Elections and Voting

Election Day USA• Federal elections are

held on the first Tuesday in November of every even numbered year

• Every federal election we vote for our Representatives and 1/3 of the Senators

• Every 4 years we vote for President

3 Special elections• Initiatives– Ideas that come from the public and are voted on

during elections• Referendums– Ideas that come from lawmakers that are voted on

directly by the public• Recalls– A special election called to remove an elected

official from office

Elections

• Primary Elections– Purpose: to determine who will represent the

party in the General election• Ex: Hillary Clinton v. Barack Obama for the Democratic

nomination

• General Elections– Purpose: vote between the nominees of the

different party• Ex: Mitt Romney(R) v. Barack Obama (D)

Open and Closed primaries

• Closed primary:– Only registered party members can vote

• Open primary:– Any registered voter can vote, regardless of party

• Runoff:– In most states, a candidate needs a plurality– In some, candidate needs a majority

Presidential ElectionsLO 13.2: Outline the electoral procedures for presidential and general elections.

Primaries and Caucuses• Delegates to convention chosen

by election or caucus.• Elections may be winner-take-all

or proportional.• Caucuses are better for the party

organization.• Trend toward front-loading.

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Figure 13.1: When do states choose their nominee for president?

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The Electoral College• The framers created the electoral college because they were

afraid voters would be uninformed on national elections• How does it work?– Each state has a set number of electoral votes (# of Reps +

# of Senators)– Whichever candidate gets the most votes in a state gets

ALL of the electoral votes– You need 270 to win– If no one gets 270, the House of Representatives picks the

President

Electing a President: The Electoral College

• Representatives from each state who select president.

• Electors equivalent to senators plus representatives.

• Framers favored system to remove power from people.

• The 1876 and 2000 elections raised concerns about system.

LO 13.2

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Figure 13.2: How is voting power apportioned in the Electoral College?

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The Big Question…• Do we still need the electoral college?– Many argue that with modern elections and vote

counting, the person who earns a plurality of the votes should win

– Candidates don’t campaign in states they don’t think they can win

– What do you think?

Voters and Voting Behavior• Def: Electorate– The electorate is defined

as all eligible registered voters

• Def: Absentee Voting– If you will be out of your

voting area on election day, you can file an absentee ballot

Congressional ElectionsLO 13.3: Compare and contrast congressional and presidential elections, and explain the incumbency advantage.

The Incumbency Advantage• Support from a paid staff.• Incumbents are more visible.• “Scaring off” other challengers.– name recognition– large war chests– free constituency mailings– Previous campaign experience

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Why Incumbents Lose

• Redistricting can pit incumbents against one another.

• Scandals.• Presidential coattails.• Midterm elections.

LO 13.3

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Patterns in Vote ChoiceLO 13.4: Identify seven factors that influence voter choice.

• Party identification• Ideology• Income and education

• Race and ethnicity• Gender• Religion• Issues

Many factors impact voter choice.

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What influences how people vote?• In general:

– Education• Less = D More = R

– Gender• Female = D Male = R

– Race• White = R Af Am = D Lat = ??

– Income• Lower = D Higher = R

– Religion• Protestant = R Catholic, Jewish = D

– Geography• South = R Northeast = D West Coast = D Heartland/West = R

Midwest = ???

Voter TurnoutLO 13.5: Identify six factors that affect voter turnout.

• States regulate voter eligibility.• Factors that affect voter turnout: – Income and education– Race and ethnicity– Gender– Age – Civil engagement– Interest in politics

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Toward Reform: Problems with Voter TurnoutLO 13.6: Explain why voter turnout is low, and evaluate methods for improving voter turnout.

• Voter turnout in the United States is low. Why?– Other commitments: People are too busy.– Difficulty of registration– Number of elections– Voter attitudes: apathy, satisfaction, lack of a pressing

issue– Weakened influence of political parties

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Analyzing Visuals: Why people Don’t Vote

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Ways to Improve Voter Turnout

• Make Election Day a Holiday

• Enable Early Voting• Permit Mail and Online

Voting• Make Registration Easier• Modernize the Ballot• Strengthen Parties

LO 13.6

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