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- Elections, especially in democracy, control political
behavior/decisions
- The system can be manipulated
- The gov't doesn't represent everybody; it represents voters
- Young people don't vote, so they aren't pandered to
- Belief that the issues being discussed are distant
- So you need to participate
- Because your future is being decided now
How Dr. Rich socializes his kids to their civic duty
- Mocked up ballot box, voter ID, "I voted" stickers
- Brings his kids to the polls, or involves them with mail-in ballots
- Election participation is a civic duty
- Has a profound impact
- Ex: suffrage rights
"All men are created equal" was in no way correct. Liberalist idealism
- In some states, only 10% voted.
- Property qualifications, "economic stake=political stake"
Suffrage is now, in the letter of the law, for every adult citizen who
hasn't "violated their civic responsibility" (like prisoners).
How did it develop over time?
- African Americans
- 1865-70 "Civil War Amendments"
- (Only) during Reconstruction--2 black people elected to Senate and
14 to House
- After Reconstruction ends with Union soldiers leaving, they
get redisenfranchised.
- After 1901, next to serve was 1972
- Southerners did much of the active prohibition of voting
- But federal gov't and many Northerners stood by
- Literacy tests and "Character tests" (very low pass rate)
- Employer permission to vote
- Restrictions on voter registration
- 1965 Voting Rights Act
- An active law; funding withheld from states
- Turnout was low in first few years, but they eventually
returned.
- Women
- Could, sometimes, inherit property from husbands or male
relatives.
- When only property determined voting rights, women could vote.
- But by 1910, only 4 states had given women the right to vote.
- Powerful interests opposed suffrage
- Southern whites didn't
- Manufacturers didn't
- because women would vote against child labor (very cheap)
- Catholic Church
- "Vote is contrary to the proper role of women"
- British women's suffrage movement
- Gave a playbook/methods for influencing change
- Cannot be a private act; must be public like marches,
protests
- Also have to make those in power (men) care about the issue
- Women boycott domestic work
- Well-timed, uses WWI. 19th Amendment 1920
- The black vote is very important for Democrats.
- Women are a really big "swing" constituency, but is less monolithic
and more regional.
Who runs for office?
- Two types
1) Self-starters = independent | not supported by party est.
- to gain publicity (for a non-political career)
- ex: possibly Trump, Mary Kerry for gov of CA
- specific policy issues
- political cause (not single-issue but a focus like Green Party)
- usually not a national election; state or regional
2) Recruited (by the party) Candidates
- chosen based on "particular qualities" (electability)
- ex: funding
- either from the people---small-dollar donations for a
compelling story
- large-dollar donations for policy quality (often from
corporate/wealthy interests)
- past success like Trump being a great shuckster (built brand)
What is the modern campaign like?
- Used to be super personal, even 40--50 years ago.
- Candidates would go around, shake hands, etc
- "Cyclical dependence on contributions"
- Campaign costs have increased severely
- Every dollar counts because high cost of failure
- Tens of millions for House races, billions for pres.
- The Rise of "Political Consultants"
- Devise a campaign image OR a strategy
- Image = what the voter sees, messaging
- Also check viability for a candidate
- Polling based on "how does this sound"
- Case studies of "can this candidate win the election"
- Strategy
- How to win
- "Your role is to get fired"
- Often expensive: $300--700/hr
Running for President
Stage 1 - Primaries
- Closed primary = only members registered to the political party
can participate in the vote
- Open primary = voters can choose party primary to vote in but can
only choose one
- Vast majority of primaries are this kind
- Georgia's primary
- Has runoff for non-majority primary, requiring you to have
originally voted in that primary
- Blanket primary
- Can vote in either or BOTH primaries
- No state uses a pure form of blanket primary
- Ruled unconstitutional in 2000 for California
- Parties were forced to put candidates on ballot that they
didn't endorse
- Alternative: Caucus method
- Completely different from a primary
- Iowa caucus
- Iowans care more about their vote
- Candidates are very personal, and since Iowa's pretty small;
candidates will actually visit every county
- Each town organizes a group of people together in one physical
location, like a high school gym.
- Grouped by which candidate you will vote for.
- Then people campaign to each other to move people around until
candidates pass a certain threshold number of suporters.
- A proportional representation is sent to the state caucus
- Long, drawn-out, time-consuming discussions
- Conventions: after either system, this is like a "coronation party"
for the nominee.
The Electoral College
Stage 2
Article II, Sec 1; Amendments 12 and 23
- Four noble and not-so-noble reasons
- So that we know who actually wins, like pluralities can't be
disputed
- Ensure that everyone is actually represented
- Avoid "tyranny of the majority"
- States and federalism is important to the US
- Against "one person, one vote"
- Popular vote may have prevented the South from actually joining
the nation
- North had a greater population, and slaves didn't vote, but
South wanted sufficient power to join
- For first 36yrs, pres. was from Virginia
- Makes turnout really important
Technicalities
- Ballots are an important consideration for electoral outcomes (like
modern argument over absentee ballots)
- All ballots are "Australian [secret] ballot"
- Office-block ballot: grouped by electoral office
- Multiple parties could claim a candidate for a party
- Can be a bit trickier, more complicated
- Greater emphasis on candidates than people (party affiliation
still there)
- WAY more common
- Party column ballot: grouped by party
- Voting by mail
- Increases participation
- Changes the real end date of the election
- In case you can't get home or are out-of-district on voting day(s)
- Not built to handle pandemics
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