PHS students represent the presidential candidates in the mock elections; Obama wins at PHS, too

by Brooke Maxson

Not only were the presidential elections for the U.S on November 4, but so was the mock presidential election at Pittsford High. Garet Lee and Tyler Wilson respresented Barack Obama and John McCain, respectively, while Derra Clark and Zak Smith were Sarah Palin and Joe Biden. They had to give speeches as if they were the real election candidates. Then we, as the student body, had the opportunity to vote for the candidate of our choosing. “It was just an introduction to the political process,” explained government teacher Mr. Irelan.
According to Mr. Irelan, the elections were a success. “Any time you have participation, it’s a success. I thought the speeches went well and we had a lot of debates over the issues,” said a satisfied Mr. Irelan.

Lee found it a challenge to write as Obama. “(It was) quite difficult, yes, but once you find out what their policies are, it becomes easy,” said Lee. “You would think politics are easy, but after you write the speeches it proves to be quite difficult.” Despite the impression he gave us while he was up there giving his speech, Garet said it was nerve-wracking. “Especially when it’s in front of my friends; when I was done, I felt relieved, to say the least.”

Smith found the task a bit easier. “I was kind of nervous in the beginning, but I got used to it,” coolly stated Zak. Zak said it did give him a better understanding of how elections go. “It helped me see what the presidents, vice presidents, and other candidates have to go through to get people’s votes,” said Zak.

Tyler had to really go over the details to make sure he was correct in his writing. “I had to fact-check everything before I could write it and I had to think like John McCain,” Tyler informed. Although Tyler was nervous talking in front of his friends, he felt good about his overall performance. “I thought that I represented John McCain the best that I could,” happily stated Tyler . Maybe we shouldn’t underestimate the difficulty political candidates go through. “It’s harder than it looks,” Tyler assured me.

Derra didn’t think it was too difficult writing a speech as someone else. “It was kind-of, but I took splices from her speeches, which made it better.” She was a bit nervous, to say the least. “Absolutely terrifying. I felt so much better after I was done,” said a relieved Derra. Changing opinions wasn’t really what Derra was going after. “Supporters don’t really pay attention to their opponent, so I don’t think my speech would really sway anyone from their original opinion.”

When all the ballots were counted in the PHS election, it was announced that Barack Obama was the winner, with 72 votes. John McCain came in second with 44 votes. Lastly, somehow Ralph Nader earned one vote. Congratulations to all four students for representing their chosen candidates well.