Voting, Elections, & Campaign Process

Types of Elections

• Primary elections– Closed & open primaries

• General election

• Initiative

• Referendum

• Recall

Presidential Elections

• Primaries and Caucuses– Winner take all primary

– Proportional primary

– Caucus– Front loading

The Electoral College

• Winner take all - candidate that wins the majority of the popular vote in the state, wins ALL of that state’s electoral votes

• A candidate must have 270 out of 538 to win

• Number of electors based on the number of senators and number of representatives (in CT – 5 + 2 = 7)

• Only a few states split votes (ex. ME, NE)

The Electoral College

• Each state is free to choose its electors as it wishes.

• Each state determines how its electors are chosen by state law and the process varies from state to state.

• In states with primary elections, each presidential candidate usually designates a slate of electors who then appear on the November ballot.

• The voters are then actually voting for a slate of electors pledged to one candidate or another.

The Electoral College

• In caucus states, the electors may be chosen at the state caucus. Electors are actual human beings, with houses, children, jobs, and very occasionally, their own opinions.

• In most states, the slate of electors that gets the most votes wins and gets to travel to the state capital in December to vote for president and vice president.

• In the bitterly contested election in Florida in 2000, George Bush carried the state by 537 votes out of over six million cast, and got all 25 of Florida's electoral votes

Electoral Map 2012

Should the Electoral College be Reformed?

Congressional Elections

• Incumbency advantage– Staff support/constituent services– Visibility– “Scare Off Effect”

• Name recognition• Large war chest• “Franking”• Experience running a successful campaign

Congressional Elections

• Why Incumbents Loose:– Redistricting– Scandals– Presidential coattails– Midterm elections

Voting

• 63.4% of registered voters show up to vote

• 47.2% of voting age population shows up to vote

• Federal laws on voter eligibility have increased over the years. Federal standards today control nearly every facet of voter eligibility.

• 15th Amendment (1870)—interpreted to allow literacy tests, poll taxes, grandfather clauses, etc until 20th century.

Voting

• 19th Amendment (1920)—women given right to vote.

• Voting Rights Act of 1965: Suspended literacy tests, criminal penalties for interfering with voting rights, federal oversight, etc.

• Voting Rights Act of 1970: Gave 18yr-olds right to vote in federal elections; 26th Amendment lowered it for all elections.

Voter Choice Influenced by

• Party identification

• Ideology

• Income and education

• Race and Ethnicity

• Gender

• Religion

• Issues

Voter Turnout

Voter Turnout Influenced by

• Income and education

• Race and ethnicity

• Gender

• Age

• Civic engagement

• Interest in politics

Changes in Voting Behavior

Voter Turnout

Why Low Voter Turnout?

• Other commitments

• Difficulty with voter registration

• Difficulty with absentee voting

• Number of elections

• Voter attitudes

• Weakened influence of political parties

• Apathy

• Loss of voter efficacy

• Demographic changes

Voter Turnout

How to Improve Voter Turnout

• Make election day a holiday

• Enable early voting

• Permit mail and online voting

• Make registration easier

• Modernize the ballot

• Strengthen political parties

Motor Voter Law

• Motor voter law: purpose & concerns?– Voters could now register to vote when

they renewed the registration on their car

– Results: 1999-2000: 17.4 million voter registration applications were filed at motor vehicle offices; increased independent registrations.

– The problem: “those who register when the process is costless are less likely to vote” (Wilson).

Civic Participation other then Voting

• Litigation• Protest• Contacting (e.g., media, public officials)• Campaign work/ voter registration• Campaign contributions• Running for political office/ holding political office• Political discussion to persuade others toward

action• Membership in an overtly political organization