How to Participate

Students and classrooms can participate in Oregon’s Kid Governor® in two ways:

KG BoyA. Submit a 5th grade student for Oregon’s Kid Governor and vote in the election!

If you have students who are enthusiastic about leadership and eager to better their community, encourage them to run for Oregon’s Kid Governor. Each elementary school in Oregon is eligible to offer one (1) 5th grade nominee to run for the position. Participating classes/schools will have access to a Oregon’s Kid Governor Toolkit with:

  • 5 lessons about Oregon’s 3 branches of government, the role of the governor, and how/why elections are held as an introduction to the Oregon’s Kid Governor program.
  • Lessons about identifying community issues important to you, researching issues, and developing a campaign platform around an issue.
  • Lessons and resources about building a platform, crafting a campaign speech, voting in an election, and holding a class primary election.
  • Tips and lessons for filming your candidate’s campaign video.
  • Worksheets and resources for analyzing Oregon’s Kid Governor candidate videos and voting during the Statewide Election.

*For classrooms nominating a student and voting, we recommend sending our Parent-Guardian Permission packet home early in the program to inform families of your class’s participation. This form is not required and is for in-class use only. Signed papers do not need to be returned to the Oregon Secretary of State’s Office.

B. Vote for Oregon’s Kid Governor

All 5th graders in Oregon can participate in the election of the 2023 Kid Governor. “Voting Only” classes should reserve class time at the end of October to learn about how government works and the Oregon’s Kid Governor program. They should also reserve time during the Statewide Election (Nov. 6 – 14, 2023) to watch and analyze the candidate videos as a class.

Participating classes will have access to a Oregon’s Kid Governor Toolkit with:

  • 5 lessons about Oregon’s 3 branches of government, the role of the governor, and how/why elections are held as an introduction to the Oregon’s Kid Governor program.
  • 2 lessons about how to vote in an election and how to analyze Oregon’s Kid Governor candidate videos during the Statewide Election.
    (Statewide Election: Nov. 6 – 14, 2023)

All classes interested in participating in Oregon’s Kid Governor, whether nominating a candidate and voting in the election or as a “voting only” class, should complete the Participating Class Registration form.