 It's Obama in a landslide
Illinois Senator is the overwhelming favorite with students in mock vote
NOVEMBER 4, 2008 – By a 4-to-1 margin, students chose Barack Obama over John McCain for president in mock elections in several Rockford Public Schools.
Among 17 elementary schools and one high school, Obama led with 6,133 votes to 1,452 for McCain. Hillary Clinton received a write-in vote at Whitehead.
Most of the schools conducted mock elections October 30 as part of the National Student Mock Election, which in Illinois is coordinated by the League of Women Voters. Principals in those schools reported their results online. Students in business education classes at Guilford High School cast mock ballots November 3, while other schools like Welsh and Conklin elementaries went to mock polls today in conjunction with the real election.
At Carlson, King and Thompson schools, kindergarteners and first- through fifth-graders marked their ballots in authentic voting booths and receive “I voted” stickers, both provided by the Rockford Board of Elections. McIntosh students made their own voting booths. Parent volunteers serving as election judges and took mobile booths from classroom to classroom.
The mock elections follow weeks of studying the candidates, the election process and the federal government. Students clipped newspaper and magazine articles, plotted state polling results on maps and went classroom-to-classroom campaigning.
“Several of my third graders were in charge at our polling place and all helped to count the ballots. I know my students will never forget participating in this historical mock election,” said Jennifer Eyre, a teacher at Johnson School.
At Thompson, fifth graders have been presenting information and making speeches during all-school assemblies every Wednesday since the middle of September. Principal Emma Gentry handed out pieces of candy wrapped in red, white and blue cellophane as students exited the voting booths.
“I have never witnessed a group of students so involved and so creative,” Thompson said. “They are really into this election. I can see this election making lifetime voters out of these children.” |
