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By Douglas McCulloch
Hometown Weekly Staff
As registered voters in Westwood went to the polls to pick their nominees for president on Super Tuesday, Westwood High students had the opportunity to do the same in a mock presidential primary.
With 463 votes cast in the mock election, the results did differ slightly from Westwood’s Super Tuesday primary.
With 230 votes cast in the democratic mock primary, Vermont senator Bernie Sanders won with a landslide 73% of the vote with 169 votes. Sanders’ rival, Hillary Clinton, took 25 percent of the vote with 58 votes.
In the Westwood town primary, Hillary Clinton picked up the win with 56.29 percent of the votes.
On the Republican side, with 126 votes cast in the Republican mock primary, Donald Trump took the student vote with 50 percent of the vote, or 63 votes. Marco Rubio came in second with 22 percent of the votes, or 28 votes, and John Kasich rounded out the top three with 12 percent of the vote, or 15 votes.
The Westwood High Legislative Council, with support from the Westwood Town Clerk’s office and several parent volunteers, organized the mock primary.
The mock primary helped to give students an opportunity to learn about the political process and get a feeling for how the voting process works, according to Westwood High Legislative Council advisor Robert Fanning.
“[Students] had an opportunity to learn what to expect its like when they go to the polls,” Fanning said. “It certainly raises awareness of the importance of voting.”
The mock primary is one of several election events the Legislative Council organizes. In the past, the council has also helped support voter registration drives with help from the Town Clerk’s office.
“[Students] were very excited about it,” Fanning said. “We were pleased kids voted. They found it fun and interesting.”
