1. AP Government: Nomination Process

2. Entrance Ticket: What Kind of Person Would Make a Good President?
What are some characteristics, beliefs, or traits that you think a person needs to have to be president of the United States.
How does our current president compare to your “ideal” president?
What traits are similar? What traits are different?

3. The Nomination Game
Nominations are the parties’ official endorsement of a candidate for office. Their campaign strategy requires money, media attention, and momentum. Candidates attempt to manipulate each one of these strategies through their campaign strategy.

4. Modern elections are more physically and emotionally demanding than ever. Campaigns in the US are more than twice as long as they are in most other industrialized countries. Candidates are put to “trial by fire” during the campaign.

5. Presidential candidates are either announced or an “open secret” about a year before the election.
Candidates needs to be risk takers and have enough self-confidence to put everything on the line to pursue the presidency.

6. The goal of the nomination game is to win the majority of delegates’ support at the national party convention.
From January though June of an election year, the individual state parties choose their delegates at the national convention through caucuses or primaries.

7. Getting Elected as President: What Helps?
Getting your name mentioned as a possibility (name recognition)
Making speeches (Reagan)
Sponsoring legislation (Bradley, McCain)
Being a governor (a recent trend: Bush, Carter, Clinton)
(To right: Former Presidents Clinton and Carter)
Getting Elected as President: What Helps?

8. It is heavily dependent on technology
It is heavily dependent on technology. With TV more prevalent, however, media focus on who is winning rather than policy issues.
Computer technology targets mailing to prospective supporters.
direct mail: sending information and requests for money to names obtained from list of people who have supported candidates in the past with similar issues
The Campaign Game

9. Campaign Teams!
Three things are needed to project the right image to voters during campaigning!
High-tech media campaign
Get attention through advertising or free attention as news makers, create slogans, and target an audience.
Organization
Campaign manager, campaign counsel, and campaign staff
Fund raisers
Media consultants and website
Research staff, policy advisors, and pollsters
Press secretary
Money

10. Interest Groups and Elections
The Federal Election Campaign Act required all candidates for federal office to disclose all contributions made to their campaigns. People will know how much you are spending!
There is a loophole called “soft money,” which is unregulated money, but you have to donate money to the PARTIES rather than the CANDIDATES!
And, In Buckley v. Valeo (1976), the Supreme Court struck down a portion of the FEC Act and said that an individual can give as much of their own money to their campaign as they want! Now, all the rich people can run for office and spend their own money on their campaign!

11. The Media: TV Exposure (in Primary and Later)
spots: ads; ineffective; expensive; much info, no effect; boring
visuals: news soundbites or filmed activity of candidate

12. debate: risky, may look bad with a slip (e. g
debate: risky, may look bad with a slip (e.g., Dole with a yawn, Bush checking watch, boring stock answers repeated, Romney betting “10, ”); incumbent normally adverse to debates

13. caucuses: meeting of all state party leaders for selecting delegate for national party convention

14. Path to Presidency Caucus:
Is the first real test of public opinion and receives a great deal of publicity
Happens in twelve states (first one in Iowa)
Is a gathering of any voter registered with a party with other members of the same party to nominate a candidate

15. Why Iowa for the First Caucus?
The Iowa Caucus system makes candidates campaign in person and discuss issues with voters face to face.
Candidates cannot rely entirely on advertisements to get votes. They must go out and meet the people.
Iowa’s population size ranks right in the middle of the fifty states.
Iowans are politically aware. We study the issues and take our role in the nomination process.
By comparison, campaign costs are lower in Iowa.

16. Obama thanks Iowans for putting him on the path toward presidency, November 2008.

17. Primary Elections
Elections in which voters in a state vote for a candidate or delegates pledged to the candidate; more like general election

18. The tendency of states like Iowa and New Hampshire to hold caucuses and primaries early in the calendar year to capitalize on media attention is called front-loading.
Both caucuses and primaries serve as an elimination process for candidates.

19. Negatives (Criticisms) of Primaries and Caucuses
Disproportionate amount of attention goes to the early caucuses and primaries Too long Focus on image of candidate more than issues Low participation that is not representative of the population

20. Caucus: Only twelve states have them.
Why Iowa for the first caucus?
The Iowa Caucus system makes candidates campaign in person and discuss issues with voters face to face.
Candidates cannot rely entirely on advertisements to get votes. They must go out and meet the people.
Iowa’s population size ranks right in the middle of the fifty states.
Iowans are politically aware. We study the issues and take our role in the nomination process.
By comparison, campaign costs are lower in Iowa.

21. Caucus vs. Primary
primary elections: elections in which voters in a state vote for a candidate or delegates pledged to the candidate; more like general election
Both are LONG processes. Voter participation is LOW.

22. There have been proposals for regional primaries where a group of states within the same time zone would vote in stages—one zone one week, then another the following week and so on. The major problem is the advantage gained by whatever region goes first. Should small states go first and large ones last?
Regional Primaries

23. One state = one vote The length of the campaign is shortened
One state = one vote The length of the campaign is shortened. Votes in one states would not have more influence than votes in other states. Critics say that voters would have to vote three times: twice in the primary and once in the general.
National Primaries

24. In your teams, complete the questions below.
Drawing from Text!
In your teams, complete the questions below.
After completing the reading, answer the questions below.
1. In your campaign role, do you favor a primary or caucus? Why?
What are superdelegates?
3. What is the role of a superdelegate?
4. Do you think proposals for national or regional primaries address critics’ concerns about the caucuses and presidential primaries? Why?

25. Path to the Presidency Timeline
Candidates decide to run for office.
Caucuses are held (twelve states, with Iowa first!). Or
Primaries are held (with New Hampshire first!).
National party conventions are held.
General election is held.

26. Democrats are in August. Republicans are in September.
National Conventions
Democrats are in August.
Republicans are in September.
Delegates from each party’s convention nominate a president and vice president candidate to represent their party in the general election.

27. The winner of the nomination is already known by the time of the convention.
Today, conventions are scripted to present the party in the best light.

28. The National Party Convention Send-Off
Conventions are a significant rallying point for the parties and are the supreme power within the two parties. Conventions are important in developing the party’s policy positions (platform) and in promoting political representation.

29. More to come on this later!
General Election
Presidential Election Day: every four years on the Tuesday following the first Monday in November
winner-takes-all system: in which the presidential candidate who wins the most popular votes in a state receives the state’s electors
There are two exceptions: Maine and Nebraska.
Electoral votes = # of H of R members + # of Senators
More to come on this later!

30. After the General Election in November
The presidential candidate receiving the absolute majority of the electoral votes (minimum 270) becomes president. 30 30 30

31. After the General Election in November
The Monday following the second Wednesday of December, electors meet at their state capitals to officially cast their ballots.
Their votes are representative of the popular vote.
Votes are sealed and sent to the president of the Senate.
On January 6, the president of the Senate reads the results from each state before Congress.

32. After the General Election in November
On January 20, the newly elected president and vice president are sworn into office (inaugurated) by the chief justice of the Supreme Court.
Who is this?

33. Article 11, Section 8. (Pictured left is JFK’s inauguration.)
“I, do solemnly swear, that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will, to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States.”
Article 11, Section 8. (Pictured left is JFK’s inauguration.)

34. Can you name the order of events leading to the presidency?
Caucus/Primary

35. Can you name the order of events leading to the presidency?
Caucus/Primary
General Election
State Convention
Electors Cast Vote
National Convention
Inauguration

36. Drawing from Text
Complete the top half of the worksheet from the following PowerPoint and discussion.
SUGGESTED TEXT MATERIALS: p of text (Edwards, George C. III, Martin P. Wattenberg, Robert L. Lineberry. Government in America: People, Politics, and Policy. 14th Edition. New York: Longman, 2009.)

37. These Definitions Might Help Your Election Cycle Work!
nonpartisan: not supporting or controlled by a group or cause
partisan: a strong supporter of a person or cause
caucus: a closed meeting of a group of persons belonging to the same political party usually to select candidates or decide on policy
primary: voters to go the polls to cast their ballots directly for a candidate
platforms: the positions that a political party adopts at the beginning of the election campaign (can change)
superdelegate: national party leaders who automatically get a delegate spot at Democrat National Convention to represent their state
“Motor Voter”: being able to go to a DOT and register to vote; did not increase voter turnout as much as they thought

38. Check for Understanding
1. What is a party’s official selection of a candidate to run for office called?
A. appointment
B. nomination
C. endorsement
D. imprimatur
E. conversion
2. Candidates attempt to manipulate money, the media, and momentum to achieve the nomination is through
A. charisma.
B. propaganda.
C. primaries.
D. party support.
E. campaign strategy.

39. Check for Understanding
3. Which statement is TRUE?
Virtually all of the major candidates in the 2008 presidential race were “open secrets” that they were running for office by the winter of 2007.
B. Modern campaigns are more physically and emotionally demanding than ever.
C. Campaigns in the US are more than twice as long as they are in most other industrialized countries.
D. All of the above statements are true.

40. Check for Understanding
4. In Buckley v. Valeo (1976), the Supreme Court
limited the activities of political action committees.
B. struck down part of the Federal Election Campaign Act that restricted the amount individuals could contribute to their own campaigns.
C. declared the Federal Election Campaign Act unconstitutional.
D. stated that the Federal Election Commission had no power to enforce compliance with their requirements.
E. ruled that the wildly unequal campaign expenditures of candidates for government office were in violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and ordered Congress and the states to develop mechanisms to ensure equal funding for all major candidates.

41. Check for Understanding
The Federal Election Campaign Act
ended public financing for presidential campaigns.
B. removed spending limits from presidential campaigns.
C. required all candidates for federal office to disclose all contributions made to their campaigns.
D. required broadcaster to provide free airtime to each major candidate for federal office.
E. provided public financing for the Senate and the House.

42. Check for Understanding
6. Soft money is
money donated to parties rather than the candidates, thus not subject to contribution or spending limits.
B. money donated by a person to their own campaign.
C. small donations that, while important to a campaign, are not as important as larger contributions.
D. money loaned to a campaign, but expected to be paid back.
E. cash contributions that are not traceable and are in some situations illegal.