Voting and Interest Groups Let your voice be heard.

Eligibility Requirements 18 years old, resident of the state for a specific time period, citizen of the United States. Once registered a person is assigned to a district. You can only vote once.

Gathering information Newspapers, magazines, radio, and television. Political parties. It is important to learn the issues and the candidates stand on them.

People that do not vote Electorate: People eligible to vote. People in mental hospitals, people convicted of serious crimes, and people who do not meet state requirements can not vote. The registration obstacle is not really a problem because states allow people to register when they renew their driver’s license. Apathy: Lack of interest.

Nominating Candidates Caucus: Meeting of party members. Nominating Convention: Delegates are chosen by party members to select the candidate. Primary elections: Registered voters choose the candidate. –Open: Party membership not required to vote. –Closed: Only registered party members may vote.

Presidential Candidates Chosen at the National Convention. States choose delegates to attend the convention according to population. The chosen candidate chooses a running mate for VP. (Ticket)

Campaigning It is important to create a positive image for a candidate. Propaganda: Attempt to promote a person or idea. Television is used a lot to familiarize the American public with issues. Canvassing: Going thorough neighborhoods asking for support.

Financing Campaigns Political Action Committees (PACs): Fund raising organizations. Presidential Election Campaign Fund: Tax payers check a box on tax forms. Political parties hold elaborate dinners to raise money. Individual donors contribute money.

Public Opinion Opinions of a group of people about a person or issue. Age, gender, income, hobbies, race, religion, and occupation play a role. The nations economic system is also important in public opinion. The mass media is a strong influence. Interest group: People who share a similar point of view.

Determining Public Opinion Election results are one way, but they are not always reliable. Public Opinion polls are the most accurate way. Pollsters: People who take polls. Pollsters use random samples, questioning a variety of people to get results. Loaded questions: Biased questions asked to get a certain response.

Interest group Strength in numbers. Sometimes called pressure groups because they try and pressure the government into making decisions. Bias: One-sided point of view.

Types of interest groups The most common type are economic groups. –Business Organizations: Interested in trade relationships. –Industrial and trade: Represent certain types of businesses. –Labor unions: Interested in the rights of workers. –Professional associations: Represent different professions. There are groups for ethnic, age and gender. There are groups that focus on specific causes.

Functions of interest groups Bring issues to the public and lawmakers. Support candidates who favor their goals.

Lobbies Lobby: Try to get government officials to support a groups goals. Lobbyists are people that try and gain support. Spend a lot of time researching issues in order to persuade lawmakers. They are frequently invited to speak in congressional committees. They try and arouse public opinion encouraging the public to communicate with elected leaders.

Regulation Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act (1946): All lobbies must register with federal and state governments and report all expenditures. All regulation laws have been relatively ineffective.