Unit 5 Ante Up!

Voter Qualifications

Whose power is it anyway? Where does this power come from? Is it a duty, right or responsibility? How is this supported by the Constitution? Which Amendments have to do with suffrage? How is this regulated by their reserve powers? Suffrage amendments: 15 (males), 19 (females), 24 (poll tax) 26 (18 yr old)

Voter Requirements

Universal Requirements Citizenship Aliens are generally denied the right to vote Nothing in the Constitution says that they cannot Any state could allow them to do so if it chose to

Residency Requirements You have to be a legal resident in the state the you wish to vote Voting Rights Act 1970: Banned any waiting period of more than 30 days for a presidential election To prevent bribery of outsiders to sway the election results To be sure that the citizens have enough time to become familiar with the candidates

Age Voting age can be no more than 18 However, it can be less What else can you legally do when you are 18 years old?

Other Requirements Registration 49 states require voters to be registered North Dakota does not require registration They repealed the voter registration act in 1951 because they considerd themselbes a one party state & did not see the reason to require people to register

Outlawed Requirements Literacy Test Grandfather Clause Poll Tax

Why do people choose not to vote? Voter Apathy – lack of interest in politics. They do not think their vote (or one vote) makes a difference What would happen if everyone believed in this?

Voter Turn Out

North Carolina

People More Likely to Vote Have a: Higher level of income Higher level of education 35 years or older Married Occupation: Business/Professional White-Collar Member of Civic Groups Strong Supporter of a Party Believes in political process Easy registration process

People Less Likely to Vote Have a: Lower level of income Lower level of education Younger than 35 Not Married Occupation: Unskilled & blue collar Isolated individual Weak or no party affiliation Voter apathy Difficult registration process

How to get a Candidate Elected

Nominating Candidates Each state decides how candidates can be nominated

Nomination Process

Caucus Selects a candidate for presidential office where a closed number of party members vote instead of a direct primary where everyone can vote.

National Convention Nominate a presidential & vice presidential ticket & platform for the election

Primary Election Qualified voters choose a candidate to represent their party in the General Election.

How to get the word out Endorsement – when people with power support a candidate Advertising & Image molding Canvassing – going through neighborhoods asking for votes

How to pay for the campaign Private funding – less than 10% from individuals Political party contributions PACs – Political Action Committees – political fundraising organizations who want to help a candidate Public Funding – Taxpayers can contribute money from their tax refund to Presidential Campaign fund which is then divided up between the candidates

Types of Elections

Primary Election Elections held to Nominate candidates for political office Used to see which candidate is going to represent a political party.

2 Types of Primary Elections Closed Primary – only declared party members may vote Open Primary – voters do not have to register, just have to choose which party to vote for before entering booth

General Elections Voters cast ballots to PUT A CANDIDATE IN OFFICE Candidates of different parties run against each other for election to political office Held first Tuesday after first Monday in November Popular vote – votes cast by the people Electoral vote – votes cast for President as part of the Electoral College

Non Partisan Elections Political parties are prohibited from participating Candidates organize & run without party help

Special Elections Run-off Elections – when there is a “tie” a run off must be held to determine a winner Recall – voter can remove a public official from office

Types of Voting

Absentee voting – voting earlier than the election day Those too ill or disabled Those who will be away from their county Those serving in the military

Straight Ticket/Party Voting – voting only for one political party Split Ticket Voting – voting for different parties for different offices in the same election

Types of Ballots

Ballot How a voter registers a choice in an election Paper Ballots – first used in our history

Australian Ballot Four essential features of the Australian Ballot It is printed at the public expense It lists the names of ALL candidates in an election It is given out ONLY at the polls, one per qualified voter It is marked in secret

Party Column Ballots Can be called the Indiana ballot Each party’s candidates are listed in a column under the party’s name There tends to be a box on this ballot to choose to vote for one political party only

Sample Ballots Ballots that list all candidates for office to try to assist the voting public to make an informed choice

Bedsheet Ballots A typically American ballot because of its length Local levels where most often seen because many offices are listed Voters can become apathetic because of the length of the ballot The term associated with this is Ballot Fatigue (Voter Apathy)

ELECTORAL COLLEGE

Something to think about… What is the main purpose of the Electoral College?

When you vote for a presidential election, your vote is part of the POPULAR VOTE. Presidents are not elected by the POPULAR VOTE. Your vote is actually for people called electors.

The Group of Electors is called the Electoral College. Electors: One of the people chosen from each state & D.C. who formally select the President & Vice President. The Group of Electors is called the Electoral College.

Qualifications Each state appoints its electors. A state’s certification of its electors is generally sufficient to establish the qualifications of electors. Cannot be: Senator, Representative or person holding an office in the U.S. govt State officials who have engaged in rebellion against the U.S. or given aid & comfort to its enemies (post-Civil War era)

Here’s the deal 538 electors in the electoral college Each state has a # of electors equal to the total number of Senators & Representatives it has in Congress

The candidate who receives a majority (270 or more) of the electoral votes becomes the next president. If no candidate receives a majority of votes, the House of Representatives chooses the President from the 3 leading candidates.

http://www.270towin.com/

Political Parties

What is a Political Party? organization of citizens who share similar views on issues work together to put their ideas into effect through government action.

Role of Political Parties Selecting & Supporting candidates Serve as a link Acts as a watchdog Informing the public & activating supporters through pamphlets, bumper stickers, ads, signs, buttons Act as bonding agent To ensure qualified representatives are carrying the people’s message to government Enables the branches & levels of government to communicateThe party not in power is watching the party in power

Party Organization

What do party members do? Nominate Candidates Campaign for Candidates Raise money, stuff envelopes, poll voters, & drive people to the polls Make telephone calls

Role of Political Parties Selecting & Supporting candidates Informing the public & activating supporters through pamphlets, bumper stickers, ads, signs, buttons Act as bonding agent To ensure qualified representatives are carrying the people’s message to government

Role of Political Parties (cont) Serve as a link Enables the branches & levels of government to communicate Acts as a watchdog The party not in power is watching the party in power

National Level Raise money for Presidential campaigns Organize the national convention Create the party’s platform Senatorial Committee – elect Senators House Committee – elect Representatives

State Level Work on electing state officials Work within the state to elect candidates to national office

Local Level Cities are divided into districts or precincts Organizes local election efforts Responsible for all elections

2011 Political Candidates Barack Obama Joe Biden Tom Hoeflig JD Ellis Melin Miller Harry Bertram Vergil Goode Jim Clymer   Dr Jill Stein Cheri Honkala Mitt Romney Paul Ryan Rocky Anderson Luiz Rodriguez Gary Johnson Jim Grey Tom Stevens Alden Link Peta Lyndsay Yari Osorio

Political Parties in the United States http://politics1.com/parties.htm

Political Parties & What they do Major U.S. parties – Republicans & Democrats

Types of Systems

Two – Party System political system dominated by two major political parties

History of two party system Federalist & Anti-Federalists Began with the ratifying of the Constitution Now it is tradition & is unlikely to change Why: Single-member districts Winner is the one who gains a plurality or largest number of votes Republicans & Democrats work in a bipartisan manner to perpetuate the system

History of two party system Minor parties have difficulty getting on the ballot & be heard

Minor Parties in the US Ideological: Based on a particular set of beliefs Ex.: Communist Party Single-Issue: Major parties often take on their issue as their own Economic Protest Parties: Blames the business world & the major parties… Ex: Populist party, Occupy Wall Street Splinter Party: Usually form around a certain personality that failed to win the nomination in a major party (Teddy Roosevelt, George Wallace) Influence of Minor Parties Bring issues to light Play a spoiler role in an election Criticizing the major parties

Multi party system three or more parties compete for control of the government are common in Europe, Israel, & Japan Advantage gives voters the opportunity of voting from a variety of choices Majorities are rare & pluralities usually indicate winners Coalitions must be formed with other parties to gain a majority of votes & get the work of governing done

One party system Party & the government are the same thing. Example: People’s Republic of China

Platform A political party’s statement of its goals & positions on all issues

Plank A single issue on a political party’s platform

Republicans vs. Democrats… What’s the difference anyway?

Republicans more socially conservative economically libertarian closer ties to both large corporation & locally owned businesses than do the Democrats less affiliation with labor unions strong belief in personal responsibility, limited government, & corporate entrepreneurship generally oppose gay marriage, oppose abortion, & oppose embryonic stem cell research

Democrats favors farmers, laborers, labor unions, & religious & ethnic minorities opposed unregulated business & finance, & favored progressive income taxes advocates for welfare spending programs targeted at the poor. Environmentalism advocates civil liberties, social freedoms, equal rights, equal opportunity, & a free enterprise system tempered by government intervention (what economists call a mixed-economy) believes that government should play a role in alleviating poverty & social injustice, even if that means a larger role for government & progressive taxation to pay for social services support gay marriage, abortion, & stem call research.

This is a range of differences in political views between parties. Political Spectrum This is a range of differences in political views between parties.

Political Spectrum in the U.S. Far left: Radical Left Wing: Liberal & Democrat Left Moderate: Democratic mainstream Centrist: Moderate. Democrat & Republican Right Moderate: Republican Right Wing: Conservative mainstream Far Right: Reactionary This should be considered a spectrum in which a candidate can fall in between two categories from left (democrats) to right (republicans) Majority of Candidates elected to office are considered “Moderate”