Voting and Elections28 October, 2010

Voter Turnout Voter turnout is highest for presidential elections; in

“midterm elections” only a third of the electorate vote U.S. turnout in comparative perspective How (and why) does voter turnout change over time? The role of age and education Does low voter turnout matter?

Turnout in Comparative Perspective

Trends in Voter Turnout

VAP=Voting age population (includes everyone over 18, non citizens, felons, etc; VEP=Voting eligible populationSource: Michael McDonald (2010)

Trends in Voter Turnout

VAP=Voting age population (includes everyone over 18, non citizens, felons, etc; VEP=Voting eligible population

Voting is the most common form of political participation Many people also talk about politics and try to persuade others to

vote Very few participate in any other specific way.

Political Participation in Comparative Perspective

Source: Comparative Study of Electoral Systems (CSES), Module 2, 2004

Why is voter turnout so low? Voter attitudes Lack of convenience Difficulty of registration Electoral system

Options for Electing the President Congress chooses the president State legislatures choose the president President elected by popular vote Electoral College

How it works Each state was allocated a number of Electors equal to the

number of U.S. Senators (always 2) plus the number of U.S. Representatives (which changes)

The manner of choosing the electors was left to the individual state legislators. By 1836 all states (except for South Carolina) choose electors by popular vote (plurality rules).

The candidate with a majority of electoral votes is elected president

In the event that no candidate wins a majority, the U.S. House of Representatives would choose from the top five contenders. Each state could cast only one vote. An absolute majority is required

Unequal Representation

Source: Robert A. Dahl, How Democratic is the American Constitution?

The 2008 Presidential Election(270 needed to win)

The 2000 Presidential ElectionBush 271; Gore 266(270 needed to win)

The Florida Disaster The “problem” with competitive elections The Florida recount (link to Univ. of Chicago study) The punch card voting system Design of the palm beach ballot

The Butterfly Ballot

Evidence of problems in Palm Beach

The 2008 Congressional Elections The vast majority of congressional elections are not very

competitive (most incumbents are re-elected; 94% in 2008)

Results for House of Representatives Senate elections are more competitive but reelection rates

are still very high (ie. in 2008, 83% reelection rate) Results for Senate