Perry A. Farrell

Detroit Free Press

Dorian Thompson played hooky for most of the second semester of his senior year at Plymouth Salem High School.

His excuse? He wanted to meet the presidential candidates who came through Michigan.

He accomplished his goal and has the pictures to prove it. He took a selfie with candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, and Democratic vice presidential hopeful Tim Kaine. Including local candidates running for a variety of offices, he took 21 selfies.

Related:

Mitch Albom: White House visits no longer what they were

Mitch Albom: Lady Liberty has her say about The Wall

“I missed a lot of class time to do this, but luckily for me, I had great high school teachers that let me play hooky from class,’’ he said. “My goal was to do it to help all youth understand that their voice does matter. I believe that before you make a decision who to vote for, you should at least hear out every single person’s opinion. I got a chance to do that; everyone that came to Michigan.’’

Thompson, 18, of Plymouth is now a freshman at Schoolcraft College. He has political aspirations of his own, and worked on the campaigns of Plymouth Township Supervisor Kurt Heise; Canton Township Supervisor Pat Williams; U.S. Rep. Dave Trott, R-Birmingham; state Rep. Laura Cox, R-Livonia; and Wayne County Commissioner Joe Barone, R-Plymouth.

“You have to hand it to Dorian, he is full of ambition,’’ Barone said. “He helped me out in my campaign. He worked the polls for me. He spread the word. It’s pretty amazing how he got all those (selfies). He set out on a mission. I actually had him at my swearing-in. I sent him an invite when we did the County Commission swearing-in. The kid has it. He’s a hard worker.’’

Thompson said he hasn't aligned himself with a political party but said he isn't an Independent.

More campaign committees are in his future before running his own race.

“I want to get through college, then have a big boy job as I call it,’’ he said. “I actually want to work someplace. Then I plan to be someone’s campaign manager or chief of staff.’’

Thompson turned 18 by the time the election rolled around. He wouldn’t divulge who he voted for, but he worked on numerous Republican campaigns.

“I could tell you and get my windows broken out of my car, or I cannot tell you and not have to worry about my car windows,’’ said Thompson, laughing.

Cox also came away impressed with Thompson’s enthusiasm.

Related:

Trump jeopardizes Michigan's plan to raise population

“I met him at some sort of grassroots event,’’ she said. “It’s really impressive. The kid obviously has a real strong interest in the political process. He is really confident. He meets people. He works his way to make sure he can meet the candidates, especially the ones at high levels. He’s really quite an impressive young man and pretty inspirational for such a young age.’’

He said the most intriguing and interesting candidate he met on his mission was Trump.

“He wasn’t what I expected,’’ Thompson said. “It’s interesting to see him in real life and compare how he is talked about on the television. He was really nice. He was calm in person. I expected to see what I usually see on TV, him screaming with his face wide open, with his hands in the air. When you actually meet him, he’s actually really nice and really calm. He’s actually funny. He’s really personable. I met him nine different times."

“The most time we got to spend together was five minutes. Usually it was around a rope line. A lot of times he did stop and hold a conversation with me. I told him I worked at the Fox Hills Golf Course. He said, ‘Hey, you work at a golf course?’ I said, ‘Hey, can you come to Fox Hills one day?’ He said, ‘No, but I think you look great.’”

Thompson said he caught the political bug at age 4.

“My mom said I read a book about Abraham Lincoln and I had a fascination with presidents,’’ he said.

His top three presidents are Franklin D. Roosevelt, Lincoln and Ronald Reagan.

“I liked how he (Reagan) was able to get things done,’’ Thompson said. “It’s not always about the policy, it’s about the actions they take and their character. When they can show leadership and work with people that they don’t particularly agree with I have much respect for those type of leaders.

“If you look at it, the parties have switched since Lincoln.’’

His message to the youth of American was simple: “Go into things with an open mind and be willing to listen.’’

Contact Perry Farrell: pafarrell@freepress.com