Ready, Set, Vote!

Student vote day!

I love the idea of student vote. Students take part in a mock election where we vote for the actual candidates in our riding. Our vote results can then be compared to the actual vote results. Awesome, right? It really provides an opportunity for students to demonstrate their interest in the political system, go through the voting process (so hopefully it will become something they will want to continue doing once they reach voting age) and have their voices heard about the important issues facing our country.

The results of the Student Vote elections send a strong and clear message about #futurevoters : we want our voices heard!

And we appreciate the opportunity to….

That's right! We're #futurevoters!

So let me share some details about Student Vote at my school.

There are four candidates in my riding of Leeds-Grenville-Thousands Islands-Rideau Lakes:

1. Margaret Andrade (NDP) 

2. Gord Brown (PC - Incumbent) 

3. Mary-Jean McFall (Liberal) 

4. Lorraine Rekmans (Green Party) 

I had the opportunity to talk with 3 of them about engaging young voters, and their party platforms. You can read some of the interview responses in my last blog post. 

After discussions about party platforms, reviews of interesting articles related to political issues and the election campaign, students lined up to cast their ballots. 

An official Student Vote ballot!

 Making a choice! 

 Deciding our future! 

 I want to share with you a little about how some of my classmates felt about the importance of Student Vote, and their experience voting for the first time.

Student Vote - ERIN

Erin thinks the biggest issue in this campaign is the Syrian refugee crisis. 

She based her vote on the party she felt most aligned with her beliefs about this issue. 

Student Vote - BRIANA

Briana voted for the Liberal party because she agrees with lowering taxes for the middle class. 

Student Vote - DANIELLE

Danielle thinks Student Vote is important because it shows kids that it's not difficult to get up and go vote, and it develops an important habit…. voting! 

I'm looking forward to comparing our election results with the official election results next week! I wonder how closely our votes will mirror how the rest of Canada votes?

#StudentVote #FutureVoters #HavingOurSay #OURcanada

 Please check out my TWITTER @legislativpeyge to learn more about my experience with the Student vote campaign!