Year 10 Debate Club Chairperson Election for UK Parliament Week

Last week (6th – 12th November) was UK Parliament Week 2023, an annual initiative to connect pupils in schools to our democracy and educate them about the impact that parliament has on our society and the way in which young people can assert their influence, even before they reach voting age.

To mark the occasion, the year 10 Debate Club (consisting of 9 members, some of whom have been members since year 7!) chose to hold an election for club Chairperson. Two members, Jonah and Megan, ran in the election, which mirrored events that take place in a political campaign.

Both candidates created a manifesto, outlining their values and what they would do for the club if they were elected. They used a writing technique often used in politics called the 3,9,27 rule (3 main points consisting of no more than 27 words, that takes up to 9 seconds to say). They also both created presentations which they delivered to the group, pictured below:

The two candidates then went head to head in a debate in which members of the club posed questions to them, similarly to political programmes such as ‘Question Time’ or Prime Ministerial election debates. 

Following this, the members of the club made their decisions on who they wanted to elect, using anonymous ballot papers that were entered into a ballot box.

The winner was… Megan! She will now be taking more of a leadership role within the club, acting as the spokesperson for the rest of the group and helping to organise debates, as well as some other exciting events to make Debate Club even bigger and better this year than it has ever been – watch this space!