The polls are coming to a close as citizens rush to place their bid before the voting deadline for the 2016 presidential election. 44 Cypress Fairbanks schools are being used as polling stations where local citizens can come to have their voices heard.

Since voters must be of 18 years of age, must be a registered voter, and must be a United States citizen, the Cypress Ranch History department allowed students to participate in a mock election at school on Tuesday, Nov. 8, also known as “Super Tuesday”.

“We are going to have a QR code that students can use to vote online,” said Government teacher Lana Burns.

The student organization, Political Science Club, has created a voter guide that gives unbiased political background information on each candidate so that before casting their vote, students can educate themselves on the election.

“We are going to write up five different elections,” Burns said. “One for the president, one for the [Texas] District Ten- federal court, one for the Texas railroad commission, and then two for local elections. So we have two federal, one state, and two local elections.”

Students will be given the opportunity to read about the candidates listed on the ballot and then decide for themselves who they would like to choose for an office position. During every history class, QR codes will be posted for students to scan and electronically cast their vote. At the end of the day, results will be tallied and an announcement will be made to share which candidates won the majority vote from Cypress Ranch students.

While speaking with Burns, she highlighted the importance of voting and why it is beneficial for young citizens to understand their responsibility to vote.

“In the United States right now, we are evenly divided so when one person says ‘my vote does not count’, it is so wrong,” Burns said. “In the last year, we had a city council member [election] in this state that [was] a tie and they had to do a coin flip to decide who was going to be the new city councilman. When people start to think their vote does not count, it is a sad situation.”

With the 2016 presidential election being an incredibly close race between candidates, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, students are able to prove the changes they would make if they met the voting requirements.

“It is part of our civic duty [to vote] and if you start young, it builds up your political socialization so you can carry that through as an adult,” Burns said. “We want our students to just be educated because an educated voter is much better than a non-voter.”