Chapter 7 The Electoral Process The future of this republic is in the hands of the American voter. President Dwight D. Eisenhower

Section 1: The Nominating Process Objectives: Explain why the nominating process is a critical first step in the election process Describe self-announcement, the caucus, and the convention as nominating methods Discuss the direct primary as the principal nominating method used in the United States today. Understand why some candidates use the petition as a nominating device

A Critical First Step Nominating process Naming of those who will seek office Making of nominations As a prime function of political parties in American politics As a leading reason for the decentralized character of the two major parties in the US Five methods of nomination Self-announcement Caucus Convention Direct primary petition

Self Announcement Oldest form of the nominating process A person who wants to run for office simply announces that fact Self-announcement is sometimes used by someone who failed to win a regular party nomination or by someone unhappy with the party’s choice. Write-in candidate

The Caucus Group of like minded people who meet to select the candidates they will support in an upcoming election Still used to make local nominations in some places

The Convention Local districts select delegates to represent them at a higher-level meeting where the nominee is chosen

The Direct Primary An intraparty election. It is held within a party to pick that party’s candidates for the general election Closed Primary A nominating election in which only declared party members can vote, membership established at registration, only vote in only that party’s primary Open Primary A party’s nominating election in which any qualified voter can cast a ballot, found in fewer than half the states Montana holds an open Primary

Closed vs. Open Primaries Closed supporters Prevents one party from “raiding” the other’s primary to nominate weaker candidates Make candidates more responsive to the party, platform, and members Make voters more thoughtful about what party they vote for Opposed to closed Compromises the secrecy of the ballot Tends to exclude independent voters from the nominating process Open supporters Voters are not forced to make their party preferences a matter of public record Independent voters are not excluded from the nominating process

The Runoff Primary Most states: candidates need to win only a plurality of the votes cast in the primary The greatest number of votes won by any candidate, whether a majority or not 8 states: absolute majority is needed to carry a primary Runoff primary Two top vote getters in the first primary face one another to determine the party’s nomination

The Nonpartisan Primary Elections in which candidates are not identified by party labels Usually runs unopposed in the general election Example; judges

The Presidential Primary Not a nominating device An election that is held as one part of the process by which presidential candidates are chosen

Petition Candidates collect a specified number of signatures from voters to qualify for the general election

Section 2: Elections Objectives: Analyze how the administration of elections in the United States helps make democracy work Define the role of local precincts and polling places in the election process Describe the various ways in which voters can cast their ballots Outline the role that voting devices play in the election process

The Administration of Elections Nearly all elections in the US are held to choose the more than 500,000 persons who hold elective office in the more than 89,000 units of government at the State and local level. Most election law is STATE not Federal law

Congress’s power Fix the Times, Places, and manner of holding elections Set the time for choosing presidential electors Set the date for casting the electoral votes Set the date for congressional elections 1st Tuesday following the 1st Monday in November of every even-numbered year, every 4th year for presidential Secret ballots and voting machines

Help America Vote Act of 2002 Ballot and voter registration problems of 2000 election Law requires the State to: Replace all lever-operated and punch card machines by 2006 Upgrade administration of elections, better training of officials Centralize and computerize voter registration Provide for provisional voting A person eligible to vote and has been challenged can nonetheless cast a ballot that will be counted if later found that he or she is in fact qualified to vote

Election Day Most states hold in November Prevents: Voting on Sunday First day of the month which is usually payday Early voting-32 million voted early in 2012 Absentee voting-vote without going to the polling place The Coattail Effect- Strong candidate running for an office at the top of the ballot helps attract voters to other candidates on the party’s ticket

Precincts and Polling Places Precincts-smallest geographic units for elections 500 to 1000 qualified voters Polling place-voters who live in the precinct vote Supervised Opened and closed by State Law

Casting the Ballot Secret ballots No one knows how you vote Piece of paper, Optical scanners or Touch screens Australian Ballot-basic form of ballot used today Provided at public expense Lists the names of all candidates in an election Given out only at the polls Can be marked in secret Sample ballots-sent out before an election Bed-sheet ballots- extremely long, usually found at the local level

Automated voting Electronic Vote counting Vote-by-Mail Elections Push buttons on a screen Circles filled in electronically scanned Vote-by-Mail Elections Online Voting

Section 3: Money and Elections Objectives: Explain the issues raised by campaign spending Describe the various sources of funding for campaign spending Examine federal laws that regulate campaign finance Outline the role of the Federal Election Commission in enforcing campaign finance laws Distinguish hard money from soft money

Campaign Spending 2012-Presidential-$2.5 billion Primaries and caucuses, conventions, general election campaigns Advertisements, propaganda, websites, travel

Sources of Funding Private Public funds Small contributors Wealthy individuals and families Candidates Nonparty groups Temporary organizations Public funds Subsidy- grant of $ from the government

Regulating Finance Congress first began to regulate the use of money in federal elections in 1907 Unlawful for any corporation or national bank to make “a money contribution in any election” Laws passed to regulate $ Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) 1971 FECA amendment of 1974 and 1976 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA) of 2002

Federal Election Commission (FEC) Administers all federal law dealing with campaign finance Independent agency in the executive branch Enforce 4 laws

# 1 Disclosure requirement Require the timely disclosure of campaign finance data Certified accountant for campaign No indiv. Group can make a contribution in the name of another Cash gifts of more than $100 prohibited No contributions or spending from foreign sources Raised $5000, candidate must register with FEC

# 2 Limits on Contributions Place limits on campaign contributions No person can give more than $2500 per election to a federal candidate No more than $5000 in any year to a PAC $30,800 to a national party committee

PAC Contributions Neither corporations nor labor unions can contribute directly to any candidate for federal office Political Action Committees (PAC) can contribute Seek to affect the making of public policy

# 3 Limits on Expenditures Place limits on campaign expenditures 1925 Most apply to presidential campaigns

# 4 Public Funding for Presidential Campaigns Provide public funding for several parts of the presidential election process Every person who files a federal income tax return can “check off” three dollars of his or her tax bill to the fund. $ used to subsidize preconvention campaigns, national conventions and presidential election campaigns.

Hard Money, Soft Money Hard-given directly to candidates Soft-funds given to parties