We are celebrating our leadership potential all week, but this afternoon we are exercising it in our very own LYS version of the political party system! This is one of our favorite parts of seminar, and it all comes down to the age-old question… pigs or chickens?
Whiggies on this side... Tories on this side!
The LYS political system has two parties, the Whig Party and the Tory Party. As each of the delegates arrived at LYS they were assigned to one of our two political parties. Each staff member also identifies with one of the parties, and two fearless red shirts (that’s an LYS Staff Member in case you were wondering) lead each party. Leading the Whig Party… representing the Tri-City area… is Gracie Reaux and her assistant Michael DeJean! Leading on the Tory side… from the North Shore area...is Zach Barnett and his assistant Lindsey Hayob!
Over the next few days, delegates will be encouraged to embrace the importance of our freedom of speech and voting. Delegates will have the opportunity to run for officer positions in their respective political party. By giving speeches, voting and executing a caucus filled with strategy and a whole lot of fun, delegates get a complete look at the political process. The positions delegates are eligible for running for are: President, Vice President, Secretary/Treasurer, and Party Chairman (who will actually run his/her party’s caucus round). We’ll be sure to give you updates as the delegates move through the political party process! At the end of the week, the three candidates from each party will go head-to-head, and the delegation will vote on who will be the LYS President, Vice President, and Secretary/Treasurer.
Rep. Ted James spoke to the delegation to help kick off our Political Process on the right note. James represents District 101 East Baton Rouge Parish is the second-youngest State Representative of the Louisiana House of Representatives. First elected in 2011, James is a McKinley Senior High School, Southern University, and Southern University Law Center graduate. As a practicing attorney, James shared about fighting for issues in the legislature, including education, funding, and his role in appropriations.
A big thanks to Rep. Ted James for stopping by and getting both the Whigs and the Tories pumped up for an action-packed political party process!
The next step in the political party process will be tomorrow morning when we learn about speech writing and delivery. We cannot wait to hear the inspiring and creative speeches coming from the delegation!
