The results of the student vote have mirrored the actual outcome of all but two presidential elections since 1940. (Richard Hutchings / PhotoEdit)
Students Pick Obama
The results of the Scholastic Student Vote are in
The kids have spoken! The winner of the Scholastic Student Vote is President Barack Obama, the Democratic nominee, with 51 percent of the vote. The Republican nominee, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, received 45 percent of the vote, while 4 percent of kids voted for other people.
The Scholastic Student Vote invited young people under the legal voting age of 18 to cast their vote for President in a mock election. They could vote online at www.scholastic.com/vote or by mailing in paper ballots found in Scholastic classroom magazines. Almost a quarter million (250,000) students voted from August 15 until the online poll closed on October 10.
A majority of kids in four of five key swing states—Colorado, Florida, Nevada, and Ohio—chose Obama. A swing state is a state where neither candidate has a strong majority in the polls. Romney won Virginia, the other key swing state, by a small margin. In a close race like this one, the voting outcomes in these states can ultimately determine who wins the general election.
Check out our results page for a pie graph, an interactive map, and a state-by-state chart.
A GOOD PREDICTOR?
The Scholastic Student Vote may not be official, but its results have often indicated who eventually wins the presidential race. Scholastic has conducted the student mock vote during every presidential election since 1940. The results of the student vote have mirrored the actual outcome of all but two elections—1948, when kids voted for Thomas E. Dewey over Harry S. Truman, and 1960, when they selected Richard M. Nixon over John F. Kennedy.
WE THE KIDS
In addition to casting their votes for President, students have weighed in on political topics in other Scholastic online polls. As of October 12, they said the issues that matter most to them are the economy, health care, and the war in Afghanistan. Sixty-seven percent said they talk about the election with their parents at least sometimes. And a whopping 90 percent said they would like to be President someday.
The Scholastic Student Vote is just one of many polls, both silly and serious, that have taken place this election season. Most polls predict a tight race for the White House, with some showing Obama as the winner and others showing Romney on top.
We won’t know for sure who will win until after Election Day, which is November 6. Be sure to come back to www.scholastic.com/election to follow election night results.
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