The Talawanda Tallywacker
“Electoral fraud, election manipulation, or vote rigging is illegal interference with the process of an election, whether by increasing the vote share of the favored candidate, depressing the vote share of the rival candidates, or both.” –The All-Knowing Wikipedia
When you think about electoral fraud, you think about far off countries with corrupt governments; where people are robbed of their voice and democracy. But this crime is closer to home than you’d think. Behind the red white and blue of the Talawanda banner hanging as a stoic symbol of what our school stands for- there is deep-seated corruption. Talawanda students have been shaken as a series of events surrounding last week’s pep rally unravel the smoke and mirrors around the truth.
“All I know is that there is a junior, and I won’t name names, but that junior said to me on an undisclosed day in front of undisclosed witnesses in an undisclosed area of my classroom that they rigged the tally sheets to benefit the junior class… maybe…. possibly… most likely definitely,” said a teacher who has been given the pseudonym Allison Weatherwart for witness protection reasons. When the student body was packed into the gym, cheering their classmates on, they had no idea they were the unknowing victims of a ruthless crook.
Nothing is more treasured to a high school senior than their class superiority, and senior incentive; so as you can imagine, spirit week was life or death for Talawanda seniors this year as incentive lies on a dangerous line of uncertainty. This year was the first in Talawanda Spirit Week history that the seniors have been defeated, and with a basic knowledge of trends anyone can see that there’s something Tala-Wacky going on. So what’s different this year? Is it the ability of the senior class? Or is it something…. more maniacal?
Pictured below is a surveillance image of the suspect trying to hide behind an innocent passerby:
Further photographic evidence surfaced as I searched deeper. There was even a written mockery targeting The Tribune when we started to ask questions:
At Talawanda, we value democracy. The red white and blue of our very emblem shines into the values of the district, and I feel that it is my duty to bring attention to the fact that we are being cheated. Cheated and scammed out of not only our freedom, but our class pride. We will not be silent, and we shouldn’t be until this wrong has been made right. The spirit week tallies were whacked and it was intentional. You deserve to know the truth, and together, we can expose this rigger and all of the pain sh-they have caused.
Tweet anything you see or hear that will help us find the truth to @THStribune with the hashtag #talawandatallywacker.
