Civics and Elections

Civics Functions of the Canvassing Authority

The Cranston Board of Canvassers is committed to engagement in civics and civics education to promote the right to vote, and ensure all eligible voters are aware of the election processes and deadlines.

One duty of the Board related to that mission is to annually conduct high school voter registration drives, in accordance with R.I. Gen. Laws § 17-9.1-4.1, which the Board holds each spring in all three of the city's high schools.

Another duty the Board has is to recruit poll workers, and state law - specifically R.I. Gen. Laws § 17-11-12.1 - encourages the appointment of high school students to work the polls who are 16 years of age or older, in order to provide for a greater awareness of the elections process, the rights and responsibilities of voters and the importance of participating in the electoral process.

In 2025, in support of these civics functions, the Board voted to adopt an "I Voted" sticker contest program, similar to programs done by cities, towns, and counties throughout the rest of the country, but which had never been done before locally in Rhode Island. The objective of the program is to engage Cranston high school students in the election administration process and allow them to express their creativity in designing an "I Voted" sticker that represents the City of Cranston, for use in our elections.

The Board of Canvassers publicly reviewed 10 finalists from students, which were selected by the School Department, and selected designs to print in accordance with the contest policies. The selected designs by Cranston students are recognized on this page.

Thank you to all of the students who took the time to think about our elections and express their creativity, and congratulations to those whose artwork was selected for use at Cranston polling places!

 

2026 Cranston I Voted Sticker Contest Selected Designs

Samantha DeCesare 

Lexi Montalban 

Grace Petitbon 

Julia Rego