Today, I accompanied a group of 28 fourth-grade students on a tour of my local election headquarters. I\u2019ve taken this tour at least four times, but never with anyone\u2014adults or teens\u2014who asked more creative or challenging questions.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ll list some of them below. Some may strike you as amusing, in a \u201cKids Say the Darndest Things\u201d way. That\u2019s not why I\u2019m sharing them. I\u2019m not here to demean or condescend to these kids, or to draw a laugh at their expense.\u00a0 I\u2019m awed by them–and not in an “Aww, aren’t they cute way.” They earned my respect and admiration for their confidence and their creative thinking.<\/p>\n

Observing them, I could see that they haven\u2019t yet learned much about how elections work. (I\u2019m sure that\u2019s about to change, as their fourth grade theme is \u201cCitizens Making A Difference.\u201d) But the questions they asked reflected a level of curiosity and engagement that was very impressive. The first question was, “How do you register to vote?” I think the sophistication of that question impressed the staff, and they knew, instantly, that this was a group of really smart and well-prepared kids.<\/p>\n

These young people will be eligible to vote in eight years. If they manage to stay civically engaged until then–and beyond–and if schools, religion, mass media and the entertainment world don\u2019t kill their souls and brains before then, we\u2019ll have a new generation of voters who just might save us all.<\/p>\n

Here are some of their questions and the responses (paraphrased) they received from the election staff. (I learned a few things, myself.) \u00a0Kudos to the staff for taking every question seriously and not talking down to the students.<\/p>\n

Q: Do people have to vote?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: No. But there are some countries where you\u2019re required to vote, and if you don\u2019t, you pay a fine. That\u2019s how it is in Australia and Brazil, and maybe some other places, too. \u00a0Some people in those countries go to the polls and sign in, but then just leave their ballots blank.<\/p>\n

Q: Which part of government are you?<\/strong> [Last week, these same students visited the state capitol, so government branches may have been on this student\u2019s mind.}<\/p>\n

A: Great question! We\u2019re not part of the judiciary branch, because we\u2019re not judges. We\u2019re not part of the legislature, because we don\u2019t make the laws. And we\u2019re not part of the executive branch, either. Elections are sort of a branch of their own. It\u2019s kind of odd.<\/p>\n

Q: So, if you guys are in charge of running the elections, are you allowed to vote?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: Yes. But we have to vote absentee, because on Election Day, we have to be here in the office from 4 a.m. until we finish counting and reporting the votes\u2014that can be after midnight.<\/p>\n

Q: If you think you\u2019re a Republican, can you still vote for a Democrat?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: Yes. Anybody can vote for anybody.<\/p>\n

Q: Can the President vote for himself? Does the President\u2019s vote count more than anyone else\u2019s?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: The President can definitely vote for himself, or herself. I\u2019d be surprised if candidates didn\u2019t vote for themselves. The President gets one vote, just like everyone else: One person, one vote.<\/p>\n

Q: Can you vote if you\u2019re on house arrest? Can you vote if you\u2019re in jail?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: In Missouri, if you\u2019ve been convicted of a crime and you\u2019re in prison, you can\u2019t vote. If you haven’t been convicted yet, and you’re in jail waiting for your trial, you can vote. If you\u2019re on house arrest, that means you can\u2019t leave home. But in that case, you can vote absentee.<\/p>\n

Q: Do celebrities get special votes?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: No. But in some states, if people don\u2019t want to be seen in public, they can vote absentee, too. In Missouri, you have to have a better reason than that if you want to vote absentee. And you can’t vote early in Missouri, either.<\/p>\n

Q: Is there a dress code for voting?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: No. Well, actually, you have to be wearing something.<\/em> We won\u2019t let you in if you don\u2019t have any clothes on. It\u2019s okay to vote wearing flip flops, workout clothes, a business suit, or even a bathing suit. We\u2019ve even had people come to vote wearing Halloween costumes.<\/p>\n

Q: Can you go to jail if you cheat at voting? How do you make sure no one steals the votes or changes stuff around?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: We have a lot of security. Everything is locked up. We have security cameras everywhere. We have a lot of checks and balances. Every time someone touches a ballot, there has to be a Republican and a Democrat to okay it. None of our counting machines or voting equipment is connected to the internet. And yes, you can go to jail if you cheat at voting.<\/p>\n

[As a bonus, the election staff set up a mock election for the students, where they used the county\u2019s new paper ballot-on-demand system and digital scanners to cast their votes for fictitious and\/or historical candidates. One staffer told me that the the students did a much better job of filling out the ballots than many adults. Voting was clearly the highlight of the tour. It prompted questions, too.]<\/em><\/p>\n

Q: Where should I sign my ballot?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: Nowhere. You might have to sign a test paper at school, but in voting, we have a secret ballot. No one gets to see how you voted, and we don\u2019t keep track of who each person voted for.<\/p>\n

Q: [\u2026As she placed her paper ballot into the scanner\u2026] Is that a shredder? Does it just eat the ballot?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: It\u2019s definitely not a shredder. It\u2019s a ballot box. When you feed your ballot into the scanner, it records your vote and then drops the paper into the ballot box. We collect all the paper ballots, and we count them \u00a0by hand, if we need to.<\/p>\n

Q: Do you get paid to do this?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: Yes. [Author\u2019s note: But not enough for the level of democratic responsibility they take on, or for the long hours they work, especially during Presidential election years, but in \u201coff-years\u201d as well. We got a free tour today. It was worth a lot.]<\/em><\/p>\n

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