her farm duties to do it, she decided to do it and stuck with it for 75 years."
Other officials honored at the ceremony included Crow Wing County Administrator Debby Erickson and Election Supervisor Kathy Toensing.
Erickson has served the county for 31 years, formerly working in the assessor's offices, as the auditor-treasurer and administrative services director. She is considered an expert in election administration by others in the state and country, a news release from Simon's office said.
Toensing started working for the county in 2006.
"County leaders attribute their successful elections to her countless hours of service and tireless dedication," the release said.
"Kathy works behind the scenes to review ballot configurations, create test decks for public testing, set up for public testing, election judge scheduling, equipment setup, ballot board coordination, supply coordination for precincts and Poll Pad configurations."
Simon said it was a happy coincidence to be awarding Burgstaler along with the full-time Crow Wing County officials.
"They are ethical, they are detail-oriented, so we were able, of course, to lead off with the award to Helen, but also reward others who have really distinguished themselves in terms of service to the voters of Minnesota," Simon said. "So it was really a great opportunity."
Simon said this was the first year of the Excellence in Elections awards, a way of showing gratitude to those who commit to ensuring Minnesota's elections run smoothly.
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