On November 6, 2018, citizens across the country voted in the midterm elections. During this election, voters had the power to decide who would represent them in Congress, their state governments, and more. However, most Pine Crest students do not yet meet the age requirements that would make them eligible to participate in this crucial part of American democracy. To combat this issue, the Post-AP Political Science class hosted a mock election, giving all Upper School students an opportunity to voice their different opinions.

Members of the class held presentations from periods two through eight in the ICI on the day before the election to inform students about candidates and ballot measures. To prepare, the class divided up the ballot and had each student research different candidates, utilizing several helpful online resources such as ballotpedia.com, which gave the basic rundown on a candidate’s position across critical topics. Class members said about 30 students showed during up each period to learn more about what they would be faced with while voting.

“Even if you’re under 18 and not able to vote yet, it’s important to be politically informed and understand how the ballot works and what your vote means,” said senior Alexa Jacques, one of the members of Post-AP Political Science.

On election day, students had the chance to “vote” all day in the Student Union. The class set up six computers from the technology department at the back of the Union and used a Google Survey as a ballot. At each station, class members provided a “cheat sheet” that included a basic rundown of everything on the ballot.

In total, 216 students participated in the election throughout the day. The mock election results skewed towards the Democrats compared to the results of the general election; both Andrew Gillum and Bill Nelson won in the mock election but lost to their Republican opponents in the midterm.

“I wasn’t surprised by the results of our school election,” Jacques said. “Also, with our school being so close to the Parkland shooting, I think that gun control was a key issue for a lot of the students, which was reflected in the candidates who they voted for.”

Source: Politico