For this major election cycle, voters in Dallas County are receiving a new, custom designed “I VOTED” sticker when they cast their ballots.
The new sticker design sprang from the mind of Mareily Lopez, 16, a junior at W.W. Samuell High School in Dallas ISD, who won the contest for the sticker design.
Dallas County Elections Department collaborated with MTTP Texas, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization that helped organize the contest.
“I feel really proud and grateful because I’m just really proud that my design was the one who got the attention and won,” Mareily said. “I wasn’t born here, and it makes me proud because I never knew I was going to be part of the community like this.”
Mareily said she started her design as a school project encouraged by her teacher, Chris Wyatt.
Taking inspiration from the downtown Dallas skyline and Texas colors, Mareily crafted a sticker that she hopes will resonates with millions of voters in Dallas County.
Despite not yet being of voting age, Mareily shared with The Dallas Morning News the power of the ballot box.
“I think the sticker means for people to kind of raise their voices and have an opinion,” she said.
Balancing school and art, Mareily crafted her design over two weeks despite a busy schedule.
Her parents beamed with pride upon learning she won, as her mother realized the significance of her daughter’s achievement and its impact on the voting public.
“My mom was really proud, because at first she didn’t know it was [a] really big thing, and after I told her that I won she was really proud,” Mareily said.
For Mareily, this experience was a reminder of her passion for art and a testament to the potential of young people who have creative minds. She shared advice to other young students who are contemplating participating in contests.
“If they have a chance to participate in things, they should do it, because probably you never know it’s something big or important like this,” she said.
Mareily’s new sticker design is available at voting locations in Dallas County.
