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Barack Obama, toast of Chennai
| Students take part in mock voting |
KEEN WATCH: Indian students, American experts and U.S. Consular officials watch President-elect Barack Obama, along with Vice-President-elect Joe Biden, on television at Taj Coromandel in Chennai on Wednesday.
CHENNAI: “So, who did you ‘vote’ for?” The question was repeated constantly at the U.S. Consulate’s election event on Wednesday morning. “Barack Obama,” was the answer from hundreds of high school students outside the mock voting booth.
“So, when Indian elections are held next year, who will you vote for?” That question was usually met with blank faces from the 16-and 17-year-olds, most of whom will join the electorate by the next general elections.
“I don’t really know who to vote for here,” said Rushi Mehta, a Class 10 student of Bhavan’s Rajaji Vidyashram. “I’d prefer not to vote in India,” said M. Siddharth, a Class 11 student of Sri Sankara Senior Secondary School. “One candidate is as bad as the other, they’re all corrupt,” said K. Sangeetha Rathnam, a Class 10 student of AMM Matriculation and Higher Secondary School. “We want someone educated and young, someone like Obama,” added her classmate R. Brindha, checking the latest poll data on the large screens as Ohio was declared for the Democrat.
Clearly Barack Obama was the toast of Chennai, going by the 1,500 people who gathered at the event—1,200 more than the Consulate expected. The Taj Coromandel staff were kept busy, whipping up extra sandwiches for the unexpected crowd, many of whom turned up as early as 6:45 a.m. For the American citizens at the event, the enthusiasm was fitting for a historic election. As CNN finally called the election for Mr. Obama, cheers filled the room. Even among consular officials who are not supposed to display their political affiliations, there were wet eyes and muted cheers. Several phoned home immediately to celebrate with their friends.
“I trust Mr. Obama to really bring about change,” said Alexandra Kobishyn, who hails from Connecticut, but works with the Institute for Financial Management and Research.
“In my first time as a voter in 2000, I voted for Bush. I’ve been regretting it ever since,” said Adam Herrera, a Californian student photographer, who is here to make a documentary on South India. “This election was a chance to make up for the last eight years.”
The consulate has joined hands with the State Election Commission to visit colleges across the city, encouraging several thousand students to enrol in the election rolls through the Youth for Democracy project. “We told them how young people have been inspired in the United States, how they are taking control of the process with the Internet,” said Ragini Gupta, Consul for Cultural Affairs.
Some students have clearly seen the need for change. “There are many rowdy youngsters who are lured by the political parties, but we need more educated youth who care about the country,” said V. Srinikethan, a Class 12 student at Hindu Senior Secondary School.
“Look at the gracious way McCain is congratulating Obama,” said A. Ganesh, a Class 11 student at Sri Sankara, one of the few who was against Mr. Obama because of his negative stance on outsourcing.
MOP Vaishnav College student Nrithya Pillai believes it is up to the electorate to make a difference.“I will vote, I may get involved in politics. It may not be visible change right now, but in the long term, there will be change,” she said.
Chennai watched as Chicago cheered the new U.S. president-elect. “[Our campaign] grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generation’s apathy,” Mr. Obama said, in his acceptance speech.
It may take a while longer for their generation in Chennai to shake off their own apathy. As Mr. Obama’s team and family came on stage to join him, a group of students excitedly pointed out Vice President-elect Joe Biden. “So, who is India’s Vice President?” Not one of them knew.
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