Campaigning one dormitory at a time, connecting with everyone she can reach, senior Swara Dasari makes signs and gives brief introductory speeches. She converses with every delegate she can, spreading her network. The campaign takes almost all week. What is her goal? Being elected state governor in this week-long mock election process.
“[I] had to make signs and go talk to people on each floor. It was really tiring, but it was definitely how [running for public office] is in real life,” Dasari said.
Taking place June 2-8, these week-long programs, offered for both girls and boys, are called Cornhusker Girls’ State and Cornhusker Boys’ State, respectively. In these programs, incoming seniors from around the state gather at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to learn the rights and responsibilities of a United States citizen, receive first-rate practice for public speaking, and gain a deeper understanding of the duties of holding public office.
They spend sessions campaigning, networking, and debating extensively. Participants file for mock offices, running for either a city, county, or state position.
Despite having people from all around the state running against them, Millard North still manages to stand out above the rest, being elected to some of the most prestigious positions.
This year, Dasari was elected Girls’ State Governor, along with senior Uyen Dinh serving as the Girls’ State Treasurer, and senior Luke Glasgow as the Boys’ State Governor runner-up. In addition, many other Millard North students filled essential city and county positions.
With so many people in attendance, substantial amounts of networking are vital to obtaining office, particularly the prestigious state positions.
“There was like, 300-350 people, so I was going around table to table during lunches. I was going to different floors, trying to meet as many people as I can,” Glasgow said.
Candidates give speeches and participate in debates, explaining what makes them the most qualified for their positions in short, 30-second “elevator pitches”, as they’re referred to at Boys’ State. Each person has their own unique take, Glasgow not least of all.
“I went out and I started singing a song, and I got everyone to sing with me, and told them why they should vote for me. My thing was ‘Let’s go Glasgow,’” Glasgow said.
But before campaigning to the group at large, Boys’ and Girls’ State candidates must first be nominated by their affiliated parties, which are assigned at the beginning of the week. From there, each party has to create its individual party platform from scratch, which helps delegates learn how a two-party system operates. Since there are so many members gathered into these randomly assigned parties, candidates often have to balance drastically differing opinions.
“It really just comes down to understanding their perspectives more and incorporating them into your own. If you can do that, I think you can understand their beliefs,” Cornhusker Boys’ State delegate Ritwik Gupta said.
With all these differing viewpoints, communication and teamwork is crucial. Each person in the party has their own distinct background, with differing perspectives. This allows for meeting a collection of uniquely diverse people.
“I’ve always considered diversity in the aspect of people from all different cultures or backgrounds, but I never really thought of it as people from like rural communities, and people who didn’t necessarily grow up in an urban setting,” Dasari said.
The difference between our relatively large city of Omaha and the much smaller rural towns of Western Nebraska causes students at these events to have glaringly different lifestyles and experiences.
Despite these differences, everyone still bands together to create an encouraging environment, focusing on mutual support and learning.
“It was very uplifting. Every single person was always trying to make sure that the other person was doing well, and [you] could always count on each other even though you just met,” Dasari said.
As a result of this unique atmosphere, even when not elected into the desired position, candidates still gain an outstanding experience.
“You can still be happy when you lose and you reflect on it. It was an unfortunate circumstance on why I lost, so kind of hard to avoid. But I’m not here to make excuses. I could have won, but I lost, so it was good [for] reflection,” Glasgow said.
No matter how personal campaigns go, the Girls’ and Boys’ State programs are worth participating in. With no financial cost to participate and lots to learn, it’s one of the most reputable and beneficial educational programs in our state.
A great number of Girls’ and Boys’ State graduates nationwide have gone on to be elected to public office, including state and national legislators, governors, and even presidents.
“You might feel intimidated at first, but don’t let that stop you from getting an amazing experience, because it truly was a great experience. I’m like so glad that I met every single one of those girls,” Dasari said.