Charleston teen starts site for info on local elections
Gavin Johnson shows a page from Represented USA, the election website he developed. The Charleston teenager said he wanted to provide more readily available information about local elections and candidates.
Dave Fopay
CHARLESTON — After Gavin Johnson got involved in politics two years ago, he decided he wanted to fill in some blanks, even if he’s too young to fill blanks on a ballot.
The Charleston teenager said he volunteered with the Coles County Democratic Party during the 2018 election and found that it was easy to learn about the “high-profile candidates.”
“But when it came to local candidates, I found it much more difficult to find information on them,” Johnson said.
It led him to decide to develop a place where “you can see it all in one place,” a website called Represented USA.
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The site at www.representedusa.com is designed to serve as a one-stop location for information on candidates running for office this year.
Johnson, 16, said he was motivated by his own interest in politics as well as “wanting to help people.” He said the site’s aimed at voters or anyone who wants to learn more about the election.
He started designing the site in October then began doing research on candidates, focusing on local contested races in the March 17 primary. He used candidate websites and news sources and contacted some candidates’ offices directly.
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Represented USA has been online since last month and features links to information on the races for state Legislature and Congressional districts that include Coles County.
There’s also a page on voter registration, in both English and Spanish, and an informal quiz that’s supposed to give viewers an idea of which Congressional candidate best fits their views.
“It will help young people,” Johnson said. “It’s a fun thing to do.”
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Johnson said the site’s analytics show that there have been about 600 page visits since it started.
He also printed a paper flier with some of the site’s information for people who don’t have internet access. It’s currently available at Eastern Illinois University’s Booth Library and Johnson said he plans to soon have it in more locations.
Johnson also said he wants to “branch out” and add more information, hopefully before the Nov. 3 general election.
He added that he’d welcome help with social media and other activities and there’s a link to volunteer on the site for those interested.
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