GILROY
– As millions of California voters head to the polls today, 180
Mt. Madonna High School students will do the same in a mock recall
election that is provoking interest, debates and even slander on
campus.
By Lori Stuenkel
GILROY – As millions of California voters head to the polls today, 180 Mt. Madonna High School students will do the same in a mock recall election that is provoking interest, debates and even slander on campus.
Today’s election, in which students will use official ballots to vote on the recall and select a candidate, will culminate a two-week project that threw Rick Charvet’s government class at the continuation high school headfirst into the recall effort. Charvet’s 23 senior students imitated campaign managers – studying the candidates and issues, identifying a platform and giving speeches to their peers – in order to learn about the campaign process.
“Before they were into this project, I don’t think they knew what really was happening,” said Charvet, who also teaches art. “This is project-based, so instead of just opening a book and answering questions, they were a part of the process. They’re liking it: There’s debates going on, there’s mudslinging.”
The students created five groups to campaign for Cruz Bustamante, Peter Camejo, Arianna Huffington, Tom McClintock and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Although the Independent Huffington dropped out of the race Sept. 30, she will still be included in the Mt. Madonna election.
To familiarize themselves with each of the candidates, students watched a debate, visited candidates’ Web sites and studied California newspapers.
“It was interesting to hear what they all had to say,” Regina Alcala said of watching the candidates’ debate. “At first, we weren’t getting into it, but as we started learning more, we really liked it.”
Posters cover the Mt. Madonna campus – evidence that it is the political hotbed Charvet hoped to create.
“Don’t be a hater vote Terminator,” urges a sign near the front office. “No on 54, Yes Bustamante,” declares another.
On Monday morning, the students’ campaigns were in full swing. Each candidate group rotated through the eight homeroom classes to present a three-minute synopsis of their candidate’s platform and win their peers’ votes.
“You’re on the campaign trail,” Charvet told his students moments before they began. “This is what the real candidates are doing right now.”
And the competition was on between the students.
“Arnold is a woman-hater,” senior Sarah Soares told her peers as she campaigned for Huffington. The right candidate – Huffington – will be pro-choice, support gay and lesbian rights and spend education money more wisely, Soares said.
Students listened intently to the presentations, and some asked questions. One student asked the Bustamante proponents to explain Proposition 54.
Teachers also engaged the campaigners, pressing them for more information about their candidates.
“If I vote for (Bustamante), is it going to be the same old, same old?” asked Marina Campos, who teaches intervention reading.
The group was unsure, but said that Bustamante, though a Democrat like Davis, would probably want to fix the governor’s mistakes.
By involving his government class hands-on, Charvet said he hopes to stave off voter apathy in young voters even before they are old enough to register. Several of his students are 18, but said they have yet to register.
“I’ve got more kids hooked,” he said. “They started asking more questions and learning more and bringing in more information.”
Charvet’s students agreed that, as they became more involved in the project, they also became more interested in the entire election process.
“I never knew I would be this interested in it,” Soares said. “Before, I didn’t know it was this hard to be a candidate. Now, I know what it’s like to campaign and it’s hard. I love it. I’m actually thinking maybe I’ll go into politics now.”
Soares is now eager to turn 18 so she can register to vote.
“I’m kind of disappointed that people don’t get out and vote. A lot of people aren’t educated about the platforms.”
When she casts her ballot today, Soares will vote for Huffington, even though the candidate exited the real race. Soares is not doing so just because she was Huffington’s campaign manager. After watching the televised debate, Soares “thought she was the right one.”
Students will use official ballots and ballot cards to cast their votes today. All students are asked to vote for a gubernatorial candidate but will only vote on propositions 53 and 54 if they understand them. Students will count the votes to determine the winner and will compare their results to those statewide.
“These students are really excited about this election,” Campos said. Mt. Madonna students now seem more excited about the recall election than they were during the 2000 presidential election, she said.
That excitement translates into more learning opportunities, Charvet said.
“Now we have fuel,” he said. “Now we can debrief. … They’re understanding that it isn’t that easy to just walk in and mark something on a ballot, you have to be able to read and understand the issues.”
