Election Day, Simday 1

Article by Mayra Stark, News Reporter

On Simday 1 a momentous occasion took place in Blueberry Bluff. Not only was it the first official day of recorded history for the new town, but it was also the day of the first ever Council Elections! Signs were posted all over town in an effort to win over the voters. Signs such as these were a familiar sight leading up to election day:

The time finally came to see if all those signs really worked; it was time to vote! Voting booths were set up in the brand new City Hall, and volunteers were trained on how to register sitizens to vote, and how to collect and count ballots. One such volunteer was Avery Collins. Ms. Collins was very excited about the voting process, and to be a part of the first ever voting team in Blueberry Bluff. According to Ms. Collins, "the voting process went rather smoothly...there were only a few instances where sitizens did not know how to fill out the ballot." She also stated that "counting of the ballots was done numerous times, and we are 99% sure we counted correctly!"

There were two steps to the voting process. The first step was registering to vote. Along with this process was a quick verification and check in, to make sure each sitizen only voted one time.

The line for the check-in and registration grew throughout the day, until the line had to snake out into the hallway. Volunteers and sitizens alike commented that they hope to change the voting process so that long wait times are diminished.

The second step of the voting process was to go inside the voting booth and fill out the ballot. The lines for the voting booths were just as long as the registration line. Voters were in line for an average of 20 to 40 minutes; a time that is not too different than most other elections across Sim Nation. Volunteers were almost happy to see the long lines which meant that a good number of sitizens were turning out to vote.

Among the sitizens who turned out to vote were two of Blueberry Bluff's local celebrities: Willow Walker (actress) and Julia Vasser (singer). The stars waited in line with the rest of Blueberry Bluff's sitizens, and entertained the voters during that time by signing autographs. Julia Vasser even sang a few songs during the wait, much to the appreciation of her fans. With the company of two such wonderful women, the time flew by for the voters!

I was able to catch up with the starlets and talk to them about their first time voting. Both women were very excited to be a part of the first election day, Julia said "if we can get more people to come out and vote just by showing up and standing in line, then that's a success for the entire town and we're happy to do it." Willow chimed in, "what reason does anyone have not to vote? It's a no-brainer to me...I want my voice heard." It was truly inspiring to see such support from the community in our first voting process.

Finally at long last, every last sitizen cast their vote and the results were tallied. So, without further ado, here is the first ever Mayor and City Council Chairs of Blueberry Bluff:

From left to right: Olesia Newbury, Avery Collins, Mayor Lucas Eberlee,

Katrina Quigley, and Dexter Friskin

The first Council Meeting took place shortly after the elections, and I also got the chance to sit down with the new Mayor in his first interview. Stay tuned for these stories and more!