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Needham Teens Pick Obama, Brown in Mock Election

The high schoolers voted unofficially on Monday, Nov. 5.

 

While some Needham High School students were eligible to vote in Tuesday's state election, many were not—but that didn't stop local teens from making their voices heard.

On Monday, Nov. 5, the school's social studies department coordinated a mock election that included many of the races and issues addressed in the real election.

A total of 651 NHS students voted in the mock election.

School staff shared the results of that election on Wednesday morning:

President

  • Obama-Biden (D), 67.9 percent (430 students)
  • Romney-Ryan (R), 25.4 percent (161 students)
  • Johnson-Gray (L), 3.5 percent (22 students)
  • Stein-Honkala (GR), 3.2 percent (20 students)

U.S. Senate

  • Scott Brown (R), 50.2 percent (314 students)
  • Elizabeth Warren (D), 49.8 percent (312 students)

Representative in Congress

  • Joe Kennedy III, 74.3 percent (442 students)
  • Sean Bielat, 20.2 percent (120 students)
  • David Rosa, 5.5 percent (33 students)

Question 1: Right to Repair

  • Yes, 82 percent (320 students)
  • No, 18 percent (70 students)

Question 2: Assisted Suicide

  • Yes, 60.7 percent (277 students)
  • No, 39.3 percent (179 students)

Question 3: Medical Marijuana

  • Yes, 66.3 percent (301 students)
  • No, 33.7 percent (153 students)

Package Store Licenses in Needham

  • Yes, 65.1 percent (209 students
  • No, 34.9 percent (112 students)

Needham High School students also had a presence at polls around town on Tuesday, Nov. 6.

Senior Jennifer Spink voted for the first time ever Tuesday afternoon at Newman Elementary School (which houses precincts C and D). She turned 18 in September.

Of the experience, Spink said: It was very powerful. I loved voting for the first time. I felt like it was very important for me to go out and vote."

Over at Broadmeadow Elementary School (precincts G and H), students Rogers Epstein and AZ Troenkrasnow held signs supporting Massachusetts Question 3.

“I believe it’s something that would alleviate a lot of suffering for a lot of people," Troenkrasnow said of legalizing medical marijuana. "It's something that should already be legal, and it’s just stupid that it’s not yet. It’s all the private sector that made it illegal in the beginning."

Related Topics: 2012 election, Election Results, Mock Election, Needham High School, and Politics

Bill Dermody

3:55 pm on Wednesday, November 7, 2012

The Melick Foundation was proud to help out with the Mock Election.

Reply

Trish Cruickshank

4:33 pm on Thursday, November 8, 2012

Great that the kids had an opportunity to research the issues and then vote on them. Thanks also to the students who helped out at the polls. With so many voters, the lines were long and those students helped to find everyone on the list.

I do have an issue however with your choice of wording on question 2. Whether you support the issue or not, assisted suicide is inflammatory wording, I believe that assisted death is more neutral.

Reply

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