The results of this year’s mock election are in. The election was held on Oct. 25 and Oct. 26.. Democratic candidate, Barack Obama, won the presidential vote with 70% of the vote. Democratic candidate, Dianne Feinstein, won the vote for Senator with 73% of the vote.
“I voted for kicks and giggles and I thought it would be interesting to see how the school votes so I wanted to participate,” said junior Lauren Shaw. Shaw was one of the students who voted during lunch. In addition, some students voted during classes, while others did not vote at all.
“I did not vote in the mock election because I was not aware that this mock election was taking place. However, when I did find out, it was after school on Friday it was very sad,” said junior Sierra Zounes.
The mock elections were a learning opportunity for some students. “It gives teachers an opportunity to discuss politics in the classroom,” said English teacher Justin Conn.
Students were able to find information on the topics in voter packets. “There was good information in the voter’s packets on what was actually going down… Because I actually read, I understood. [How I voted was] an accurate representation of how I think,” said junior Elias Brown.
On the other hand, some students did not feel as prepared to vote: “I have limited education [on these topics]. It was enough to understand the topics in general,” said Shaw.
The results of the vote were as follows:
President
Thomas Hoefling – 1%
Barack Obama – 69%
Jill Stein – 3%
Gary Johnson – 3%
Roseanne Barr – 4%
Mitt Romney – 20%
US Senator
Dianne Feinstein – 73%
Elizabeth Emken – 27%
Props
Prop Yes No
#30 – 66% 34%
Prop 30 would temporarily raise taxes for the wealthy as well as sales taxes in order to fund schools and local public safety programs.
#31 – 57% 43%
Prop 31 would give more power to local governments in terms of taxing and funding public projects.
#32 – 33% 67%
Prop 32 would prevent unions from using payroll deductions for political purposes.
#33 – 59% 41%
Prop 33 would allow insurance companies to offer continuous coverage discounts for new customers transferring from other insurance companies.
#34 – 52% 48%
Prop 34 would eliminate the death penalty.
#35 – 69% 31%
Prop 35 would expand the definition of human trafficking as well as stiffen punishments for human trafficking.
#36 – 67% 33%
Prop 36 would modify the existing three strikes law to be less harsh on nonviolent offenders.
#37 – 70% 39%
Prop 37 would require genetically engineered foods to be labeled as such.
#38 – 66% 34%
Prop 38 would increase income taxes for 12 years. The money would go towards paying for schools, child care, preschool, and state debt payments.
#39 – 73% 27%
Prop 39 would change the way that multistate businesses are taxed. Additional tax money would be used to pay for schools and alternative energy.
#40 – 44% 56%
Prop 40 would keep state Senate district boundaries from being changed.