1. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman

2. Chapter 10: Elections and Voting Behavior How American Elections Work A Tale of Three Elections Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice How Americans Vote: Explaining Citizens’ Decisions The Last Battle: The Electoral College Understanding Elections and Voting Behavior Summary

3. How American Elections Work LO 10.1: Distinguish the types of elections in the United States. Functions of Elections Institutionalize political activity – Make it possible for most political participation to be channeled through the electoral process. Regular access to political power – Leaders can be replaced. Legitimacy – Fair and free way of selecting political leaders. To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman

4. How American Elections Work Three Kinds of Elections Primary elections – Voters select party nominees. General elections – Between the nominees of the parties. Elections on specific policy questions – Voters make (initiative petition) or ratify (referendum) legislation. LO 10.1 To Learning Objectives

5. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.1

6. A Tale of Three Elections LO 10.2: Trace the evolution of the American electoral process from 1800 to the present. 1800: The First Electoral Transition of Power 1896: A Bitter Fight Over Economic Interests 2008: An Election About Change To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman

7. A Tale of Three Elections 1800: The First Electoral Transition of Power No primaries, conventions, or speeches. Campaigns focused not on voters but on state legislatures who chose electors. After many votes in the House, the presidency was transferred to Jefferson peacefully. LO 10.2 To Learning Objectives

8. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman A Tale of Three Elections 1896: A Bitter Fight Over Economic Interests Democrats’ main issue was unlimited coinage of silver. Bryan won the Democratic Party nomination with speeches about the virtues of silver. McKinley won the election and the Republicans regained majority status. To Learning Objectives LO 10.2

9. To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.2

10. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman A Tale of Three Elections 2008: An Election About Change Obama’s main issue was changing the health care system to extend coverage to everyone. McCain’s main issue was making changes to improve the economy and the financial institutions. Obama won and became the 1 st African- American president. To Learning Objectives LO 10.2

11. To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.2

12. Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice LO 10.3: Identify the factors that influence whether people vote or not. Deciding Whether to Vote Registering to Vote Who Votes? To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman

13. Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice Suffrage The legal right to vote, in the United States gradually extended to virtually all citizens over the age of 18. LO 10.3 To Learning Objectives

14. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice Deciding Whether to Vote Anthony Downs – People who see policy differences between the parties are more likely to vote. Political Efficacy – Belief that one’s vote does matter and can actually make a difference. Civic Duty – Belief that a citizen should vote to support democratic government. To Learning Objectives LO 10.3

15. To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.3

16. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice Registering to Vote Voter Registration – A system adopted by the states that requires voters to register prior to voting. Motor Voter Act – A 1993 act that requires states to permit people to register to vote when they apply for their driver’s license. To Learning Objectives LO 10.3

17. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice Who Votes? Education – People with a higher than average education vote more than people with less education. Age – Older people vote more than younger people. Race – Racial minorities are usually underrepresented among voters relative to their share of the citizenry. To Learning Objectives LO 10.3

18. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice Who Votes? Gender – Women participate in elections more than men do. Marital status – Married people vote more than unmarried people. Government employment – Workers for the government vote more than people who have jobs in the in private sector. To Learning Objectives LO 10.3

19. To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.3

20. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice Who Votes? Possessing several of these traits (being elderly, well educated, and married) adds significantly to one’s likelihood of voting. Conversely, being young, poorly educated, and single is likely to add up to a very low probability of voting. To Learning Objectives LO 10.3

21. How Americans Vote: Explaining Citizens’ Decisions LO 10.4: Assess the impact of party identification, candidate evaluations, and policy opinions on voting behavior. Party Identification Candidate Evaluations: How Americans See the Candidates Policy Voting To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman

22. How Americans Vote: Explaining Citizens’ Decisions Mandate Theory of Elections The idea that the winning candidate has a mandate from the people to carry out his or her platforms and politics. Politicians like the theory better than political scientists do. LO 10.4 To Learning Objectives

23. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman How Americans Vote: Explaining Citizens’ Decisions Party Identification People still generally vote for a party that they agree with. Parties’ hold on voters declined in the 1960s and 1970s with rise of candidate- centered politics. Many floating voters make an individual voting decision and are up for grabs each election. To Learning Objectives LO 10.4

24. To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.4

25. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman How Americans Vote: Explaining Citizens’ Decisions Candidate Evaluations: How Americans See the Candidates 3 most important dimensions of candidate image are integrity, reliability, and competence. Image plays a role in voting when a candidate is perceived to be incompetent or dishonest. To Learning Objectives LO 10.4

26. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman How Americans Vote: Explaining Citizens’ Decisions Policy Voting Electoral choices that are made on the basis of the voters’ policy preferences and where the candidates stand on policy issues. To Learning Objectives LO 10.4

27. The Last Battle: The Electoral College LO 10.5: Evaluate the fairness of the Electoral College system for choosing the president. Electoral College A unique American institution, created by the Constitution, providing for the selection of the president by electors. Less populated states are overrepresented. Winner-take-all concentrates campaigns on close states. To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman

28. The Last Battle: The Electoral College How Electoral College Works Electoral votes for each state equals its members in Congress. 48 states use winner-take-all system (not Maine and Nebraska). State electors vote in December following the November election. January – Congress counts votes. House of Representatives picks president if no majority vote. LO 10.5 To Learning Objectives

29. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.5

30. To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.5

31. To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.5

32. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman The Last Battle: The Electoral College Important Electoral College The less populated states are overrepresented because states get 2 electors for the senators regardless of population. Winner-take-all means candidates will focus on winning the states where the polls show that there appears to be a close contest. To Learning Objectives LO 10.5

33. Understanding Elections and Voting Behavior LO 10.6: Assess the extent to which elections make government officials pay attention to what voters want. Democracy and Elections Elections and the Scope of Government To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman

34. Understanding Elections and Voting Behavior Democracy and Elections The greater the policy differences between candidates, the more likely voters will be able to steer government policy by their choices. Retrospective voting – Voters cast a vote based on what a candidate has done for them lately. LO 10.6 To Learning Objectives

35. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Understanding Elections and Voting Behavior Elections and the Scope of Government Elections generally support government policies and power. Voters feel they are sending a message to government to accomplish something. So the government expands to fill the needs of the voters. To Learning Objectives LO 10.6

36. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.1 Summary How American Elections Work Primary elections are held to select the political parties’ nominees for elective offices. General elections are contested between the nominees to determine who actually wins these offices. Referendums are held to let the voters decide specific policy questions at the ballot box. To Learning Objectives

37. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman An initiative petition can be considered what kind of lawmaking? A.elitist lawmaking B.top-down lawmaking C.indirect lawmaking D.ground-up lawmaking LO 10.1 To Learning Objectives

38. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman An initiative petition can be considered what kind of lawmaking? A.elitist lawmaking B.top-down lawmaking C.indirect lawmaking D.ground-up lawmaking LO 10.1 To Learning Objectives

39. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.2 Summary A Tale of Three Elections Elections have changed dramatically since 1800 when Adams ran against Jefferson and neither candidate participated in the campaign. By 1896, it was acceptable for candidates to campaign in person, and William Jennings Bryan did so with a vengeance. To Learning Objectives

40. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.2 Summary A Tale of Three Elections (cont.) Almost all American citizens over age 18 have the right to vote. One constant throughout American electoral history is that the appeal of “it’s time for a change” has been powerful when citizens are dissatisfied with the government’s performance; this was the case in both 1800 and 2008. To Learning Objectives

41. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Based on the 3 elections described in the chapter, elections have become more over time. A.elitist B.democratic C.controlled by the Electoral College D.all of the above LO 10.2 To Learning Objectives

42. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Based on the 3 elections described in the chapter, elections have become more over time. A.elitist B.democratic C.controlled by the Electoral College D.all of the above LO 10.2 To Learning Objectives

43. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.3 Summary Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice In order to exercise their right to vote, citizens must go through the registration process. Registration reform was thought to be the answer to low turnout, but the Motor Voter Act of 1993 has yet to produce the benefit of greater voter participation. To Learning Objectives

44. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.3 Summary Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice (cont.) Turnout in 2008 was virtually identical to what it was in 1992, and in 2010 only about 40 percent of the eligible electorate voted. Among the factors that make people more likely to vote are being better educated, older, and married. To Learning Objectives

45. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Which of the following is NOT true about Americans’ voting behavior? A.A college graduate is more likely to vote than a high school graduate. B.A single person is more likely to vote than a married person. C.Women are more likely to vote than men. D.A 50-year-old is more likely to vote than a 22-year-old. LO 10.3 To Learning Objectives

46. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Which of the following is NOT true about Americans’ voting behavior? A.A college graduate is more likely to vote than a high school graduate. B.A single person is more likely to vote than a married person. C.Women are more likely to vote than men. D.A 50-year-old is more likely to vote than a 22-year-old. LO 10.3 To Learning Objectives

47. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.4 Summary How Americans Vote: Explaining Citizens’ Decisions Party affiliation is the best predictor of voting behavior. Candidate evaluations and policy opinions are two factors that can sway people to defect from their preferred party, and play an important role in decision-making among Independents. To Learning Objectives

48. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.4 Summary How Americans Vote: Explaining Citizens’ Decisions (cont.) Candidate evaluations involve important performance-relevant factors such as competence, integrity, and reliability. Policy voting – Voters see clear differences between candidates and determine whose stands on issues best represent their own opinions. To Learning Objectives

49. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Party identification the political world for many voters. A.simplifies B.confuses C.does not influence D.none of the above LO 10.4 To Learning Objectives

50. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Party identification the political world for many voters. A.simplifies B.confuses C.does not influence D.none of the above LO 10.4 To Learning Objectives

51. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.5 Summary The Last Battle: The Electoral College Electoral College gives voters in the less populated states greater weight in choosing the president. The winner of the national popular vote does not always prevail in the Electoral College, as was evident most recently in the 2000 contest between George W. Bush and Al Gore. To Learning Objectives

52. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.5 Summary The Last Battle: The Electoral College (cont.) All but 2 states allocate all their electors in a winner-take-all fashion and many states lean solidly toward 1 party or the other (CA, TX, and NY), so the candidates focus much of their energies on winning about 15 battleground states (PA, FL, and OH). To Learning Objectives

53. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman The Electoral College encourages candidates to campaign in, battleground states. A.small B.large C.southern D.northern LO 10.5 To Learning Objectives

54. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman The Electoral College encourages candidates to campaign in, battleground states. A.small B.large C.southern D.northern LO 10.5 To Learning Objectives

55. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.6 Summary Understanding Elections and Voting Behavior Under the right conditions, elections can influence public policy, and policy outcomes can influence elections. Most important condition enabling voters to steer government policy is that the policy differences between the candidates be clear. To Learning Objectives

56. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman LO 10.6 Summary Understanding Elections and Voting Behavior (cont.) Voters can also make their voices heard by simply voting to reward or punish incumbents based on their performance in office. Elected officials who produce desired results are reelected; those fail to do are thrown out of office. To Learning Objectives

57. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Retrospective voting is when voters make their decisions based on their answers to the question _______. A.“What have you done for the world lately?” B.“What have you done for the interest groups lately?” C.“What have you done for your political party lately?” D.“What have you done for me lately?” LO 10.6 To Learning Objectives

58. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Retrospective voting is when voters make their decisions based on their answers to the question _______. A.“What have you done for the world lately?” B.“What have you done for the interest groups lately?” C.“What have you done for your political party lately?” D.“What have you done for me lately?” LO 10.6 To Learning Objectives

59. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman Photo Credits 280: Robert King/Zuma Press 281T: AP Photo 281TC: Library of Congress 281TB: Joshua Loft/New York Times 281B: AP Photo 282: AP Photo 284: Library of Congress 287: Joshua Loft/The New York Times 288: Dennis Renault/Renault 290: Tim Sloan/Getty Images 296: The New Yorker Collection/Mike Twohy/www.cartoonbank.com 297: AP Photo 299: Getty Images