Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Preparing First-Time Voters


Free workshops at Carnegie Mellon University today and tomorrow are preparing high school teachers for the first county-wide mock elections sponsored by the League of Women Voters to be held this fall for governor, senator, and congressman.

Isaac Rudich, a senior, is a member of the Winchester Thurston team that submitted the winning mock election software. He says it will run on any computer, so even schools that can't afford the most up-to-date equipment can use it.

The workshops will also highlight the League of Women Voters online tool "Smart Voter", says Co-President Arlene Levy, which is available to anyone but delivers information online and quickly, the way young people like it. Type in a zip code and "Smart Voter" will show the ballot you'll see at the polls, making it possible to research the candidate and/or the issue before voting. She hopes students will learn they can solve society's problems through participatory democracy.

Levy says students voting for the first time must show I.D.

"Smart Voter" is available online.

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