Secretary of State
Fletcher and Beshear Tie in Mock Election, One Vote Does Make a Difference

            (Frankfort, KY)  Kentucky’s Governors Scholars received a great civics lesson when each of the three Governor’s Scholars Program (GSP) campuses hosted a mock gubernatorial election during Independence Day week--that’s because the total vote in the mock election was a tie between Governor Ernie Fletcher and former Lt. Gov Steve Beshear.  The mock election was hosted in conjunction with voter registration drives through the Office of Secretary of State Trey Grayson’s Civic Literacy Initiative of Kentucky (CLIK). 

            “I am delighted that so many scholars decided to participate in the mock election, and, in particular, that they get to see first hand how one vote can make a difference,” remarked Grayson who is the state’s Chief Election Official.  “It is important for everyone to examine candidates for public office and to make their voices heard.  One vote can make a really big difference.”

If the vote had been a true election and two candidates received the highest and equal number of votes, Kentucky law dictates that the election would be determined by lot in the manner directed by the State Board of Elections.  Examples include a coin toss or a random drawing.

The total results for all three campuses, with 787 votes cast, were as follows:

Ernie Fletcher/Robbie Rudolph:             47.65 %

Steven L. Beshear/Daniel Mongiardo:   47.65 %

Write-in Candidates:                             4.7 %

            The results for each GSP campus were:

            Bellarmine University:

Ernie Fletcher/Robbie Rudolph:             44.9 %

Steven L. Beshear/Daniel Mongiardo:   50.3 %

Write-in Candidates:                             4.8 %

            Centre College:

Ernie Fletcher/Robbie Rudolph:             45.7 %

Steven L. Beshear/Daniel Mongiardo:   48.5 %

Write-in Candidates:                             5.8 %

Morehead State University:

Ernie Fletcher/Robbie Rudolph:             52.4 %

Steven L. Beshear/Daniel Mongiardo:   44.8 %

Write-in Candidates:                             2.8 %

Staff for the Office of the Secretary of State was on hand at each campus to demonstrate one of the state’s common electronic voting machines, help first time voters register in their home precincts, and answer questions about the voting process. 

Grayson directs the CLIK, a multi-year effort that will determine a strategy for enhancing long-term civic engagement and civic literacy within the Commonwealth.  As part of that effort, he released a report, Rediscovering Democracy: An Agenda for Action, that calls upon the state to take tangible steps to increase civic literacy.  The report, which details four principle recommendations and scores of additional recommendations, was developed from the work of the Kentucky Workgroup on Civic Literacy and the CLIK.  As part of this effort, the Office of the Secretary of State sponsors numerous mock elections for middle and high schools, colleges, and other education programs such as GSP.

“By involving students in the democratic process, we wish to not only energize young people to vote, but to also remind their family and friends about the importance of voting in this year’s general election,” said Secretary Grayson. 

The Governor’s Scholars Program is a summer residential program for outstanding high school students in Kentucky who are rising seniors.  The Program originated in 1983 as a result of Kentucky leaders’ concern that the state’s “best and brightest” were leaving the Commonwealth to pursue educational and career opportunities elsewhere without fully understanding the potential that their talents could fulfill at home.  The Program’s mission is to enhance Kentucky’s next generation of civic and economic leaders.  The program currently hosts 5-week sessions for 1,100 students on the Bellarmine University, Centre College, and Morehead State University campuses.