Political Participation Unit 5

Political participation 5.1

Means for citizens to participate in the political process Getting elected Voting Helping in a campaign/contributing money Contacting members of congress Interest groups Protesting discussions Inactive

WHY MUST WE PARTICIPATE?

CRITICAL INGREDIENT OF ENSURE THAT POLICY REFLECTS INTENSITY & DIRECTION OF POPULAR CONCERNS- MOST CRITICAL INGREDIENT OF A SUCCESSFUL DEMOCRACY

AMT. OF TIME, ENERGY, & KNOWLEDGE WHAT DOES THIS MODEL SAY ABOUT PARTICIPATION IN THE POLITICAL PROCESS? % PARTICIPATING AMT. OF TIME, ENERGY, & KNOWLEDGE

GETTING ELECTED WHAT DOES THIS ALLOW ONE TO DO?

CAMPAIGNING- I.E. WEARING A BUTTON

CAMPAIGNING- I.E. VOLUNTEERING

RUNNING FOR OFFICE IS?

ATTENDING A RALLY

DEBATING THE ISSUES

VOTING- MOST COMMON & SIMPLE METHOD

YET VOTER TURNOUT IS POOR- WHY?

MAKING PERSONAL CONTACT

TOWN HALL MEETING EVER ATTEND ONE?

CONTACT VIA PHONE, MAIL, FAX, ETC. SENATOR KAY B. HUTCHISON 284 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510-4304 202-224-5922 202-224-0776 (FAX) 202-224-5903 (TDD)

WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE? EVER CONTACT THEM?

PARTICIPATION THROUGH THE GROUPS WE JOIN

"THERE'S STRENGTH IN NUMBERS" HOW MANY GROUPS DO YOU BELONG TO?

WHAT DOES THIS GROUP DO?

UNCONVENTIONAL PARTICIPATION

PEOPLE PROTEST FOR MANY DIFFERENT CAUSES

LESS THAN 2% ENGAGE IN PROTEST- WHY?

VIETNAM WAR PROTEST WHAT ARE THEY DOING?

BUDDHIST MONK PROTESTING WAR IN VIETNAM

WHO IS THIS FAMOUS AMERICAN?

PRO-LIFE PROTEST

PRO-CHOICE PROTEST

ANTI-WAR PROTEST

PRO-WAR BANNER

Factors that impact voter turn out Education: the more you have the more you vote Income: higher income is more likely to vote Age: the older you are the more likely you are to vote Gender: women voter more then men Religion: Jews and Catholics are more likely to vote than Protestants Race: whites tend to vote more than minority groups Cross pressures

REASONS- NONPARTICIPATION ELDERLY & INFIRMED INCARCERATED DESPARATION/POOR ATTITUDE OF APATHY ATTITUDE OF ANGER 20% OF POPULATION

Reasons for low turnout Voter registration Decline in political efficacy Frequent elections Voting date/time

Voter registration

Decline in political efficacy

Frequent elections

Voting date/time

How voters make their choice Party ID Candidate character Political issues beliefs

Key statistics 230 million people of voting age in US About 60% voted in the 2008 election Less than 50% vote in non presidential elections Turn out rate lower than most other Western countries

PARTICIPATION- WILL THIS BE YOU? OR...

WILL THIS BE YOU?

Expansion of voting rights Suffrage is the right to vote Left up to the states to set the requirements

Original Electorate White Landowning Educated Rich men

Jacksonian democracy Eliminated (after 1800) Religious Property ownership Tax payments

15th amendment Eliminated race as a qualifiation

19th amendment Eliminated gender

23rd amendment Allowed residents of Washington DC to vote in presidential elections

24th amendment Elimination of poll taxes

Voting rights act of 1965 Eliminated Grandfather clauses White primaries Literacy requirments

27th amendment Lowered voting age to 18