Local heads to Republican delegate Local heads to Republican delegate (August 27, 2004)

Teenager has vote, will travel

By Jon Wiener

Denis Hiller never considered himself politically inclined. But there he was, all of 17 years old, testifying to a state Senate committee against a bill to raise the age at which people can purchase tobacco to 21.

Hiller doesn't smoke and never has, but he wanted to protect the rights of others to do so. If they were old enough to vote and go to war, then they should be able to buy cigarettes, he figured.

"I thought, 'I can't vote, but there's got to be something I can do,'" he said.

Two years later, at 19, Hiller is looking forward to voting in his first presidential election. In fact, he's doing even more than voting -- he's traveling to New York this weekend as an alternate delegate to the Republican National Convention.

Hiller's family immigrated to Mountain View from the crumbling Soviet Union in 1989, when he was five years old. He attended Gunn and Los Altos High Schools, and now is part owner of AnchorFree Wireless.

"What amazed me is the kind of freedom we have here," he said. "You can go talk to your elected officials. It's incredible."

Originally attracted to the Republican Party after seeing a Pete Wilson speech, Hiller realizes he is an anomaly: a Republican teenager in a Democratic area. But he believes the GOP promotes security and the entrepreneurial spirit.

His recent trip to Israel and experience of security checkpoints only confirmed his faith in the administration. With little suspense surrounding this convention, Hiller said he simply wants to show support for President Bush.

He called John Kerry a "pathetic, aging radical of the 1960s" and said he believes that 61 percent of voters under the age of 25 are going to vote for Bush this November.

Mostly though, he is excited about seeing New York City for the first time, a place he called "the heart and soul of America." In addition to attending a Broadway show with the California delegation, he is staying in New York for a few extra days to tour with a friend. He is not worried about protesters wreaking havoc on the city, as some have threatened to do.

"I just hope the media gets these people on camera," Hiller said. "In these swing states, when people see how nuts these people are, they are not going to vote for Kerry."

E-mail Jon Wiener at jwiener@mv-voice.com

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