Mount Tamalpais College

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Mock Election Ignites Civic Engagement at San Quentin

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A mock election held this month at San Quentin Rehabilitation Center uniquely mirrored the real-world electoral process, allowing all incarcerated individuals to exercise their voices. The election was a collaboration between incarcerated journalist Juan Moreno Haines and Mount Tamalpais College. ABC7 News and The Guardian have covered these efforts. 

Civic Participation, Even Without the Right to Vote

Given that incarcerated individuals are denied the right to vote in California, as in most states, Haines has long championed mock election efforts inside the prison. This year, his efforts sparked a collaboration between MTC’s Chief Academic Officer Amy Jamgochian and the college’s fall American Government class, led by co-instructors Kirsten Pickering and Ian Sethre. Other MTC staff and faculty, as well as volunteers from the League of Women Voters, soon pitched into what became a large undertaking, all energized by Juan’s efforts. 

“Organizing the mock election is consistent with Mount Tamalpais College’s mission to support any way possible of getting residents’ voices out into the world.”

– MTC Chief Academic Officer Amy Jamgochian

Jamgochian led the logistics and execution of the election while Pickering and Sethre integrated the mock election into their class, going beyond teaching political theory.  

“Many people in prison come from communities that have been unjustly excluded from power and influence,” said Pickering, who is also Mount Tamalpais College’s Senior Researcher for Policy and Practice.

“This exclusion has often shaped their lives and, in some ways, contributed to how they ended up here. This mock election is a way to show them their voice matters, even if they can’t participate in official elections right now.”

“Disenfranchisement has significant and detrimental effects for not only incarcerated people but their home communities as well,” added Sethre. “For example, prison gerrymandering, where incarcerated citizens are counted as “residents” of specific counties—rather than their home districts—based on where they are incarcerated.”

Juan Moreno Haines, who partnered with MTC to organize the mock election, casts his ballot.

Designing the Ballot

MTC students in Pickering and Sethre’s class designed the ballot, facing similar challenges as real election officials: ensuring ballot security and creating materials that were accessible and easy to understand. They decided to print the ballot in Spanish and to use yellow paper—an uncommon material inside the prison—to prevent forgery.

MTC students designed the ballots for the mock election. They decided to use yellow paper–an uncommon material in prison–to ensure ballot security.

“On the surface, ballot design seems simple, but we’ve been exploring some of the more complex aspects, such as space management, layout coherence, clarity of instructions, and language access, all of which can complicate the voting process,” explained Sethre.

Students selected four statewide propositions to be featured on the ballot–Propositions 5, 6, 32, and 36–deliberating which measures would resonate most with their community. Prop 6, for example, addresses the abolition of forced labor and servitude in prisons and jails.

Prop 5 would change the vote threshold needed to pass affordable housing projects. These issues sparked lively debate. 

“Some students with more conservative views argued that government borrowing for infrastructure isn’t the right solution,” Pickering noted. “Others disagreed, saying it was essential for community investment. These conversations were incredibly thoughtful.”

Another point of discussion centered on whether to include the California Senate race on the ballot. Students weighed the pros and cons of adding a candidate race without partisan labels, speculating how incarcerated voters might approach political identity. “Would they vote Democrat for president but lean Republican for Senate? The students found these dynamics fascinating,” Pickering said.

The MTC students wrote the voter guide as well and distributed them with the ballots. The guide included summaries and pro-and-con arguments for each proposition. 

Civic Engagement as Empowerment

Many of the participants in the mock election had never voted before or felt disillusioned by the system. 

“I’ve never voted before, never thought it mattered,” shared a student in an anonymous comment on their ballot, echoing a common refrain. But they added: “If I don’t vote, I can’t complain.”  

“I didn’t know who would see my vote and where it would go, and I was afraid of retaliation,” said Oscar, another San Quentin resident who preferred we not use his last name.

Residents of San Quentin canvas in support of Proposition 6.

Others, however, were already deeply engaged with politics, challenging misconceptions about incarcerated individuals’ disconnection from society. “Society tends to overlook how informed and engaged people in prison are,” Pickering remarked. “This election will show just how deeply they care about the political process.” 

Indeed, San Quentin resident Michael Vilkin, 72, said he likes the mock election because it allows him to educate people about economic concepts that are important to him. 

The hope is that the election will inspire greater civic participation. As one participant put it, “Even if I can’t vote right now, I can tell my family what to pay attention to on the ballot.”

Getting the Vote Out

Distributing 3,200 ballots to the entire incarcerated population required meticulous coordination. MTC staff, along with MTC faculty volunteers and volunteers from the League of Women Voters, spent hours assembling voter guides and ballot packets. 

“The process of folding, packing, and mailing out the ballots was a huge undertaking,” said Pickering. “It was only possible because of the incredible support from staff and volunteers.”

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As the ballots were folded, the energy continued to build. Jamgochian recalled the enthusiasm that radiated from the volunteers. “Personally, it’s always really gratifying to be involved in a big project that feels meaningful,” remarked Jamgochian. “It’s a sign that MTC jumped into these collaborative efforts.”

In addition to the ballot itself, participants received a cover sheet where they could share why voting mattered to them. Collected anonymously, these responses will provide insight into the election’s significance for the incarcerated community.

The Results

After tallying 341 total votes, representing 10.5% of the prison’s population, the mock election yielded the following results. 

PRESIDENTIAL RACE

WINNERS, KAMALA HARRIS AND TIM WALZ

Kamala Harris and Tim Walz won with 56.88% of the vote, compared to Donald Trump and J.D. Vance, who brought in 26.25% of the vote. Third-party candidates were well represented, taking 9.65%  of the total vote. Claudia de la Cruz and Karina Garcia of the Peace and Freedom Party took 3.75% and Jill Stein and Butch Ware of the Green Party took 2.81%, with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Chase Oliver, and write-in candidates representing less than 2% of the vote.

SENATE RACE

(FULL AND PARTIAL TERM) – WINNER, ADAM SCHIFF

Democrat Adam Schiff defeated his Republican opponent Steve Garvey for Senate for both the full and partial term. Schiff took 31.88% of the vote for the full term compared to Garvey at 16.88%. Over half of the voters left both the full and partial-term race for Senate blank. 

CALIFORNIA PROPOSITIONS

PROP 5 – PASSED – 59.06%PROP 32 – PASSED – 77.81% 
PROP 6 – PASSED – 75.31%PROP 36 – FAILED – 57.81%

Photos: Bonaru Richardson

Student Services for the Incarcerated: How to Support Student Success

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Mount Tamalpais College staff members Corey McNeil, Alumni Affairs Associate, Dr. Windy Franklin-Martinez, Director of Student Services and Academic Advising, and Jennifer Juras, Chief of Institutional Effectiveness and Research, spoke about their work with incarcerated students at San Quentin during the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior College (ACCJC) conference in Los Angeles. They were joined by Ardis Eschenberg, Chancellor of Windward Community College, David Williams (VP of Academic Affairs), and Shanan Danley from Solano Community College’s SOAR Program.

Their presentation began with Mount Tamalpais College’s (MTC) history as an extension site of Patten University (from 1996 to 2020), which became independently accredited by ACCJC in January 2022. Many factors set MTC apart from other colleges in the room, including the fact that MTC’s faculty are volunteers, and attendance, including tuition and school supplies, is free. The presentation emphasized how student services underpin successful, intellectually rigorous, and inclusive colleges. MTC’s student services division shares commonalities with traditional colleges but has unique aspects due to its setting and student population. The subjects discussed included:

  • Services We Provide: Advising and Student Services, Learning and Development, and Alumni Affairs
  • Student Services: How does this look different in a prison setting?
  • Alumni Services: How does this look different in a prison setting?

Jennifer Juras highlighted the support MTC has within the ACCJC community and the positive reception of their presentation, noting the interest in programs in prisons among colleges. Jennifer said, “It was also apparent that there’s interest in running programs in prisons among junior and community colleges. We received many questions about how to get started.”

Dr. Windy spoke about the comprehensive student services MTC offers, including learning support services and the role of the Learning Disabilities (LD) Specialist in training and supporting faculty. The information about those services included evaluation for learning disabilities, academic accommodations, strategizing with students and faculty to improve learning outcomes, and supporting faculty with universal design and curriculum differentiation.

She emphasized the shared challenges among colleges serving incarcerated students. Corey McNeil discussed building MTC’s alumni network and supporting alumni pre-and post-release. He highlighted the importance of maintaining this network, stating, “This is important because a dialogue has taken place that helps to inform and serve current and former students as well as MTC in how it can better support the students as a whole.”

“What stuck out to me,” Corey said, “is how people from various walks of life and cultures and from around the world came together to share and learn from each other the best practices that help students fulfill their educational goals.”

For the question and answering segment of the presentation, Corey said he realized that “the questions that were being asked were indicative of the same issues that MTC has faced and most HEPs encounter, which further solidified my thoughts on how important it is for events like this to happen.”

He noted the diversity among conference attendees and the importance of events like this for sharing best practices. Corey exchanged contact information with personnel from Los Angeles City College and Solano Community College to discuss future collaborations. “My colleagues were exceptional with their part of the presentation,” Corey said. “They spoke with professionalism and knowledge that exhibited their passion for this work. I feed off their enthusiasm and energy.”

Thank you to the ACCJC for having us!