1. Public Opinion, Participation, and Voting
Chapter Eight
Public Opinion,
Participation,
and Voting

2. What is public opinion?
Individual preferences (for candidates, issues, or institutions) aka “Taking the pulse of the people”
Distribution – proportion of the pop. that holds one opinion as compared to those with opposing view or no opinion at all
Consensus – when a substantial percentage agree
Polarization – occurs when a large portion of opposing sides feels intensely about an issue

3. Responses Random sampling Open-ended questions Margin of error
How you ask the question
Just snapshots of opinions at a given point in time

4. Factors of Public Opinion
Intensity – strength of people’s beliefs
Latency – political opinions that exist but might not be expressed; they may not have crystallized or become publicized
Salience – extent to which issues are relevant to people

5. Political Socialization
When & how do we get our opinions?
Childhood
Nationalism (taught to love/respect our country)
Sources
Family / Peers
Schools
Mass Media
Religion
Racial/Ethnic attitudes

6. Family/Peers Most important Show political interest around age 10
Strong correlation between party of parents and party choice of children
Family correlation is stronger than friends (actual voting tends to be somewhere between the two)

7. Schools
Part of school is to prepare students to be active participants in government
Recent studies show that schools are not doing a good job of developing citizenship
College students tend to be more political conscious
Concern? - professors have too much political influence on their students (teach - ins?)

8. Mass Media
Exposure is selective, people choose what to watch, read, & listen to
Provides information and propaganda about our society - can help shape attitudes and opinions
Can highlight what the important issues are
(This is why they could be a target of interest groups)

9. Religion/Ethnic/Racial Backgrounds
Can shape opinion and gives us a generalization on how people view issues
Dangerous to stereotype because not all will fit into their assigned category
(not all African Americans will vote for Democrats, not all Protestants are Republicans)

10. Stability and Change
We are slow to change our minds about things that matter to us (if at all)
Opinions on basic morals & values remain stable – more specific questions (not value-based) can change substantially

11. Opinion and Public Policy
Public opinion can lead to policy change (ex: Vietnam)
Candidates use polls to determine where and how (or even whether to) campaign
Elected officials try to follow public opinion to ensure reelection

12. Awareness and interest
Politics - secondary priority for most (complicated and difficult to understand or keep track)
Attentive public – 25 % (tend to be better educated)
Nonvoters – 35% (political know-nothings)
Part-time citizens – 40%
People are generally unaware of who represents them and what they stand for
Lack of interest has allowed for great influence to be held by few people

13. Participation How can people influence government?
Voting
Joining interest groups
Writing letters/ s
Calls
Protests
Routine participation (patriotic duties/behaviors)
Pledge, national anthem
Jury duty
Political discussions/complaints
Visit D.C. or state capitol

14. Voting Political activity of most Americans
Historical qualifications for suffrage
Religion & Property (eliminated by state legislatures)
Race (eliminated by 15th)
Gender (eliminated by 19th)
Income (eliminated by 24th - banning poll tax)
Literacy (eliminated by Voting Rights Act of 1965)
Minimum age of 21 (eliminated by 26th)

15. Registration Required to prevent abuses & fraud
Creates a barrier to voting - impacts voting rates
Required in all states except North Dakota
6 states have same-day registration
30 days prior to an election in most others
Motor Voter Bill (1993) National Voter Registration Act
people can register to vote while getting a driver’s license
Various public places also issue forms
Requires states to allow registration by mail
Has increased registration but not turnout

16. Turnout characteristics
Highest - Presidential general elections
Higher in general than primary; higher in primary than special elections
Higher in presidential general elections than in midterm general elections and higher in presidential primary elections than midterm primary elections
Mid-terms select 1/3 of Senators and all Representatives
Higher when there are federal officials on ballots
State elections have higher turnout than local
1960 peak turnout – roughly 65%

17. Who votes? As education levels rise, so does voting
Whites vote more than African-Americans, who vote more than Hispanic-Americans
Women vote more than men
Higher incomes & job status vote more than lower
Older people vote more
People or 70+ have poor showing

18. Voting Choices Three main elements determine choice
Party Identification
Candidate
Issues

19. Party Offers a sense of affiliation
2/3 of “independents” tend to be partisan when voting
Remains more stable than attitudes about issues or ideology
Historically, party has been primary reason for how people vote

20. Candidates
Candidate-centered era (over the last few decades more people are voting for a person and not a party)
Candidate appeal – how voters feel about the background, personality, & leadership
Campaigns also focus on negative aspects of opponents characteristics

21. Issues Not as significant - candidates often obscure their positions
Few voters focus solely on issues
Economy - issue that is always important