Quinn Mitchell is just 15 years old but he is already making a name for himself in New Hampshire.
Presidential candidates courting Granite State voters come face-to-face with Quinn at campaign events and are met with insightful questions that get to the heart of critically important issues.
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His passion for attending political events started in the leadup to the 2020 election, meeting with candidates like Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, Elizabeth Warren and Amy Klobuchar.
“I remember the first question, vaguely,” recalls Quinn, “it was a question to Amy Klobuchar asking her if Robert Mueller should testify in front of Congress.”
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Since posing that question, Quinn has become a staple at campaign meet-and-greets, collecting dozens of selfies and even the admiration of some politicians.
“He asks real questions, not just of me but of everyone else,” said Republican presidential candidate, Chris Christie.
When the candidates started making their way through New Hampshire in June of 2023, Quinn made a point of stopping by.
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While attending a Ron DeSantis town hall, Quinn asked whether former president Donald Trump had violated the peaceful transfer of power.
“If this election is about Biden’s failures and our vision for the future we’re going to win,” responded DeSantis, “if it’s about relitigating things that happened, two or three years ago, we’re going to lose.”
Talking with Quinn Monday, he says the answer didn’t meet his expectations.
“The way his whole speech was relitigating the past when it came to January 6th, COVID and life in Florida three years ago. That was hypocritical,” said Quinn.
The sound bite brought criticism from DeSantis’ competitors, causing Quinn to try and apologize at a 4th of July parade.
“I said sorry for getting you into all that trouble and then there was a tug on my shirt,” said Quinn.
The teen was blocked by a DeSantis staffer, but he continued to try and speak to the candidate.
“I shouted, 'governor do you have a different answer?' He said, 'you live in New Hampshire come to my next event'. So I went to his next event, it was a Newport town hall,” said Quinn.
At the event, Quinn made eye contact with DeSantis several times and says campaign staffers were following him around the venue.
“I tried to approach him, but I was blocked. Then I later learned that they were taking Snapchat photos of me with the caption ‘got our kid,'” said Quinn.
Despite those odd interactions, Quinn says he won’t hesitate to ask DeSantis another question.
“I’ll definitely try to pose a question. But not to the extent where it’s pushy and just looking to get clicks or something. That’s not my goal,” said Quinn.
NBC10 Boston reached out to the DeSantis campaign multiple times for comment but so far we have not received a response.
As for Quinn, he has no plans to run for public office himself but does hope to become a journalist covering politics one day.
