Students participate in simulation voting
Students lined up at the cafeteria with voter guides in hand. After meticulously studying the propositions and evaluating the different candidates, this past Tuesday students finally got to cast their fake ballots for the NPHS mock election. For students under 18, the mock election was an event in which they could see what participating in democracy is like. With the presidential election coming up in just over a week, there is an ever increasing buzz over who will be the new leader of the United States. Sponsored by Ventura County, this school wide event allowed students the chance to experience what the voting process entails.
The school was equipped with voting booths and ballots which mimicked the legitimate ones used for the national election, including an option to “vote” for the upcoming president as well as propositions.
“We (had) the entire ballot available for students,” Steve Johnson, social science teacher, said. “So it’s not just for president of the United States. We want them to know that their vote counts at the state level and locally.”
The mock election projects the student body’s ideas about national leadership and legislation. The election took place during classes and was open to all students who had teachers willing to participate in the event.
History teacher Richard Bradley has organized the event for three years and is proud to say that NPHS is the only school in the county that hosts an event like this.
“(We had) several hundred if not close to a thousand students” who voted in the election, Bradley said. Many students were inspired to vote in the mock election because of the tumultuous political situation, and many who will be eighteen by November 8th plan on participating in the actual election.
The results of the poll favored Clinton enormously. However, they may not accurately represent the student body because the majority of underclassman did not get the chance to participate, and some students did not take voting seriously.
“I’m very excited about the upcoming election and very passionate about the two upcoming candidates, and so I wish I could have made a difference in my school’s politics” sophomore Eesha Chattopadhyay, who did not get a chance to vote, said.
It is unfortunate for underclassman who did not get to participate, because the mock election for presidential candidates is only held every four years.
Though the mock election has been held in the past, two, four and eight years ago, “it’s been getting bigger every year, because Mr. Bradley has been doing a really good job getting the word out and making it into a bigger event,” Joseph Calaba, history teacher, said.
