A 17-year-old junior at William Chrisman High School will make history in July when she attends the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia as the youngest-ever elected delegate in Missouri.
Rachel Gonzalez has volunteered for the Hillary Clinton campaign for the last year, even spending seven weekends in a row this past winter knocking on doors in Iowa before caucuses were held there.
Gonzalez was elected as a delegate after being nominated for her volunteering and involvement in leadership and political groups.
Outside of school, Gonzalez serves as Chair of the High School Democrats group in Missouri. She’s also been involved with her school council and attended rallies to support Democratic candidates.
Gonzalez will now serve as a delegate at the Democratic National Convention after winning a recent vote.
“I got up there and gave my speech,” she explained. “We could only give a one-minute speech, so I had to make it good."
Gonzalez said she didn’t tell her father about being a possible delegate until after she had won.
“I got a text and it said, 'Votes are in. You won. Don't scream.' I'm lucky I didn't scream because I was pretty excited,” Gonzalez said.
Gonzalez explained that her love of politics and leadership dates back to when she was just 9 years old and attended a Clinton rally at her high school before the 2008 election.
Ever since then, she has been hooked.
While she is too young to vote today, Gonzalez keeps a countdown on her Twitter page until she can place her first ballot.
“I started at 3,187 days,” she said. “I'm now down to 167 days before I vote. I'm excited for November."
Gonzalez’s passion for the Clinton campaign runs deep. She is a big believer in Clinton’s policies and beliefs and has followed her career through the years.
Gonzalez said when given a chance to ask Clinton a question at a rally, she couldn’t hold back her enthusiasm.
“My question wasn't about her policies or college affordability plan, it was simply, 'Can I hug you?' She reached out and said, 'Sure you can.’ It was the coolest moment of my life," said Gonzalez.
Jason Grubb, a teacher at Chrisman High School, said Gonzalez’s enthusiasm with politics is rubbing off on other students.
“When you get a student like this that you can model to them, talk about all the things she's already been doing and she's not even old enough to officially cast her ballot, it’s a remarkable thing," he explained.
Grubb said he and Gonzalez often talk politics between classes, and her passion for this year’s election has been a pleasure to watch.
“It's been fun for me as a teacher to get that additional benefit of students being out and doing exactly what we teach them to do," explained Grubb.
Gonzalez’s trip to Philadelphia in July won’t be cheap; however, donors are making it a reality. According to a GoFundMe page Gonzalez set up to raise money for the trip, about $2,500 had been raised as of Tuesday evening. She is well on her way to the $3,000 needed to attend the convention, and donors from around the country are leaving messages of support along the way.
Gonzalez said serving as a delegate and attending the Democratic National Convention will be a dream come true.
“I'm excited to be a role model to those getting involved not only in my school but across the state," she said.
After high school, Gonzales said she plans to attend Truman State University. From there, she plans to get her law degree and pursue a career being a civil rights attorney.
But her ultimate goal? Much like her role model, Gonzalez says she will one day run for public office.
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Tom Dempsey can be reached at Tom.Dempsey@KSHB.com.
