Desiree Parker, a fifth-grader at New York Elementary School, casts her vote Tuesday during a mock election held at the school, 936 New York St. Students at all 14 elementary schools across Lawrence participated in this year's Kids Vote program, organized by the Boys & Girls Club of Lawrence.

The people — well, the youngest and smallest people among us, anyway — have spoken.

And kids, based on the results of a mock election held Tuesday in all 14 Lawrence elementary schools as well as online votes cast by Lawrence’s secondary school students, want Hillary Clinton as their next president.

“I think Hillary Clinton is better than Donald Trump because Trump, he’s not really acting like he’s going to do anything for America,” said Isaac Outka, a fifth-grader at New York Elementary. “He just does things for himself.”

Hundreds of schoolchildren, some with markers and crayons in hand, lined up to vote for their preferred presidential, vice presidential and congressional candidates Tuesday afternoon in Kids Vote, a simulated election experience organized by the Boys & Girls Club of Lawrence.

Approximately 150 students cast their ballots at New York Elementary, where concerns ranged from prison reform and international affairs (fifth-grader Caleb Myers isn’t so sure about Trump’s plan to combat ISIS) to what constitutes “presidential” behavior.

This election season, agreed Kids Vote volunteers Nicole Van Velzen and Hannah Odette, is special. Most of the kids who stopped by their polling station at Cordley Elementary School seemed remarkably aware of the presidential race and what each of the candidates, at least from a child’s perspective, stands for.

And they’re excited to partake in the democratic process.

“I think it is so cool, because they get a really genuine experience …. They’re taken seriously here,” said Van Velzen, who began the process of tabulating some 200 Cordley votes around 4 p.m. Tuesday.

Hopefully, she said, a program like Kids Vote will make the act of voting “less intimidating” for students as they move toward legal voting age.

At Hillcrest Elementary School, kindergartners seemed to lean more blue than red, though a few students weren’t shy about voicing their support for Trump.

“I think he’ll be better when he gets to be president,” said Keelan Moore, who cast his vote for the Republican nominee. “He’ll be nicer (than Clinton).”

Moore’s classmate Milan Jooya, on the other hand, voted for Clinton, due in part to what he described as Trump’s easily flustered personality. “I think he’s getting mad because nobody’s choosing him,” Jooya said.

For Hillcrest kindergartners Celestra Conway and Pearl Hoover, the choice was easy. They admire Clinton because she’s “smart” and uses “big words,” but also believe Clinton’s experience as a mother and grandmother would serve her well as Commander in Chief.

“I want a girl president because I like girls,” Conway said. And girls, she said, have a lot to offer.

Hoover agrees. What would a female president — a mom — bring to the White House?

“Joy,” Hoover said simply.

“Free toys and maybe a free puppy,” she added, wouldn’t be so bad, either.

Nearly 2,200 votes (totals include preliminary numbers from the secondary schools’ online ballots counted as of 7:20 p.m. Tuesday) were cast by local kids for Clinton and her running mate, Sen. Tim Kaine; votes for Donald Trump and Gov. Mike Pence numbered just over 500. Third-party candidates Gary Johnson and Jill Stein received between 200 and 300 votes each.

In the U.S. Senate race, Democrat Patrick Wiesner raked in nearly 1,300 votes, handily defeating opponents Jerry Moran (Republican; 806 votes) and Robert Garrard (Libertarian; 468 votes).

The race for Kansas’ 2nd congressional district, however, went to longtime Republican Rep. Lynn Jenkins, who narrowly beat Democratic challenger Brittani Potter 1, 271 to 1,108 votes. Libertarian challenger James Bales received 517 votes.