Republicans win in youth mock election

Randy Metcalf Arizona Daily Wildcat Alanna Canpie, who attends Rio Vista Elementary School, helps tally votes for the mock election yesterday afternoon in McClelland Hall. All K-12 grade schools in the state of Arizona were eligible to hold elections for the next crop of politicians.

About 7,100 Arizona K-12 students voted in schools across the state for the next crop of politicians. In the children's election, Republican Sen. John McCain tripled up on Edward Ranger, a Democrat, by a 5,034-1,629 vote, and Republican Rep. Jim Kolbe defeated Democrat Tom Volgy, 3,467-3,055.

The youth elected Republican Gov. Jane Dee Hull over Democrat Paul Johnson, 4,681-2,252.

Brendan Campie, 11, said the program helped him uncover information about Paul Johnson that prevented him from voting for the challenger.

"He wants to have school uniforms," Campie said. "I wouldn't vote for him."

Rhonda Trautman, assistant director of the UA's school of public administration and policy, coordinated Arizona's program with several of her students.

The UA team supplied teachers of students in K-12 across the state with information on how elections work, who is on the ballot and specific party views on various issues. The information was posted on a Web site, or mailed to the schools that did not have Web access.

Trautman said teaching the children was the program's most important goal, not the election results.

"We aren't worried about winning and losing," she said. "We are more interested in getting students involved in the voting process, and to educate them on issues from a party perspective."

The congressionally-supported national program was founded in New York City in 1980 by Gloria Kirshner and her late husband, Edward Stanley. The election results will be presented to Congress and President Clinton.

Although Kirshner moved the national headquarters to Tucson in 1985, this was the first year Arizona's election was coordinated by the UA.

The student-parent election's founder said the program almost never came to be.

"The program almost happened by accident," Kirshner said. "We were organizing a parent participation workshop ... to use television to open up conversation between children and parents, and not to be used as a pacifier."

Trautman said she originally intended to offer the program as a public service project for UA students pursuing their master's degree in public affairs, but decided to also allow undergraduate students to get involved.

Law and public policy Ph.D. candidate Trish Campie assisted Trautman with the project. Campie said the UA added an additional element to Arizona's mock election this year.

"We implemented the Internet technology to be able to reach out to others," Campie said. "It proved to be very helpful."

Anthony C. Braza can be reached via e-mail at Anthony.C.Braza@wildcat.arizona.edu.