As Election Day approaches, students and teachers alike are preparing to cast their ballots.

            On November 6, the country will elect either incumbent President Barack Obama (Democrat) or former governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney (Republican), as the forty-fifth President of the United States. 

            “It’s definitely been a rough campaign for the Democrats and the Republicans,” Erica Stuart, government teacher, said.  “It’s been very high stakes, high pressure, very tense between the two parties.  Really, the tension is unprecedented between the Democrats and the Republicans.”

            The tension between the two parties stems from debates on issues such as health care, the economy, social security, and even some social issues.  Both candidates had the chance to take a stance on these issues at their respective party’s convention earlier this month.

            At times, the campaign has escalated to acts of mudslinging.  Some Republicans continue to question the legitimacy of Obama’s birth certificate, while some Democrats have accused Romney of not paying all of the taxes he owed, according to the Huffington Post.

            “Sometimes it’s funny, but most of the time [mudslinging] is just annoying,” Thomas Ujas, senior, said.  “It’s just annoying because it’s hard to distinguish what the actual facts are and who’s right.”

For some seniors like Ujas, this will be their first time voting in a Presidential election.  Stuart encourages students who will be voting to research each candidate’s platforms and to take an online quiz to help identify where they stand politically.

Inside the classroom, Stuart and other government teachers are trying to incorporate current events into their pre-existing curriculum.

“The next unit we get into figuring out which political party you most align with and what the candidates’ stances are on the issues,” Stuart said.  “I want to show students that this is a changing time and that we chose this two party system, and while it’s worked for many years, it takes active, involved citizens to really make it run.”

While only seniors who will turn 18 on or before Election Day can cast their ballot, there are other ways for students to participate in politics.

“There are politicians all over our state that need students who can make phone calls for them or send out flyers for them,” Stuart said.   “Also, they’re offering paid positions to be ballot judges.  Basically you work on November 6 and you can make up to $140 to help out the managers.  You’re getting involved and seeing what this process is like from the inside out.”

            Regardless of age, both Stuart and Ujas agree that students should follow the Presidential Election.

            “When it all comes full circle, although right now it doesn’t seem like it affects you, one day it will.  Whether it affects you right now and you just don’t know or whether it doesn’t and one day it will, you will eventually be affected by our political system,” Stuart said.  “Don’t let anybody control it for you, because once you lose your voice, you lose your rights.”