Mesa County honors student winners of 'I Voted' sticker contest

Bobby Gross, Mesa County Clerk and Recorder, presented winners of the county's third annual "I Voted" sticker contest during the Jan. 13 Board of Commissioners meeting, saying the county received more than 175 submissions and that election staff and judges winnowed the entries to 32 finalists before an online community vote selected the winners.

"This year marks the third annual Mesa County I voted sticker contest," Gross said, and he thanked election staff and local business sponsors for outreach and prizes. He named the students chosen for the official 2026 sticker: Elena, a fourth grader at New Emerson Elementary; Rhett, a fourth grader at Independence Academy; Jacob Walden, an eighth grader at Independence Academy and a two-time winner; and Amora, a ninth grader at Grand Junction High School.

Gross credited local businesses for supporting the contest, naming Heart Music, Banana Fun Park, Barnes & Noble, Instrums candies, Pablo Pizza, Zephyr and the Starbucks on 12th Street. He said winners will have their artwork featured on stickers distributed at polling locations across Mesa County.

Brian Hill, superintendent of School District 51, said the contest helps students understand civic engagement and called the project "a powerful reminder that the future of our community is quite literally in their hands." He and the clerk invited the student winners and their families forward for prize baskets and photographs.

The recognition and brief photo break preceded regular business and the board then moved on to its consent agenda.