POLITICAL BEHAVIOR: GOVERNMENT BY THE PEOPLEUnit 2

In what ways should people participate in public affairs?

POLITICAL PARTIESChapter 5 Section 1

What are political parties, and how do they function in

our two-party system?

What Is a Party?

• Political Party• Group of persons who

seek to control government through the winning of elections and the holding of public office.

Three Elements of a Political Party

1. The Party Organization• Includes leaders of the party, activists, and “hangers-on” – all

those who give their time, money, and skills to the party.• These people are the representative who run the party at the

national, State, and local levels

2. The Party Organization• Includes the party’s candidates and officeholders• Run or hold offices in the executive, legislative, and judicial

branches at the federal, State, and local levels of government

3. The party in the Electorate• The people who call themselves Republicans or Democrats;

support the party and its candidates

What Parties Do

1. Nominating Candidates• Parties select candidates and present them to the voters

• Example: Democrats nominated Barack Obama; Republicans nominated Mitt Romney

2. Informing and Activating Supporters• Parties try to inform and inspire voters

• They campaign for their candidate, take stands on current issues, and criticizes opposing party

• Example: campaign ads, commercials

3. The Bonding Agent Function• Ensures the good performance of its candidates and elected

officeholders• Makes sure that the men/women that they are nominating are both

qualified and have good character.

What Parties Do

4. Governing• Parties provide a basis for the conduct of government• Parties conduct business along party lines – partisanship

5. The Watchdog Function• Criticizes the policies and behaviors of the party in power

• The party “out of power” attempts to convince voters that they should “throw the rascals out”, and that the “outs” should become the “ins”

The Two-Party System• Two major parties in the United States

• Democrats and Republicans• Have a reasonable chance of winning public office

Political Spectrum

Where Do the Parties Stand?

LEFT

RadicalFavors extreme change to create an altered or entirely new social system

(Left)

LiberalBelieves that government must take action to change economic, political, and ideological policies thought to be unfair.

ModerateHolds beliefs that fall between liberal and conservative views, usually including some of each

ConservativeSeeks to keep in place the economic, political, and social structures of society.

ReactionaryFavors extreme change to restore society to an earlier, more conservative state of affairs.

(Right)

Multiparty Systems

• Mostly featured in European democracies.

• Parties are each based on a particular interest:• Economic class, religious

belief, sectional attachment, political ideology

One-party Systems

• Typical of dictatorships

• Only one political party is allowed to exist.

• The one-party system really amounts to a “no-party” system.

TWO-PARTY SYSTEM IN AMERICAN HISTORYChapter 5 Section 2

How has the two-party affected the history of

American government?

Political Parties From 1800s to Today

Political Parties From 1800s to Today

THE MINOR PARTIESChapter 5 Section 3

Minor Parties in the United States

• Ideological Parties• Based on a particular set

of beliefs – a comprehensive view of social, economic, and political matters. (Communist Party)

• Single – Issue Parties• Focus on a single public

question• Name usually indicates

primary concern (Free-Soil Party/Marijuana Party)

• Economic Protest Party• Rooted in periods of

economic discontent• Proclaim their disgust with

the major parties and demand better times. (The Greenback Party)

• Splinter Parties• Parties that have split away

from the major parties (Bull Moose Party)

Why Minor Parties Are Important• Most Americans do not support minor parties, but still

have a considerable impact on American politics.• They often play a “spoiler role” in an election.• A minor party can pull enough support away from one of the major

parties to affect the outcome of the election.

• Example:• Ralph Nader and the Green Party took votes away from the

Democratic Party in 2000 (Al Gore); therefore the Republicans, George W. Bush won the Presidency

• Also, minor parties can introduce new ideas that the two major parties have not discussed in their platform.

THE RIGHT TO VOTEChapter 6 Section 1

How have voting rights changed over the course of

American History?

Suffrage

• Suffrage• The right to vote

The Power to Set Voting Qualifications

• Suffrage qualification belong to the States

• The Constitution does, however, place five restrictions on the States to exercise that power:

1. States are not allowed to deny voting rights based on religion

2. States cannot deny on account of race, color, or previous servitude

3. No person is denied suffrage because of sex

4. No state can required any tax to vote

5. Cannot deprive anyone 18 or older

VOTER QUALIFICATIONSChapter 6 Section 2

What are the requirements for voting, and how have they

changed over time?

Universal Requirements

• Citizenship• Must be a citizen of the

United States of America

• Residence• Must legally reside in a

State.

• Age• 26th Amendment

declares that anyone 18 or older can vote

VOTER BEHAVIORChapter 6 Section 4

What factors influence voter behavior?

Why People Do Not Vote• “Cannot-Voters”

• Resident aliens, people ill or physically disabled, traveling unexpectedly, people are in jail or prison

• Actual Nonvoters• People that choose not to participate in voting

• Convinced that it makes little difference which candidate wins a particular election

• Distrust in American politics

Sociological Factors that Influence Voting

• Income and Occupation• Voters in lower income

brackets are likely to be Democrats; Higher incomes tend to be Republicans

• Education• College graduates tend

to vote Republican; High School graduates tend to vote Democrat

• Gender/Age• Women = Democrats• Men = Republican• Younger voters =

Democrat• Older voters = Republican

• Religion/Ethnicity• Protestants lean towards

GOP• Catholics/Jews/African

Americans are more likely Democrats

Sociological Factors Influencing Voting

• Geography• Southern states are more

likely Republican• Northern states, the East, and

the Pacific Coast tend to lean Democrat

• Rural areas, suburban areas, and smaller cities are more likely Republicans

• Large cities are more likely Democrats.

• Family and other groups• Members of a family

vote in strikingly familiar ways

THE ELECTORAL PROCESSChapter 7

In what way should people participate in

public affairs?

THE NOMINATING PROCESSChapter 7 Section 1

The Nominating Process

• Nomination – the naming of those who will seek office – is a critically important step in the election process.

• Nomination are made in five different ways: self-announcement, caucus, convention, direct primary, petition

1. Self-Announcement• Oldest for of nominating

process

2. The Caucus• A group of like-minded people

who meet to select candidates

3. The Convention• Select delegates to represent

them at a higher-level

4. The Direct Primary• An intraparty election

5. Petition• List of supporters that support

a candidate

CLOSED PRIMARY

• A party’s nominating election in which only declared party members can vote

• 25 states have a closed primary

OPEN PRIMARY

• Is a party’s nominating election in which any qualified voter can cast a ballot

• 17 states have an open primary

ELECTIONSChapter 7 Section 2

How are elections conducted in the United States?

What Happens to a Ballot?

Early Voting

• Absentee voting• A process by which

people can vote without going to their polling place on election day

• Used by• Ill or disabled• Those expected to travel

on election day• Military

Precincts and Polling Places

Precinct

• A precinct is a voting district; usually an area with no more than 500 to 1,000 qualified voters

Polling Place

• A polling place is the place where the voters who live in a precinct actually vote

Elections/ Money and Elections

Elections

• National Elections take place in the United States on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November in even numbered year.

Money and Elections

• Why do people give money?• Support a candidate• Support a party• Want something in return

MASS MEDIA AND PUBLIC OPINIONChapter 8

In what ways should people participate in public affairs?

THE FORMATION OF PUBLIC OPINION

What is public opinion, and what factors help to shape it?

Factors That Help Shape Public Opinion

Public Opinion

Family

Job

Race

Mass

MediaPeer

Group

Opinion

Leaders

Historic

Events

School

MEASURING PUBLIC OPINIONChapter 8 Section 2

How is public opinion measured?

Measuring Public Opinion

Elections Voting results can sometimes reflect public opinion

Interest GroupsKey way public opinion made know, but difficult to know number of people and strength of views.

MediaMirror and mold public opinion, but often reflect views of vocal minority

Personal Contacts Officials gauge views through interactions

Public Opinion PollsCollect information by asking people questions – best measure of opinion

Straw VoteAsks large number of people same question – unreliable because not based on scientific techniques

Scientific PollingDefine the survey universe, construct a sample, prepare valid questions, select and control how poll will be taken, analyze and report findings.

THE MASS MEDIAChapter 8 Section 3

How has the development of different media helped inform

the public about politics?

The Role of Mass Media

• A medium is a means of communication

• Five major elements of the mass media are significant in politics today• Television• Internet• Newspapers• Radio• magazines

The Mass Media’s Impact on Public Opinion

Benefits Limits

• Help shape the public agenda• Influence electoral politics• In-depth media coverage is

available to those who look for it, particularly on the internet

• Changing nature of the media allows for more people to actively participate in discussions

• Publication of poll results allows media to show how public opinion is measured

• Only a small number of people follow media very closely

• People tend to be selective in choosing political coverage

• Much media content is shallow and unrelated to political affairs

• Media, such as radio and television, tend to carry only short reports on general news and politics

• Newspapers and television depend on advertising revenue, which can sometimes dictate coverage

INTEREST GROUPSChapter 9

To what extent do interest groups advance or harm

democracy?

THE NATURE OF INTEREST GROUPSChapter 9 Section 1

What roles do interest groups play in our political system?

Interest Groups

• An interest group is a collection of people who share certain views on public matters and work to shape public policy to their benefit.

TYPES OF INTEREST GROUPSChapter 9 Section 2

What are the different types of interest groups at work in

American society?

Economic Interest Groups

• Business Groups• The Chamber of

Commerce

• Labor Groups• Labor union is an

organization of workers who share the same type of job or who work in the same industry

• The Auto Industry

• Agricultural Groups• The American farm

Bureau Association• Professional Associations

• American Medical Association

• American Bar Association

Additional Interest Groups• Issue-Orientated Groups

• The Americans Civil Liberties Union• The National Rifle Association

• Organizations for Specific Groups• The American Legion• The Veterans of Foreign Affairs

• Religious Organizations• The National Catholic Welfare Council• The American Jewish Congress

INTEREST GROUPS AT WORKChapter 9 Section 3

In what ways do interest groups attempt to influence government

and public opinion?

The Direct Approach

Lobbying

• The process by which organized interests attempt to affect the decisions and actions of public officials

Lobbyists

• The people who try to persuade public officials to do those things that interest groups want them to do

How Lobbying WorksLobbying occurs:• Wherever public policy is made – at the national, State, and local

levels of government all across the country.

Lobbyists are:• The representatives of a wide variety of interest groups

Lobbying involves:• Writing speeches, providing information to office holders, making

campaign contributions, drafting legislation, filing court briefs, and much more

Lobbyist use:• A variety of techniques to shape opinions including grass-roots

pressures, propaganda, and election-related materail

Propaganda Techniques• Name Calling

• Attacking someone using labels• Card Stacking

• Presenting one side of the issue• Symbols

• Using pictures to elicit a reaction• Testimonials

• Endorsements or supporting statements from well known personalities• Bandwagon

• Urging people to follow the crowd• Plain-folks approach

• Attempting to be one of the common people