Following in the footsteps of Martin Luther King Jr.

From Marketplace, I'm Sabre Benes Shore, David Brancaccio is on assignment.

Today, many remember the Reverend Dr Martin Luther King Jr. and his life of service with service of their own by volunteering in their communities.

This election year there is a real need for one particular kind of volunteer nationwide.

Poll workers, Marketplace's Kimberly Adams has more.

About a million people step up to work the polls in a presidential election, says Barry Burden, director of the Elections

Research Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

But like many parts of this economy, there's a labor shortage.

Election officials around the country have told us

over the last 15 years or so

that about half of them say they have very substantial difficulties

finding enough poll workers to serve.

And not just in the big November elections.

Olivia Zink is the executive director of open democracy in New Hampshire

and is working on recruiting poll workers for the state's primary next week.

So Nashua Ward 2 needs some people.

King, Ward 1 and 4 need people.

The city of Franklin needs workers.

The city of Manchester needs workers. the city of Portsmouth needs workers.

Zinc celebrates volunteers who sometimes serve for decades, but warns many are aging out.

Advocacy groups nationwide are pushing for more young people to get involved,

especially says Ryan Perunzi at the Fair Election Center.

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