2009.11.03
Glenvar High volunteer gets extra credit for election work
Glenvar High senior Evan DeHart got 10 extra credit points in AP Government for spending an hour with a campaign volunteer.
He handed out sample ballots with Don Fulcher, a Republican party volunteer from Salem. There was no Democratic volunteer present at the precinct Tuesday afternoon.
Fulcher said he's been active in politics for about five years.
"I just hate abortion and partial birth abortion, unless the mother's life is at stake," the retired Air Force veteran explained. "And right now, we're just borrowing too much money from China. We've got to find other ways of paying our bills."
DeHart did not state his political affiliation but said he was learning a lot from the experience and from meeting the voters of different parties.
"People don't really tell you who they're voting for, but if they talk to you, you can kind of tell," he said.
By 1:30 p.m., the Glenvar Middle School precinct had seen 494 of its potential 1,728 votes - or 28.5-percent.
"I think we're going to make 40-ish percent," said David Helmer, a voting officer. "Fifty percent is too high."
Helmer said that during the 2008 presidential election, the precinct saw its highest numbers ever.
"We got all the way up to 75-, 76-percent last year," he said.
-- Neil Harvey
