I was a Baltimore election judge Nov. 8. It was quite a workout.

Democracy is not just an idea. It is an action. It is also a stiff neck, a sore bottom and a parched throat. As a first-time election judge in a Baltimore City precinct on Election Day, I was actively “democracizing” — as in, practicing democracy while exercising. For roughly 13 hours straight, I welcomed and checked in nearly 1,000 voters, alongside two strangers who fast became my friends.