Mock election empowers next generation of voters

By Geoffrey Wertime, Staff Writer
Over the past several years, observers have paid much attention to the votes of the young but they have given little thought to the minds of the next generation of voters.
    This year, students in 10 local schools are being given the opportunity to voice their political opinions as part of the 2008 New Jersey Student/Parent Mock Election.
    In the state, as many as 447,000 students at 988 schools will participate in the program, which is part of a national mock election. The goal is to educate students of all ages about the voting and political systems, and to give their politics a voice, according to the organization’s Web site.
    As part of the election, students in kindergarten through 12th grade have the option to vote for president, as well as for New Jersey candidates for the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives. Several other questions will ask students to say how important they find issues such as health care, the economy, the educational system, and national security.
    Votes must be in by today, Thursday, and at press time results were expected to be available this evening at www.njmockelection.org. While parents can also vote under the program, few schools in the area have elected to include them as part of the process this year.
    At Florence High School, students and teachers both took part in the vote on Tuesday. History teachers Erik Pyontek and Stephen Ordog acted as co-election coordinators, and Mr. Pyontek called the event “phenomenal.”
    Seniors Matt Austin and Michael Perino took on the personas of Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama, respectively, and engaged in a town hall-style forum with each history class.
    Michael, 17, said the experience gave him a feeling for what it’s like for politicians to speak to a crowd. A supporter of Sen. Obama, he estimated about 80 percent of the classes he visited favored his candidate.
    “I like his plan for education the most because, as a senior going into college, I believe it affects me the most,” he said.
    Matthew, also 17, cited Sen. McCain’s energy and health care plans as reasons he supports the Republican. Matthew said he didn’t mind taking a bit of ribbing from supporters of Sen. Obama if it meant getting the word out about the two politicians’ views.
    “Some people might have had some misconceptions about what both candidates actually stood for,” he said. “ They may have had an idea, but we put it out there in black and white.”
    “I was surprised at the level of interest and how well-prepared the kids were to ask questions,” Mr. Pyontek said. “They are very concerned about the economy because a lot of them are about to go into college, and they are concerned about what their job prospects are going to be, so I think economics was the big thing.
    “They were also concerned about another potential 9/11,” he added. “I heard that a lot.”
    The school held its own successful mock election in 2004, but was inspired to join the larger one this year due to the historic nature of current events, Mr. Pyontek continued. He cited Sen. Obama’s youth as a large factor in drawing the interest of students.
    “It’s one election that the kids are just really following closely, we decided that we would do something a little bit different this year,” he explained.
    Florence is now one of many schools in the area participating in the larger mock election. The other participating schools in the area are: New Hanover Elementary School, Clara Barton School in Bordentown City, Peter Muschal School in Bordentown Township, Springfield Township Elementary School, MacFarland Intermediate School in Bordentown City, Bordentown Regional Middle School, Bordentown Regional High School, and Northern Burlington County Regional High School.
    Mr. Pyontek described the mock election as a way for students to become part of the process. “They feel empowered, like they’re part of the process, and that their opinion matters,” he said.
    “A lot of these kids are very well read and very savvy—a lot more savvy than people give them credit for—but they have no real outlet to channel their interest or their intellect. So it has to happen in school.”