Teens observe grass-roots democracy at Nevada GOP caucus
Driving through the night, Joelle Leib and her two friends rolled into Las Vegas at 1 a.m. But they didn’t drive 330 miles from San Diego for the gambling, nightlife or shows on the Strip.
They came to watch the Nevada Republican caucuses. And they’re not even old enough to vote.
"I want to go to a caucus" is a sentence most parents of teens will never hear. But that’s what 16-year-old Joelle told her parents after watching the Iowa caucus on TV. Come early Saturday morning, Joelle, her parents and two friends were at Chaparral High School in Las Vegas watching Republicans vote for their favorite presidential candidate.
None of the three describes themselves as Republicans. But that didn’t matter. "Our experience is standing behind our parents as they walk into the mysterious voter box," said 16-year-old Elijah Granet after the caucus wrapped up about 10:30 a.m. "It’s amazing to watch the dynamic side of democracy."
California has a primary but no caucuses. And caucuses are more dynamic than elections or primaries because there’s interaction among voters. Caucus-goers are split into groups based on their precincts. Then, individuals make cases to the group for why one candidate is better than another.
There were more than 40 precincts at Chaparral. A man in the precinct they observed swayed the others toward underdog Newt Gingrich, asking, "Who doesn’t have baggage?" Gingrich won the precinct, said Catherine Sinow, 17.
These teens’ interest in politics is unusual. Elijah, a winner at age 12 of quiz show "Jeopardy!" Kids Week for $18,000, realizes that. The precinct they observed has 388 registered Republicans. Only 27 showed.
These three San Diegans weren’t the only teens in the crowd of mostly older people. About a dozen Chaparral High School seniors volunteered as part of their U.S. government class. Most are just 17 but will be 18 and able to vote by Election Day. But most didn’t know what to expect, the definition of a caucus, or what party they align with.
"How did we find out we were Democrat?" 17-year-old Marissa Phanphouvong asked boyfriend Christian Mangubat, 18. "A chart in class," he said.
Most of the teen volunteers leaned toward liberal, as well. "I know who I’d vote for. But I don’t want to say the ‘O’ word and get jumped," said Zach Gunier, 18, referring to President Barack Obama.