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Photo by Elliot J. Sutherland/The Ottawa Herald
Kansas Rep. Bill Otto, R-LeRoy, fields questions from area youth Tuesday night during a Kids Voting forum at the Franklin County Annex building, 1428 S. Main St., Ottawa.
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Kids toss out tough questions in first forum
By CLEON RICKEL, Herald Senior Writer
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After being grilled by constituents concerning the Bush administration’s proposal to provide $700 billion to Wall Street, U.S. Rep. Nancy Boyda flew back to Kansas Tuesday afternoon and got grilled again in Ottawa.
This time, the questioners were too young to vote but both Boyda and Ottawa Kids Voting hope that when they do get old enough to vote, they’ll head to the polls.
Boyda and most state and local candidates took part in the first ever Kids Voting candidates forum in Ottawa. The Kids Voting forum was conducted immediately before Tuesday’s Ottawa candidates forum at the Franklin County Office Annex in Ottawa.
“I didn’t get involved in politics until I was 47,” Boyda, a first-term Democratic Congresswoman who upset long-time U.S. Rep. Jim Ryun two years ago, said. Taking that long to get involved is a distinction Boyda said she’s trying to live down.
Since then, she’s been an apostle of democracy, telling kids it’s OK to be interested and be involved in politics.
“I have been on a mission,” she said.
If there’s an invitation from a high school government class, she’ll try to be there. Talk to a group of third graders, she’ll attend. Grade school assemblies? She’ll be among the first in the gym, she said.
And as long as the question isn’t too personal or disrespectful, she’ll take on all questions.
Many of the questions are about what is it like being in Congress or in Washington, she said.
But sometimes, like at the Ottawa Kids Voting forum, the questions can be to the point.
Boyda and other candidates faced youthful questioners who quizzed them about topics ranging from from taxation and government budgets, to the economic meltdown and No Child Left Behind.
For state representative candidates, Tony Brown, D-Baldwin City, and John Coen, R-Wellsville, it’s the first time they faced political questions from kids.
As a former school board member and 4-H adviser, Coen said he deals with kids frequently but being grilled on political issues was a new experience.
In some cases, the kids can be more blunt in their questions, Brown said.
“They don’t pull punches,” he said. “They ask tough questions.”
But both legislative candidates, who are vying for the 10th Kansas House District that covers northern Franklin County, said it was worth the effort.
Kids Voting is designed to get kids interested in voting — and at the same time spur their parents into showing up at the polls to vote.
The average turnout for elections isn’t inspiring, Coen said.
“We have to do better,” he said. “This is a program that’s going to start teaching them how to be involved.”
The experience was good, Brown said.
“I’d love to do it again,” he said.
The students also found it a good experience, Ottawa High School sophomore Zach George, one of the questioners, said.
The candidates answered the questions and gave good information to the students, he said.
The process was useful, he said.
“Kids will get more involved in politics,” he said.
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