The Legislative Process How are lawmakers influenced to vote?

What is Ms. T talking about? Legislative = the process of law making Legislator = person who makes laws State Representative State Senator

What may Influence a Legislator’s Vote? Constituents – the people that are represented How do I make the people back home happy so they vote for me? Party Membership – political group the lawmaker is part of How do I keep my party happy so they continue to give me money and allow me to keep my job? Democratic vs. Republican FYI, there are more political parties – but more on this later in the year Re-election – being voted back into office What do I need to do so I am voted back in after my 2 or 6 years are up? Campaign Contributions – interest groups and others who offer money How do I keep these campaign donors happy so they keep giving me money?

Role of INDIVIDUALS in the Legislative Process Participation – actively becoming involved Voting, writing letters, ing, calling – things that you intentionally and purposefully do to engage in politics Opinions – tell your legislator how you feel Again – through letters, s, calls – your Senator or Representative want to know how to keep their constituents happy Joining Interest Groups – becoming part of a group So, through joining and interest group, you can also actively put pressure on your legislator to vote a certain way on a bill

Role of INTEREST GROUPS in the Legislative Process Identifying Issues – making voters aware of topics that are important Publicizing Issues – giving information to the public Through media – TV, newspapers, Internet, radio Lobbying– organized process of influencing laws Lobbyists are people of the interest group who might go to a hearing to present their argument, they might visit the legislator, they might talk to the media, or even write bills of their own.

How is Congressional Representation Determined? Census– procedure of getting and recording info about the people in the US Information is collected every 10 years Required by the Constitution Reapportionment – process of dividing the number of representatives and senators among the State's population in order to make districts of equal size Population – determines how many of the 435 seats in the House of Representatives each state gets Each state is only guaranteed one seat as stated in the Constitution Redistricting – process of drawing electoral district boundaries

ACTIVITY – reapportioning South Carolina