Dr. Fad. (Photo: Courtesy of Dr. Fad)

Thursday, July 29—Do you wish you could vote in presidential elections? Well, you'll have to wait until you're 18. But in the meantime, you can ask your parents to vote for you. That's right—the Adopt-a-Vote program asks parents to give their vote to their child.

Toy creator and former TV show host Ken Hakuta (also known as Dr. Fad) started Adopt-a-Vote to get kids involved with the election. "We want children to feel they are part of the process. It's their future," he said.

Being part of the program is easy. Just visit Kids Vote 2004 and have a parent sign the contract. Then, on Election Day, your parent will vote for the candidate of your choice. But before you make up your mind, make sure you find out information about the candidates. Hakuta also hopes the program will start some dinnertime discussion about issues that affect you, such as education and downloading music.

Hakuta believes that if kids are part of the electoral process at a young age, they are more likely to be involved when they are older. He also hopes the program will make kids feel like they have an impact. And he doesn't think father knows best; he thinks kids know best.

"Children vote from their heart," he said.

Hakuta is also a supporter of lowering the voting age. He thinks kids are more mature and more advanced than they were 10 to 15 years ago. Kids today also have more sources than just TV to get information. "Kids are very aware of issues," he said.

If you would like to be a part of the election, be sure to adopt a vote. And don't forget to vote on Scholastic News Online. Choose who should be the next President and share your thoughts about whether the voting age should be lowered.