By DALE HOGG
Barton County Media Consultant
Barton County election officials and the Great Bend League of Women Voters want to educate local youth on the importance of voting and the need to get involved in the political process. Because of that shared goal, the LWV invited local election officials to meet on Thursday at Great Bend High School to engage with Great Bend and Ellinwood high school senior government students.
Bev Schmeidler, Barton County clerk and election officer, and Chris Saenz, deputy clerk, took two voting machines to GBHS and discussed the responsibility of casting a ballot. Age-appropriate students were also offered the opportunity to register to vote. Schmeidler said anyone who will be 18 on the Nov. 4 election date can register until Oct. 14.
Election information was presented to about 175 students from GBHS and another 44 from Ellinwood. “This is an important service and we appreciate the LWV and our school districts allowing us to participate. We want to get the young people interested in doing their civic duty. Voting is simple and it doesn’t take much time.”
“It’s pretty exciting,” said Janice Walker, local League president. “We want to talk about the importance of voting.”
These students are nearing adulthood and will soon face the myriad of issues, from student debt to medical care to school shootings.
“It’s important to get them involved early,” Walker said. “We need the input of younger voices to be heard. We need them to understand how government works and get involved.”
This is crucial at all levels of government, but Walker said it is the local level where most day-to-day matters like street improvements and taxes are decided. “In local elections, the people running are our friends and neighbors.”
“These students, on the tail end of Gen Z, need to understand what is at stake,” Walker said.
In the recent Great Bend City Council primary election, only 374 out of 2,700 eligible voters cast ballots, for a turnout of about 13%, Schmeidler said. They hope to improve these numbers with such outreach efforts.
“These are the people you directly elect, and they are making decisions for your life,” Schmeidler said. “It’s important that we all understand the impact that local elected officials have on our communities and our lives.
The League has taken its message to schools countywide for several years. This marks the second year they’ve invited the Election Office.
Now, Schmeidler and Walker said they are trying to arrange a similar team-teaching experience for students in Hoisington and Claflin later this fall.