1. Chapter 10: Elections & Campaigns

2. Campaigns, Then & Now Campaign Tasks
Media Consultants create advertisements and buy airtime.
Direct Mail Firms design and produce mailings to promote the candidate or solicit money.

3. Campaigns, Then & Now Campaign Tasks
Polling Firms survey voters on their attitudes toward issues and candidates as well as run focus groups.
Political Technology Firms supply services such as web site design, online advertising, online fund-raising, and voter targeting.

4. Campaigns, Then & Now Technology
Experts do not know whether televised political ads influence election outcomes.
Micro-targeting is the study of consumer consumption and recreational habits to build a data base on potential supporters.

5. Campaigns, Then & Now Critical Process Getting nominated.
Getting elected.

6. Presidential versus Congressional Campaigns
Terminology
Incumbent is the person already holding an elective office.
Coattails is the tendency of candidates to win more votes in an election because of the presence at the top of the ticket of a better- known candidate, such as the president.

7. Presidential versus Congressional Campaigns
Running for President
PACs can be formed by a corporation, labor union, or other special interest group and can give up to $5K.
Incumbents must defend their records.

8. Presidential versus Congressional Campaigns
Getting Elected to Congress
Since 1962, over 90% of House incumbents who sought reelection won.

9. Presidential versus Congressional Campaigns
Getting Elected to Congress
Districting
Malapportionment is when a district is drawn so that the population is unequal when compared to other districts.

10. Presidential versus Congressional Campaigns
Getting Elected to Congress
Districting
Gerrymandering
This occurs when a district is drawn to make it easier for a party to win.
This was originally done to allow minorities a greater chance of representation.
Districts end up in bizarre shapes.

11. Presidential versus Congressional Campaigns
Getting Elected to Congress
Process
In 1911, Congress fixed the House’s size at 435 members.
Reapportionment is conducted every 10 years.
In 1964, the Supreme Court rule that districts can be drawn to make one person’s vote count as much as another.

12. Presidential versus Congressional Campaigns
Getting Elected to Congress
Winning the Primary
The sophomore surge occurs when newly elected members become very strong quickly.
Congress members use their office to run personal campaigns as opposed to party campaigns.

13. Presidential versus Congressional Campaigns
Getting Elected to Congress
Staying in Office
Delegate does what his constituents want.
Trustee uses his best judgment without the regard for his constituents.

14. Primary versus General Campaigns
Process
To get activist support, candidates move to ideological extremes.
To win the general election, candidates move to the ideological center.

15. Primary versus General Campaigns
Campaign Issues
Position Issue occur when rival candidates have opposing views.
Valence Issues occur when the public is united about an issue and the candidate adopts the policy in the hope that they will be linked with it.

16. Primary versus General Campaigns
Television
Spots are short television ads.
Visuals are news broadcasts of campaign activities.

17. Primary versus General Campaigns
How Things Work
General Election occurs when the public will determine which candidate will hold a given office.
Primary Election is an election to choose candidates for office.

18. Primary versus General Campaigns
How Things Work
Closed Primary is a primary election where voting is limited to registered party members.
Open Primary is when voters must choose which party they vote for.

19. Primary versus General Campaigns
How Things Work
Blanket Primary (aka “Free Love Primary”) lists all of the candidates for both parties.
Runoff Primary occurs when no candidate gets a majority of the votes.

20. Primary versus General Campaigns
Sources of Campaign Money
Presidential
Private donors.
Federal government.
Congressional Candidates get all of the funds from private sources.

21. Primary versus General Campaigns
Finance Rules
The Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) of 1971
Provisions
Limited donations.
Limited personal expenditures.
Created the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to oversee campaign financing.
Buckley v. Valeo (1976) struck down the limitations as a violation of Free Speech.

22. Primary versus General Campaigns
Finance Rules
Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act of 2002/McCain-Feingold Law
“Soft money” could only be contributed by PACs.
Individual contributions were limited to $2000 per candidate per election.
Independent expenditures were restricted and highly regulated.

23. Primary versus General Campaigns
Finance Rules
Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act of 2002/McCain-Feingold Law
McConnell v. Federal Election Commission
It upheld the restrictions with one exception.
PACs promoting “Issue Advocacy” did not have the contributions limited since it was protect by free speech.

24. Primary versus General Campaigns
Finance Rules
527 Organizations raise money to advance political causes.
In congressional races, money does make a decisive difference.

25. What Decides the Election?
Party
Democratic voters have more defections.
Republicans
They do much better among “independent” voters.
Republicans have a higher percentage of participation in voting when compared to the Democrats.
Independent Party of New York

26. What Decides the Election?
Voting Types
Prospective Voting occurs when you favor the ideas of a candidate or how he proposes to handle an issue.
Retrospective Issue when you base your voting behavior after a candidates past actions.
Proximity is the concept of the candidate’s beliefs mirroring the voter’s beliefs.

27. What Decides the Election?
The Campaign
They typically reawaken partisan loyalties.
Allow the constituents to see how the candidates handle pressure.
Expose the candidate’s core values.

28. What Decides the Election?
Winning Coalitions
Democratic Coalition
African-Americans are the most loyal voters.
Jewish
Hispanic

29. What Decides the Election?
Winning Coalitions
Republican Party
Business
Professionals