SHELBY, Ohio – As the Top 10 Republican candidates fielded questions Thursday evening at the Quicken Loans Arena, a crowd of onlookers seated in the arena watched intently, including Shelby High School junior Jessica Stoner and several other Shelby residents.
Stoner said there was an excitement in the air as the thousands in the arena watched Ohio Gov. John Kasich, Donald Trump, Dr. Ben Carson, Gov. Chris Christie, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.
Stoner attended the debate with Angela Phillips, CEO/president of Phillips Tube Companies in Shelby, and two other Shelby High School students, seniors Annie McKinney and Hannah Stone.
“I feel very lucky to have been able to see the debate live,” Stoner said.
Going into the debate, Stoner said she was unsure if anyone in the crowded GOP field would make a strong candidate against the presumed-Democratic candidate, Hillary Clinton.
“But after seeing the debate, I’m very excited by them, because they were all such wonderful candidates,” Stoner said.
When asked to pick a winner, Stoner pointed to Cruz and Rubio. She referred to Cruz as very “laid back and presidential,” and said Rubio, “was almost like watching a Kennedy.”
However, she also thought Kasich performed well in his home state. “I thought he really came out as a front-runner,” Stoner said. She was especially impressed with his answer to a question on gay marriage, which drew a large applause from the audience and showed that Republicans can be caring, too.
Watching Mitt Romney in the 2012 debates and seeing him speak in Mt. Vernon when she was in the 8th grade piqued Stoner’s interest in politics. During her freshman year, she was able to attend a Young Americans Foundation camp at the Reagan Ranch in Santa Barbara, California, and has attended several other YAF camps since.
At the end of the last school year Stoner and Ben Binion launched a chapter of the YAF at Shelby High School. While the club only has a handful of members, Stoner has high hopes that the group will grow this school year.
The teen said she loves Ronald Reagan, but not necessarily for the reason most people do.
“To me, he wasn’t a big conservative. He was just a great leader. He had conservative values but he was very bi-partisan, in that he did what the people wanted. Not what the Republicans wanted or any one group. That’s why everything he did was hated by someone,” Stoner said.
Stoner plans on majoring in economics in college and possibly continuing on to law school. As far as a future in politics, she has a very mature attitude about the prospect. “A friend who also is active in politics told me, ‘Running for office is not a goal you set. It’s where you are, who you know and what happens to you,'” Stoner said. “If I end up running for office, that would be great. But no matter what, I know I’ll be very active in politics in some way.”
