President Mom?
We asked more than 1,300 kids which parent would make a better president — Mom or Dad. Mom won, but it was very close: 51% of kids voted for Mom, while 49% picked Dad.
Caroline, 11, from California, said her mom and dad are both smart, but she picked Mom. "My mom is very smart and cares about the country. My dad is too, but he goofs off too much," she said.
Nadja, 10, of New York, also picked her intelligent mom: "She is a genius and funny and makes the right choices."
Jack, 11, from West Virginia, said his dad has the right stuff: "He's got a great way of making people feel appreciated and needed, yet he doesn't let people push him around. He's a firm decision maker. I love him."
Corey, 12, from Georgia, said his dad would make a good president because he "doesn't give up until the job is done. My dad has the type of brain that can run the country because he puts 100% into everything he does."
Do you detect a pattern? Boys chose Dad and girls chose Mom — not all the time, but often. In fact, if you look only at the answers from boys, Dad wins with 56% of the vote! The trouble for Dad in this survey was that many more girls answered than boys.
For most kids, this question was just a silly thing to imagine. But two dads — John McCain and Barack Obama — are running for president. Obama has two daughters, ages 7 and 10, and McCain has seven kids, from age 17 to 46.
You probably have seen a lot of McCain and Obama by now. As the November 4 election gets closer, you can't avoid them! They're all over the TV, the Internet, and newspapers. Their names are on T-shirts, front-yard signs, and bumper stickers.
Some kids told us that politic stuff was boring, but 85% had talked about the election with their parents. About 88% said they liked the same candidate as their parents but only about 59% said their parents influenced their choice.
And 3 out of 4 kids said they expected the outcome of the election to affect their lives. How?
"It will definitely affect me. For example, the economy. A president can either help or ruin the economy. I am affected from this whenever I go to the store," said Heather, 11, from Georgia.
Georgie, 11, from Missouri, said, "I'm hoping the wars will end."
Some kids dream of becoming president someday, but not everyone. Only 43% said they would be interested in the top job when they're older. But those ambitious future candidates were happy to explain why they should be in charge.
"I'd make a good president because I am honest, trustworthy, and very intelligent," said 12-year-old Samara from New York. "I care about others and would help any time there is chaos."
Allie, 10, from Pennsylvania, said she'd be a brave president. "I wouldn't be afraid and would always stay by America's side," she said.
Connor, 7, from Massachusetts, made a campaign promise that would probably get him a lot of votes: "I would give everyone candy."
A person can't run for president until age 35, so Connor's candy campaign is a long way off. But what if, after this year's election, the new president called you up and asked for some advice? What would you say?
"Give money away to people who don't have any," said Will, 9, of North Carolina.
"I would say go with what you think is best — not what you think is best for yourself or what other people say," said Mandy, 12, from Missouri.
Janna, 10, from North Carolina, reminded the president to mind his manners: "Think before you say it. People want a good president, especially ones that aren't rude!"
"I would say copy off the presidents before you," said Josh, 9, of California.
Aliyah, 11, from California offered this warning: "Be honest unless you want to disappoint everyone and never be president again."
But Kayla, 11, from Ohio, would remind the president not to work too hard. "Make sure you get to go on vacation a lot," she said.
If the president has a spare moment between vacations, 10-year-old Julie has an issue that needs attention: "If he asked about how I felt about school, I would say that I wanted him to make homework illegal."
Kylie, 10, of Kansas, didn't even want to think about what she would tell the president. She said she'd be more than a little concerned if the president of the United States was calling her for advice. "Why are you asking me?" she asked. "I'm an immature 10-year-old!"
Reviewed by: Mary L. Gavin, MD
Date reviewed: October 2008
