Californians Canvass Caucus

From February 19-21, 65 students from Daniel Adler’s AP Government and AP Econ classes and Patrick Gillogly’s AP US History class went to Las Vegas, Nevada to work for a political campaign and observe how the caucus system worked.
The group arrived in Las Vegas and immediately started canvassing for the campaign they chose to work for; choosing between Sanders, Clinton, or Rubio. Then on Friday night, students attended either the Bernie Sanders or the Hillary Clinton rally.
“It was so cool to go to the Bernie Sanders’s rally and hear him speak about issues I really care about. The energy of the crowd was incredible because everyone was excited to be there,” said senior Milan Perry.
At the Clinton rally, students got to hear America Ferrera, Eva Longoria, Chelsea Clinton, Bill Clinton, and Hillary Clinton speak about plans to improve America.
The group of Jackrabbits went to four different caucuses on Saturday morning and everyone had a different and interesting experience. Hillary Clinton showed up at one of the sites our students attended. The Rubio supporters observed write in candidate Rocky De La Fuente campaigning during the caucus, and two different groups of Bernie supporters observed how easy it is to manipulate the Caucus system.
The Clinton supporters had the most unforgettable experience because they actually ran a caucus because the necessary officials were absent.
“We were thrust into a situation with no leaders present so we ended up organizing most of the precincts at our caucus site. I actually read the official letters from the DNC to over 200 people and many other students assumed many positions otherwise unoccupied,” said senior Timothy White.
After the caucuses were over, students either attended Clinton’s victory rally or Sanders’s short concession speech.
“After all of the chaos at the caucus and getting yelled at by many Nevadan residents, it made it so much more amazing to meet and converse with Hillary. I’ve been a Hillary supporter for most of my life and meeting her was one of the best moments of my life,” said senior Jasmine Roberts.