It is the first slightly cool day of Fall, wind chimes tinkling in the distance as the sun drifts through the trees to make dappled designs on the street. Children zoom by on bikes, while others jump on the neighborhood trampoline. But not 9-year-old Savannah Williams. She is inside helping to supervise a political gathering.

"It is very fun," says Williams, whose wide smile barely eclipses her bright blonde hair. "Because at such a young age I already have experience asking for people to vote and be involved in politics."

To say Williams doesn't mind being involved in politics would be an understatement: she has been raised to care about the political process, so it's second nature to her. Her father, Chad, is a Democrat precinct chair; her mother, Giselle, assists in throwing fundraisers and awareness meetings. Savannah is simply following in their footsteps-and she does a good job of it.

"I've gone with my dad door-to-door delivering yard signs," she says. "It is a very hard job and you need to keep focused."

The Williams family is not alone in exposing their children to politics. Many Austin families involve their kids in everything from fundraising, to door-knocking, to political rallies. And Austin, being kid-friendly, tends to welcome children into the political fold-it's a rare event that isn't open to kids.

Given the tight race this election season, some parents have been especially diligent about involving their children in the political process.

"We're all role models for our children," says Lowell Keig, a Republican precinct chair who routinely takes his three young children block walking to drum-up support for local candidates. "I hope [the kids] understand that the grassroots level of the political process is very important-especially energizing people to get out and vote."

There's little disagreement in political science circles that parents owe it to their kids to teach them about the political process-some say democracy depends on it.

"We have a representative democracy, which means people have to participate; if they don't it's not a representative democracy anymore," says Paula Case, communications director for Kids Voting USA, a national organization that develops curriculum for use in schools to teach kids the importance of voting. "We know that children learn primarily through modeling behavior, so if parents model good civic behavior through voting, kids are more likely to value that as well."

Indeed, studies indicate that kids whose parents vote are twice as likely to vote when they reach age 18 as those kids whose parents don't vote. A recent study in Kansas further discovered that children who participated in the Kids Voting USA curriculum-which includes allowing children to vote in mock-ballots right alongside their parents at the official polling places-were 14% more likely to vote as kids who hadn't been through the classes. [In Texas, only the cities of Brownsville and Harlingen participate in the Kids Voting USA curriculum, which requires support not only from the schools but also from the community at large.]

"If kids grow up in families that take civic involvement seriously, and talk about current events at the dinner table...it sets an example and a standard," says Adelaide Elm, Chair of the Board for Project Vote Smart, a national, non-partisan organization that provides unbiased voter information to the public and journalists. "[Children] may fall away from it as teens or young adults, but they'll come back to it when they have kids of their own."

But even parents who understand this may worry they don't know enough about the political process, or the candidates, to be of any real help to their kids. Melissa McKinnon, a Lake Travis mother of a 7-year-old boy, says that kind of thinking is just silly.

"It'd be like not feeding your kids because you're not a nutritionist," McKinnon says. "That's crazy!"

McKinnon has involved her son, Angelo, in politics since he was little. She's attended political events with him and also taken him out block-walking.

"I had to explain to him what we were doing," McKinnon says. "I just explained to him that I thought [the candidate] would be a very good leader and that we're participating to help put people in leadership positions who would make good decisions for our country. He was really all fired up about it [and] I felt really good about it."

Many kids respond like Angelo: they may not understand the finer points of the issues, but they're more than happy to learn. Besides, kids love good old-fashioned competition-and never underestimate the fame factor.

"Getting to meet the candidates is special and makes me feel famous, like I know someone special," says Savannah Williams, who also considers her dad's involvement in politics remarkable. "I think that my dad being involved in politics makes me feel special and famous in my own way."

Lowell Keig's kids aren't quite so enthusiastic as Savannah, but it's clear their father's involvement in politics has influenced them. While Logan, 11, says he doesn't think his father's political involvement will have any effect on him when he grows up, Eden, 7, already has political designs.

"I am going to be President of the United States some day!" she declares proudly.

While that likely would be a proud moment for Lowell, he really just wants them, and his youngest son Trevor, 3, to be actively involved in the democratic process-without resorting to negativity.

"I teach them that everyone is entitled to his/her own opinion and that no one is 'bad' for having a certain point of view or being a member of a particular party," says Lowell. "Also, I try to provide them with balanced information on the ideas of the Republican and Democratic parties and their candidates without being judgmental."

This is especially important to Lowell because he lives just a block away from Chad Williams-Savannah's dad and Lowell's Democrat counterpart-and the two are friends. Politics, he says, doesn't have to be nasty. Chad wholeheartedly agrees.

"We make sure [Savannah] understands that politics is more about the differing styles of governing and leadership, not related to love or friendship," he says. "That's a biggie nowadays!"

"I would advise [parents] to avoid criticizing the party and candidates that they oppose or disagree with by engaging in 'name-calling,'" Lowell adds. "I try to

So, too, does Amy Dunham. She and her husband have involved their two sons, Win, 13, and Johnson, 10, in politics since the kids were small-from block walking to passing out political literature to appearing in candidates' advertising spots. In the past, Amy didn't worry that the political campaigns would have any negative effects on her sons. But this election, she says, has been especially difficult because presidential politics have become personal. She hopes to instill in her sons that respect and civility should prevail-and that they have much to learn from the "other side."

"I believe-really truly believe-that politics will not change until reasonable people start running for office. I believe if you instill that early on with your kids, since they are the next generation, we will be electing people who will take their constituents' needs and the needs of our state and country and put them ahead of their own personal needs and gains," says Amy, who lives in Austin. "I think that is the way we have to change our democracy. You gain the most when you can talk to people who have different opinions-and have it be OK to disagree."

Savannah Williams sits patiently on the floor of her parents' living room, listening to the candidate speak to the adults at the afternoon political gathering. After a while, several more children stop by the house, and Savannah whisks them off to her room to play. Her political attention may be spent for the afternoon, but her dad isn't worried.

"We don't preach to her," Chad says. "We usually let her bring it up, and we always give her the option of talking about it when she wants. As we've told her, it is very important to us that she develop her own thoughts, her own ideas."

For Savannah, it doesn't look like that will be a problem at all.

"I think I'll be involved in politics," she says. "Because I've seen so many events and parties that I know what to do."

Kids Voting USA: This national nonprofit, nonpartisan organization teaches students the concepts of citizenship, civic responsibility, democracy and the importance of political participation. Its curriculum is available to schools, which then partner with the community to allow kids to vote alongside their parents using "mock ballots." www.kidsvotingusa.org

Project Vote Smart: Founded in 1992 by 40 national leaders, including Presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter, this organization is dedicated to providing unbiased information about voting and issues related to voting. The web site has ways to involve your kids in politics, as well as links to fun political trivia games for kids (and parents too!). www.Vote-Smart.org

Take Our Girls and Boys to the Polls: This national effort was spearheaded by The White House Project, an organization that seeks to create a society in which it is normal for women to be governors or president. The point of Take Our Girls and Boys to the Polls is to encourage parents to, quite literally, take their kids to the polls when they go to vote. The organization has lots of information on its webpage on how to involve kids in the political process. www.thewhitehouseproject.org