Do Now:GRAB TODAY’S AGENDA (5:6) AND COMPLETE THE ACTIVITY UNDER THE DO NOW.

Voting

Who Can Vote

Decisions Voters Make

When, Where, and How

Why Voting Matters

Political Behavior

Political Participation

Voting

Non-voting Participation

Political Participation

Define

Political participation is action that influences the distribution of social goods and values.

It is influencing government policy.

Voting

The Vote

People can vote for representatives, who make policies.

For many people, voting is the primary means of taking part in politics.

Far more people participate in politics by voting than by any other means.

Every citizen gets one vote that counts equally.

Over 90% of Americans agree with the principle that citizens have a duty to vote. Still, many people do not vote regularly.

Voting

Voting Requirements

Citizen of the United States

Resident of voting district for a minimum of 30 days

18 years of age (by the day of the general election)

Registered no less than 22 before election (Virginia)

States have different registration requirements.

Motor Voter Act of 1992 made the process of registering to vote easier by making it possible to register to vote at the DMV.

Cannot have been convicted of a felony (unless your rights have been restored by the governor or other authority)

Cannot have been judged to be mentally incompetent by a circuit court (unless our rights have been restored by the circuit court)

Voter ID

Voting

Who Votes and Doesn’t Vote

Age

Young people are much less likely to vote than older ones.

From 1972 to 2012, citizens 18-29 turned out at a rate 15-20 points lower than citizens 30 years and older.

Older Americans tend to be more conservative than younger Americans. It is conservative politics that lead the nation.

Voting

Who Votes and Doesn’t Vote (continued)

Gender

Women’s voter turnout has surpassed men’s in every presidential election since 1980.

The gender-gap appeared for the first time in the 1980 election and helped Bill Clinton to his second term in office in 1996.

In the 2012 election, 7.8% more women than men voted.

Interestingly though, older women are actually less likely to vote than older men. In 2008, 72.2% of men 75 years and older voted, compared to only 64.9% of women that age.

Voting

Who Votes and Who Doesn’t Vote (continued)

Race/Ethnicity

Voter turnout also varies by race and ethnicity.

In 2012, turnout rates among eligible white and black voters was 64.1% and 66.2% respectively, while it was only 48% and 47.3% among Latino and Asian American voters respectively.

The 2012 election was the first presidential election in which black turnout exceeded white turnout.

Voting

Who Votes and Who Doesn’t Vote (continued)

Socio-economic status

Wealthy Americans vote at much higher rates than those of lower socio-economic status.

During the 2008 presidential election, only 41% of eligible voters making less than $15,000 a year voted, compared to 78% of those making $150,000 a year or more.

Studies have shown that this difference in turnout affects public policy: politicians are more likely to respond to the desires of their wealthy constituents than of their poorer constituents, in part because more their wealthy constituents vote.

Traditional supporters of the Democratic Party are the less powerful and less well-off economically and therefore don’t vote in the same number as Republicans…

Republicans tend to gain support from wealthier people and the business community, who usually turnout to vote.

Voting

Who Votes and Who Doesn’t Vote (continued)

Education

The higher the education, the increase in likelihood to vote.

Goes with socio-economic status.

Voter Turnout

Voting

Voter Turnout

There are social, cultural, and economic factors that can keep people from voting.

Some barriers are informal. The United States holds a large number of elections, and each is governed by specific rules and schedules. With so many elections, people can become overwhelmed, confused, or just plain tired of voting.

Other barriers are structural. Voter registration laws were implemented in the 1860s by states and big cities to ensure that only citizens who met legal requirements could vote. (“Bleeding Kansas”) Residency requirements limited access to registration offices. Closing voting rosters weeks or months in advance of elections effectively disenfranchised voters. Over time, residency requirements were relaxed. Beginning in the 1980s, some states including Maine, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, made it possible for people to register on Election Day. Turnout in states that have Election Day registration averages ten points higher than in the rest of the country.

People who are eligible to vote may choose not to vote because they lack a sense of political efficacy. As far as they are concerned, their vote has no influence.

Big business, big money, and special interests control politics and the government.

Voting

Voter Turnout (continued)

Those with the least amount of political power – the political know-how to organize and the money to underwrite lobbying efforts and campaign donations – are the least likely to vote and to participate in the political process. They are also the least likely to be heard in national policy debates.

Election type matters.

Low turnout is most pronounced in primary elections and off-year elections for state and local offices.

For example, a 2013 study of340 mayoral elections in 144 U.S. cities from 1996-2012 found that voter turnout in those cities averaged at 25.8%.

In many cities, mayors have been elected with single-digit turnout. For example, turnout in Dallas’ 1999 mayoral election was a mere 5%.

Voting laws. Voter registration laws, voter ID laws, early voting, and polling place accessibility can also effect voter turnout, though not always.

Non-Voting Participation

Campaigning

Running for office Being a public official requires a great deal of dedication, time, energy, and money.

About 3% of the adult population holds an elected or appointed public office.

Participating in an election campaign

Donate money to a candidate or a cause

Contacting Public Officials

Expressing opinions about leaders, issues, and policies has become one of the most prominent forms of political participation.

The number of people contacting public officials at all levels of government has risen markedly over the past three decades.

17% of Americans contacted a public official in 1976. By 2008, 44% of the public had contacted their member of Congress about an issue or concern.

Email has made contacting public officials cheaper and easier than the traditional method of mailing a letter.

Non-Voting Participation

Protest

Protests can take many forms such as civil disobedience. Where they deliberately break a law that they consider to be unjust.

This tactic was used effectively during the 1960 Civil Rights Movement. Ex. When black Americans sat in whites-only sections of public busses.

Other forms of protest behavior include marking public spaces with graffiti, demonstrating, and boycotting.

Extreme forms of protest behavior include acts that cause harm, such as when environmental activists place spikes in trees that can seriously injure loggers, or terrorists acts like bombing a building or rioting.

Extreme discontent with a particular condition can lead to rioting. Riots are frequently spontaneous and are sparked by an incident that brings to a head deep-seated frustrations and emotions. Members of social movements may resort to rioting when they perceive that there are no conventional alternatives for getting their message across. Riots can result in destruction of property, looting, physical harm, and even death. (LA and Ferguson)

Non-Voting Participation

Being a Part of Civil Society

About half the population takes part in national and community political affairs by joining an interest group, issue-based organization, civic organization, or political party.

These are organizations with the goal of promoting civic action on behalf of particular causes, or single-issue groups. (More of this tomorrow!)

Even activities that on the surface do not seem to have much to do with politics can be a form of political participation.

Coaching a little league team

Volunteering at a nursing home

Working at a homeless shelter

Civil society depends on social networks, based on trust and goodwill, that form between friends and associates and allow them to work together to achieve common goals.

Community activism is thriving among young people who realize the importance of service that directly assists others. Almost 70% of high school students and young adults aged 18 to 30 report that they have been involved in community activities.

Conclusion

There are many different ways that Americans can participate in politics, including voting, joining political parties, volunteering, contacting public officials, contributing money, working in campaigns, holding public office, protesting, and rioting.

Voting is the most prevalent form of political participation, although many eligible voters do not turn out in elections.

There are many other opportunities for people to participate in politics. However, they are less popular.