Thursday, October 1, 2026
In a group of eight seniors from Jack Gorman’s advanced placement politics and government class at Central High School, subtle and not-so-subtle differences in political leanings and central issues of concern appeared similar to those of society at large, but there was a common thread: they plan to vote, and they think it’s important.
“There are people in my family who — I’ll ask them if they support anyone, and they’ll be like, ‘Oh yeah, I like Hillary’ or ‘I like Bernie,’ and I’ll ask them if they’re voting and they say, ‘No, what’s the point?’” said Nicole Noel, 17. “I hope that with our generation, we can sort of get rid of that apathy that comes with going through the elections and people can start caring more about policy.”
Gorman’s class has been focused on the antagonistic tone dominating the Republican primary, his students said, and that’s a dynamic that Jason Paz, 18, has noticed among his peers.
“A lot more of my friends seem to be paying attention to what’s happening, but I think it’s because of the drama that’s happening on the Republican side,” he said.
“Trump is actually helping,” said Collin Jones, 17. “Most people won’t see it that way, but he’s bringing more participation.”
Jones added that neither of his two older brothers vote or plan to vote. “It really bothers me,” he said.
Five of the eight students are 18 and registered to vote in the primaries, at Gorman’s instruction. Noel will be eligible to vote in November and plans to. Half of the group said they support Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders, but would support Hillary Clinton if she gets the party’s nomination. Jan Marvin Ligan, who will vote on April 19, said that he and his grandmother broke from his family’s Republican bent and support Clinton. Paz’s family is also Republican, and he said he would vote for Republican candidate Donald Trump in the primary, but would vote for Sanders in November if Sanders got the Democratic nomination.
Jones described himself as conservative and said that he couldn’t support any candidate who was in favor of legalized abortion. Ann-Renee Rubia, 18, said that she had not picked a candidate. “I’m watching what they do,” she said.
