fbpx
  • Subscribe & Support
  • Print Edition
    • Get Home Delivery
    • Read ePaper Online
    • Newsstand Locations
  • HV1 Magazines
  • Contact
    • Advertise
    • Submit Your Event
    • Customer Support
    • Submit A News Tip
    • Send Letter to the Editor
    • Where’s My Paper?
  • Our Newsletters
  • Manage HV1 Account
  • Free HV1 Trial
Hudson Valley One
  • News
    • Schools
    • Business
    • Sports
    • Crime
    • Politics & Government
  • What’s UP
    • Calendar Of Events
    • Subscribe to the What’s UP newsletter
  • Opinion
    • Letters
    • Columns
  • Local
    • Special Sections
    • Local History
  • Marketplace
    • All Classified Ads
    • Post a Classified Ad
  • Obituaries
  • Log Out
No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Schools
    • Business
    • Sports
    • Crime
    • Politics & Government
  • What’s UP
    • Calendar Of Events
    • Subscribe to the What’s UP newsletter
  • Opinion
    • Letters
    • Columns
  • Local
    • Special Sections
    • Local History
  • Marketplace
    • All Classified Ads
    • Post a Classified Ad
  • Obituaries
  • Log Out
No Result
View All Result
Hudson Valley One
No Result
View All Result

Fourteen-year-old’s “I Voted” design goes viral

by Crispin Kott
July 24, 2022
in Community
0
Hudson Rowan

Thanks to an irreverent submission by a freshman at Rondout Valley High School, the second annual Ulster County “I Voted” sticker contest has gone viral.

Hudson Rowan, a 14-year-old from Marbletown has garnered an impressive 93 percent of the votes in a six-way race of teenage finalists with his sticker design, which eschews traditional patriotic motifs in favor of a wild-eyed human head on insect legs rendered in bold psychedelic colors. 

The percentage is impressive, but so too is the vote count, which as of press time sees him comfortably ahead of the pack with 224,664 votes. To put that into demographic perspective, according to the 2020 U.S. Census, Ulster County has 181,851 residents. 

The outsized popularity of Rowan’s design, and the county’s contest, can be attributed to the power of social media, where images of the widely-smiling human-spider proclaiming, “I VOTED” were circulated soon after the contest got underway a few weeks ago. 

“It’s been so nice to get so much positive support from people,” said Hudson this week. “(I was) very surprised.”

Hudson said he was influenced in participating in the contest by his mother, Molly Rowan, who has since coordinated his many media queries from media outlets like the New York Times and CBS News. In a televised interview with the latter, he said he wasn’t enthusiastic at first, but soon found inspiration in the “spider-robots” he used to paint when he was younger. 

In an interview with Hudson Valley One, Hudson elaborated on how he hit upon his popular “I Voted” submission. 

“I started sketching out different designs and styles until it all came together,” he said. 

The other five finalists in the county’s contest have also received impressive vote tallies thus far, with fellow Marbletown residents, 14-year-old Wendy Stewart and 13-year-old Phoebe Stewart, receiving around 7,400 and 1,500 votes respectively. Also among the finalists are 18-year-old New Paltz resident Kaeden Bredberg (2,400 votes), 18-year-old New Paltz resident Shafil Sabbir (1,200 votes), and a 15-year-old from Gardiner named Melissa (1,800 votes), whose last name is not public. 

14-year-old Hudson Rowan’s “I Voted” sticker.

The viral popularity of Hudson Rowan’s design and the “I Voted” sticker contest is a good thing, said Ashley Dittus (D), who alongside John Quigley (R) is an Election Commissioner for the Ulster County Board of Elections. 

“We have been overwhelmed and pleasantly surprised by how far reaching our ‘I Voted’ sticker contest has gone this year,” said Dittus. “The contest was launched two years ago as a part of our youth voter engagement program, and I think that because this is a contest for and by youth that it has resonated with younger people in a way that I have never seen before.”

Dittus said she hopes the buzz in July will bring people out to the polls in November. 

“If the sticker inspires people to vote in person to the degree they have voted for the contest online, then we should see a boost in turnout at the polls this November,” Dittus said. “We have heard from people all over the country and beyond, from the UK to Australia, who have seen and loved our contest and want to get a sticker. It is my sincere hope that our contest, and the attention it has put onto voting will inspire other election administrators to not just do their own sticker contest, but to engage with the younger people in their communities.”

Hudson said he was pleased his design was bringing attention to the election process. “I would be very happy if I influenced people to go out and vote,” he said. 

The Ulster County Board of Elections’ “I Voted” sticker contest runs through Friday, July 29, at which time the official winner will be announced for Election Day on Tuesday, November 8, with stickers available beginning with early voting on Saturday, October 29. The Board of Elections has also decided to run a special series for the primary and special voting session on Tuesday, August 23, beginning with early voting on Saturday, August 13, with all five runner-up stickers being printed and voters each receiving one of the five. 

As for what’s next for Hudson Rowan, artist? 

“I am not totally sure,” he said. “I am going to look at RISD (Rhode Island School of Design) in the fall, but I’m not totally sure of the future.”

To vote in the Ulster County Board of Elections’ “I Voted” sticker contest, visit: https://elections.ulstercountyny.gov/i-voted-sticker-contest/.

Tags: members
Join the family! Grab a free month of HV1 from the folks who have brought you substantive local news since 1972. We made it 50 years thanks to support from readers like you. Help us keep real journalism alive.
- Geddy Sveikauskas, Publisher

Crispin Kott

Crispin Kott was born in Chicago, raised in New York and has called everywhere from San Francisco to Los Angeles to Atlanta home. A music historian and failed drummer, he’s written for numerous print and online publications and has shared with his son Ian and daughter Marguerite a love of reading, writing and record collecting.

 Crispin Kott is the co-author of the Rock and Roll Explorer Guide to New York City (Globe Pequot Press, June 2018), the Little Book of Rock and Roll Wisdom (Lyons Press, October 2018), and the Rock and Roll Explorer Guide to San Francisco and the Bay Area (Globe Pequot Press, May 2021).

Related Posts

How we see each other and ourselves
Columns

How we see each other and ourselves

June 16, 2025
Communities join a nationwide day of defiance, showcasing true democracy
Community

Communities join a nationwide day of defiance, showcasing true democracy

June 16, 2025
Local rallies draw large crowds
Community

Local rallies draw large crowds

June 15, 2025
O+ Exchange celebrates grand opening this weekend
Community

O+ Exchange celebrates grand opening this weekend

June 12, 2025
Family has a new home!
Community

All in for Family

June 12, 2025
Woodstock police officer likely saved my life, grateful reporter says
Community

Woodstock police officer likely saved my life, grateful reporter says

June 11, 2025
Next Post
With schools closed for rest of school year, local districts plan for the future

New Paltz School Board will search for a superintendent sensitive to equity and race

Weather

Kingston, NY
61°
Rain Shower
5:18 am8:35 pm EDT
Feels like: 61°F
Wind: 3mph WNW
Humidity: 88%
Pressure: 30.08"Hg
UV index: 0
WedThuFri
81°F / 68°F
88°F / 61°F
82°F / 61°F
powered by Weather Atlas

Subscribe

Independent. Local. Substantive. Subscribe now.

×
We've expanded coverage and need your support. Subscribe now for unlimited access -- free article(s) remain for the month.
View Subscription Offers Sign In
  • Subscribe & Support
  • Print Edition
  • HV1 Magazines
  • Contact
  • Our Newsletters
  • Manage HV1 Account
  • Free HV1 Trial

© 2022 Ulster Publishing

No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Schools
    • Business
    • Sports
    • Crime
    • Politics & Government
  • What’s Happening
    • Calendar Of Events
    • Art
    • Books
    • Kids
    • Lifestyle & Wellness
    • Food & Drink
    • Music
    • Nature
    • Stage & Screen
  • Opinions
    • Letters
    • Columns
  • Local
    • Special Sections
    • Local History
  • Marketplace
    • All Classified Ads
    • Post a Classified Ad
  • Obituaries
  • Subscribe & Support
  • Contact Us
    • Customer Support
    • Advertise
    • Submit A News Tip
  • Print Edition
    • Read ePaper Online
    • Newsstand Locations
    • Where’s My Paper
  • HV1 Magazines
  • Manage HV1 Account
  • Log In
  • Free HV1 Trial
  • Subscribe to Our Newsletters
    • Hey Kingston
    • New Paltz Times
    • Woodstock Times
    • Week in Review

© 2022 Ulster Publishing