Aberdeenshire’s secondary school pupils are to once again experience the elections process at first hand with the return of the Aberdeenshire Schools Election project.
Mirroring the forthcoming Scottish Parliament election, academies across the area will be campaigning, voting, and counting votes cast during a process which accurately reflects all aspects of the elections process.
The project is taking place in 17 Aberdeenshire secondary schools, each of which will stage its own contest as part of a single constituency, with up to five pupils at each school standing as candidates.
They will represent one of the five political parties in Scotland which are represented at either the Holyrood or Westminster Parliaments, namely the Conservatives, Labour, Liberal Democrats, Scottish National Party and the Scottish Green Party.
Voting will take place on Thursday, March 10, with the count being held in Stonehaven the following day.
Aberdeenshire Schools Elections are run on authentic lines, featuring the use of real polling booths and ballot boxes, a secure voting process, including ballot papers specifically printed for the project, and a single count event where results are formally declared.
While the election process will not result in appointments to political parties, the project aims to help pupils understand the election process and encourage them to participate when they reach voting age.
Co-Leader of Aberdeenshire Council Cllr Martin Kitts-Hayes said: “The purpose of these events is to encourage electoral participation, to engage young people as fully as possible in the democratic process and to acquaint them with formal voting and counting processes.
“It’s a fantastic opportunity for our young people to get under the skin of what can be quite a daunting process, and I hope that the experience sticks with them when it comes for them to take part in future elections.”
Co-Leader Cllr Richard Thomson said: “The project challenges pupils to hone their research and debating skills, and team-working will be an important part of the process for each of the campaign groups.
“The process is open to pupils across S1-S6, so for some this will be their first taste of the elections process, and for others it will give them a great understanding of voting as they prepare to experience upcoming elections for the first time.”
Teachers have been working with pupils in the run-up to their election, discussing the nature of the five parties, as well as their policies and manifestos.
“We feel there is no better way to encourage our young people to take an interest in the elections process than by immersing them in a true-to-life exercise like this,” said Aberdeenshire Council’s Returning Officer and Chief Executive, Jim Savege.
“Pupils have full control of the process by researching and developing their campaigns, actually casting their votes, and learning of the outcome in exactly the same way the general public would during an election.”