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 Travelers from miles around fed the long, serpentine lines that had begun to
form early that morning. Some had come alone, others arrived with their families,
but young and old stood and waited with eager anticipation.
Soon, they would vote for Nicaragua's next democratically elected president.
Until then, they would gladly stand in line and wait, and Florida State
University's Freddie Groomes would wait with them.
Groomes, FSU's executive assistant for human resources, was one of several
hundred U.S. citizens invited to observe the elections.
Groomes, a member of the Board of Advisors of the Kellogg Foundation's
National Leadership Program, was in Nicaragua at the time participating in an
international seminar when the group received its invitations.
"I was flattered and pleased to have the opportunity to observe," she said.
"The thing that impressed me most was that 80 percent of the persons who are
eligible to vote, go and vote. It was really a dramatic civic lesson."
As an observer, Groomes had no active role in the process; she and her fellow
American observers could only watch as a new chapter in Nicaraguan history
unfolded before their eyes.
Groomes said she did get a chance, however, to talk with people directly
affected by the process.
"They were proud," she recalled. "They would stand in lines for hours, and
they traveled for miles over land and water to get to the polls. They take such
great pride in that process. It was a very uplifting experience."
Describing the scene, Groomes also noted how people helped each other with the
children who, while too young to vote, were brought along anyway for the
historical event.
"I talked to one older woman who had traveled many miles and had been in line
since early morning," Groomes said. "It was past noon, and she was just as
content."
The woman was holding her grandchild and told Groomes her son and daughter
were also in line.
"It was like a family affair," Groomes said.
She saw another woman who had also been waiting in line all morning. The
woman had an urgent appointment and debated whether she should keep it.
"The people around her encouraged her to stay," Groomes said. "They said,
'you've waited this long, you should vote, it's more important.' "
Groomes said the attitude of the Nicaraguans stirred something in her as
well.
"It motivated me to come back and be more vigilant in my advocacy for voter
registration and turnout," she said. "I'm particularly eager to get more students
sensitized and participating."
In the end, the Nicaraguans who had turned to the Americans to show them how
to have democratic elections showed a handful of her citizens how it really
should be done.
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