That first time came two years ago when Carmel students voted in the 2020 presidential election, and today’s voters were equally as excited and enthusiastic about realizing their opportunity to vote in the upcoming Illinois primary.
From Mr. Jack Waddle:
"Young people are always quick to complain about our current administration, the government or the fact that our country is run by old people but then they don’t go out and do anything about it. Voter turnout for the younger generation is important. They care, but they have to do something about it. Getting them out here when they’re young is vitally important for the future of our country. It’s an exciting event for them, and you can see it on their faces. They’re excited to be here."
"Young people are always quick to complain about our current administration, the government or the fact that our country is run by old people but then they don’t go out and do anything about it. Voter turnout for the younger generation is important. They care, but they have to do something about it. Getting them out here when they’re young is vitally important for the future of our country. It’s an exciting event for them, and you can see it on their faces. They’re excited to be here."
"It's important to vote but not if you aren’t educated so we take the time to talk about the current news and also ask them to be informed. We ask what they hear in the news, what they are seeing, and what they talk about with their family at the dinner table."
"This is the second time I’ve taken students voting, and really among my proudest moments as a teacher. Especially teaching civics, I couldn’t be more proud of these Carmel kids today."
Madeline Nikolai '23:
"I’m really excited to be here it’s just fun that we can do this through school because it’s safe and I know a lot of people that are 18 and they’re not ready to vote because it’s a new experience, and it’s a legal experience, so they worry that they’ll mess it up, so it’s good that we had Mr. Waddle here to help. I wasn’t aware that we could do the ballot online on the computer and that it wasn’t complicated. My parents were very happy that I came today and that I stepped up for myself to volunteer to come to vote. I did a lot of background research."
"I’m really excited to be here it’s just fun that we can do this through school because it’s safe and I know a lot of people that are 18 and they’re not ready to vote because it’s a new experience, and it’s a legal experience, so they worry that they’ll mess it up, so it’s good that we had Mr. Waddle here to help. I wasn’t aware that we could do the ballot online on the computer and that it wasn’t complicated. My parents were very happy that I came today and that I stepped up for myself to volunteer to come to vote. I did a lot of background research."
Matthew Lotz '23:
“When people say it's only one vote, so it doesn’t matter, I think that absolutely it does matter, especially when you're voting for a person that's going to influence your community or environment and everything around you. It's important to vote for the right person.”
Nicholas Kolesar '23:
"I have thought about voting a lot because I tend to be a slightly more motivated voter. I listen to a lot of political podcasts and try to get myself educated on not only the candidates but also the issues. If I didn’t know or didn’t understand what the election was about then I would not have been very educated, and it wouldn’t make sense to come out and vote."
"I have thought about voting a lot because I tend to be a slightly more motivated voter. I listen to a lot of political podcasts and try to get myself educated on not only the candidates but also the issues. If I didn’t know or didn’t understand what the election was about then I would not have been very educated, and it wouldn’t make sense to come out and vote."
"My parents were happy that I came to vote even though we don’t always agree on all the issues, but we all agree that it’s important to exercise your right in this democracy. The ability to serve your community as a voter, it’s a big responsibility."