Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman

How American Elections Work Functions of Elections Institutionalize political activity – Make it possible for most political participation to be channeled through the electoral process. Regular access to political power – Leaders can be replaced. Legitimacy – Fair and free way of selecting political leaders. To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman

How American Elections Work Three Kinds of Elections Primary elections – Voters select party nominees. General elections – Between the nominees of the parties. Elections on specific policy questions – Voters make (initiative petition) or ratify (referendum) legislation. LO 10.1 To Learning Objectives

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.1

A Tale of Three Elections 1800: The First Electoral Transition of Power 1896: A Bitter Fight Over Economic Interests 2008: An Election About Change To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman

A Tale of Three Elections 1800: The First Electoral Transition of Power No primaries, conventions, or speeches. Campaigns focused not on voters but on state legislatures who chose electors. After many votes in the House, the presidency was transferred to Jefferson peacefully. LO 10.2 To Learning Objectives

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman A Tale of Three Elections 1896: A Bitter Fight Over Economic Interests Democrats’ main issue was unlimited coinage of silver. Bryan won the Democratic Party nomination with speeches about the virtues of silver. McKinley won the election and the Republicans regained majority status. To Learning Objectives LO 10.2

To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.2

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman A Tale of Three Elections 2008: An Election About Change Obama’s main issue was changing the health care system to extend coverage to everyone. McCain’s main issue was making changes to improve the economy and the financial institutions. Obama won and became the 1 st African- American president. To Learning Objectives LO 10.2

To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.2

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice Suffrage The legal right to vote, in the United States gradually extended to virtually all citizens over the age of 18. LO 10.3 To Learning Objectives

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice Deciding Whether to Vote Anthony Downs – People who see policy differences between the parties are more likely to vote. Political Efficacy – Belief that one’s vote does matter and can actually make a difference. Civic Duty – Belief that a citizen should vote to support democratic government. To Learning Objectives LO 10.3

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice Registering to Vote Voter Registration – A system adopted by the states that requires voters to register prior to voting. Motor Voter Act – A 1993 act that requires states to permit people to register to vote when they apply for their driver’s license. To Learning Objectives LO 10.3

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice Who Votes? Education – People with a higher than average education vote more than people with less education. Age – Older people vote more than younger people. Race – Racial minorities are usually underrepresented among voters relative to their share of the citizenry. To Learning Objectives LO 10.3

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice Who Votes? Gender – Women participate in elections more than men do. Marital status – Married people vote more than unmarried people. Government employment – Workers for the government vote more than people who have jobs in the in private sector. To Learning Objectives LO 10.3

To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.3

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice Who Votes? Possessing several of these traits (being elderly, well educated, and married) adds significantly to one’s likelihood of voting. Conversely, being young, poorly educated, and single is likely to add up to a very low probability of voting. To Learning Objectives LO 10.3

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman How Americans Vote: Explaining Citizens’ Decisions Mandate Theory of Elections The idea that the winning candidate has a mandate from the people to carry out his or her platforms and politics. Politicians like the theory better than political scientists do. LO 10.4 To Learning Objectives

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman How Americans Vote: Explaining Citizens’ Decisions Party Identification People still generally vote for a party that they agree with. Parties’ hold on voters declined in the 1960s and 1970s with rise of candidate- centered politics. Many floating voters make an individual voting decision and are up for grabs each election. To Learning Objectives LO 10.4

To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.4

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman How Americans Vote: Explaining Citizens’ Decisions Candidate Evaluations: How Americans See the Candidates 3 most important dimensions of candidate image are integrity, reliability, and competence. Image plays a role in voting when a candidate is perceived to be incompetent or dishonest. To Learning Objectives LO 10.4

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman How Americans Vote: Explaining Citizens’ Decisions Policy Voting Electoral choices that are made on the basis of the voters’ policy preferences and where the candidates stand on policy issues. To Learning Objectives LO 10.4

The Last Battle: The Electoral College Electoral College A unique American institution, created by the Constitution, providing for the selection of the president by electors. Less populated states are overrepresented. Winner-take-all concentrates campaigns on close states. To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman

The Last Battle: The Electoral College How Electoral College Works Electoral votes for each state equals its members in Congress. 48 states use winner-take-all system (not Maine and Nebraska). State electors vote in December following the November election. January – Congress counts votes. House of Representatives picks president if no majority vote. LO 10.5 To Learning Objectives

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.5

To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.5

To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.5

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman The Last Battle: The Electoral College Important Electoral College The less populated states are overrepresented because states get 2 electors for the senators regardless of population. Winner-take-all means candidates will focus on winning the states where the polls show that there appears to be a close contest. To Learning Objectives LO 10.5

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Understanding Elections and Voting Behavior Democracy and Elections The greater the policy differences between candidates, the more likely voters will be able to steer government policy by their choices. Retrospective voting – Voters cast a vote based on what a candidate has done for them lately. LO 10.6 To Learning Objectives

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Understanding Elections and Voting Behavior Elections and the Scope of Government Elections generally support government policies and power. Voters feel they are sending a message to government to accomplish something. So the government expands to fill the needs of the voters. To Learning Objectives LO 10.6