While the upcoming election might be a source of angst for some — from voters and candidates to poll workers and elections bureau employees — the announcement that the county bureau’s new elections director started his job this week is good news.

We wish Aaron Sheasley well in his new role, and are glad the bureau has new leadership ahead of what’s sure to be among the most contentious — and challenging — presidential elections.

The race for the White House is already shaping up to be a bitter fight, and congressional races aren’t looking much better.

On top of that, this will be the first election held during a pandemic in more than 100 years — a midterm election was held during the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic — and the likelihood that mail-in ballots will play a larger role than usual will also present challenges.

There are many possibilities for error, confusion, legal challenges and delayed vote counting. So, it’s good news the elections bureau won’t face these challenges without someone at the helm.

We’re glad to hear that Sheasley — who lives in Cranberry Township — said his No. 1 priority is to ensure the county has safe and fair elections. We also appreciate that one of his goals will be to encourage youth participation in elections.

During the 2018 midterm elections, the good news was that voter turnout among residents ages 18 to 29 increased by a whopping 16 percent, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey.

The bad news is that the original participation rate (20 percent) was terrible and merely rose to a slightly less awful one (36 percent). Sheasley said he has noticed a number of young people are registered to vote, but many of them don’t show up to cast their ballots.

“What many fail to realize is your school board and all the local candidates you vote for are much more impactful on your daily life than the big elections that are heavily advertised,” Sheasley said of young voters.

We agree. This summer’s nationwide protests have drawn Americans of all ages and backgrounds — but many of them have been youths.

Exercising one’s constitutional right to assemble is one way to work toward changes one might want to see. Another way is to cast a ballot. We believe Sheasley’s initiative to educate young people on the importance of voting is a good one.