Chapter 10 VOTING AND ELECTIONS

Elections and Democracy  Democratic control  Elections are essential for democratic politics.  Elections are the principal means by which popular sovereignty and majority rule are supposed to work.  Can elections ensure that governments will do what the people want?

 Three theories of ways in which two-party elections of representatives could or should lead to democratic control of government  Responsible party government — based on the idea of elections providing a real choice, or alternative  Electoral competition — both parties should compete for votes by taking the most popular positions that they can  Electoral reward and punishment (also called retrospective voting) — people vote for the incumbents when times are good and against them when times are bad

 Imperfect electoral democracy  Each of these three processes of democratic control works to some extent.  None of them works well enough to guarantee perfectly democratic outcomes.  All three acting together also cannot ensure democracy.

Political Participation  Political participation refers to political activity by individual citizens.  Unconventional participation — includes activities such as demonstrations and boycotts  Conventional participation — includes activities such as voting, writing letters, contacting officials, giving money

 Expansion of the franchise  The franchise was quite restricted in the early years of the United States.  The expansion of the right to vote has been one of the most important developments in the political history of the United States.  Direct partisan elections

 The vanishing electorate  Suffrage expanded to more groups during the first century of American history, and larger and larger proportions voted.  Voter turnout rate in the U.S. is very low compared with other modern industrialized countries.  The ideal of political equality is violated by low rates of voter turnout.

Barriers to Voting  Causes of low voter turnout  Registration  Lack of attractive choices  Changes in eligibility rules  Alienation and apathy about politics that many Americans felt after the 1960s  Lack of voter mobilization by political parties and the failure of both parties to register low-income citizens

Campaigning Involvement  Despite low voter turnout levels, Americans are more likely than people in other countries to participate actively in campaigns.  Areas of involvement  Contact officials  Give money  Attend meetings  Attend political rallies  Work actively in a campaign organization

Who Participates?  Characteristics of voters and nonvoters  There is class bias in voting and other forms of political participation.  Some statistical analyses indicate that the crucial factor in voter turnout is the level of formal education.  Income level may be more important than education in affecting who actually votes.

Does It Matter Who Votes?  Two contrasting points of view  The rate of participation is unimportant because the preferences of those who vote are similar to those who do not vote.  A low voter turnout rate may be a positive factor since more educated people vote.  Nonvoters are clearly different from voters.  How participation can make a change  Broader participation would increase popular sovereignty and political equality.

Campaigning for Office  Contending for a presidential nomination  Characteristics of nominees — who has a chance?  Getting started  Primaries and caucuses  Momentum  How to win — factors that affect candidates’ success in gaining delegate support  National conventions

Nomination Politics and Democracy  Incumbents  The autumn campaign  The fall campaign traditionally began on Labor Day, but now tends to start right after the conventions or earlier.  Campaign organizations set up in each state  Intense money raising, combined with a new round of public financing  Media blitz  Focus groups  Voter registration and voter turnout campaigns  Informing voters

Money and Elections  Presidential campaigns cost enormous amounts of money.  The cost has increased rapidly over time.  Campaign spending may not look so big when compared with corporate advertising.  The source of campaign money is far more problematic for democracy than the cost of presidential elections.  Where does the money come from?  Does money talk?

How Voters Decide  The way in which people make their voting decisions affects how elections contribute to democratic control of government.  Parties, candidates, and issues all have substantial effects on how people vote.  Social characteristics and party loyalties  Candidates  Issues

The Electoral College  When voting for president, American voters are actually voting for a slate of electors who have promised to support the candidate.  Almost all states now have winner-take-all systems.  For most practical purposes, the electoral college system works in much the same way as if Americans chose their presidents by direct popular vote.  Consequences of the electoral college system

Do Elections Matter?  In terms of the responsible party government theory...  Republicans tend to be more conservative than Democrats on a number of economic and social issues.  This provides voters with a measure of democratic control by enabling them to detect differences and make choices.

 Voters exercise control in the electoral competition theory by either reelecting successful incumbents or defeating unsuccessful officeholders.  Elections force parties to compete by nominating centrist candidates and by taking similar popular positions.  U.S. elections help make the public’s voice heard, but political equality is damaged by providing more political influence to some types of people than to others.