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[ 11.3 ] Electing the President Presidential Primaries • Significance of Primary Timing- front-loading primaries Presidential Primaries Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney announces his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination. Romney won the nomination but lost the election to Barack Obama. Presidential Primaries The popularity of the primary method of nominating presidential candidates has gone up and down through the years. Analyze Graphs When did the popularity of primaries peak? Presidential Primaries The map shows the month in which presidential primaries were held in 2012. Analyze Maps How would spreading out State primaries affect a candidate's campaign? Evaluation of the Presidential Primary Republican presidential candidates participate in a debate during the 2012 election campaign. Debates and primaries can help narrow the field early in the delegate selection process. The National Convention Democratic and Republican national conventions have been held in cities across the country. Analyze Maps Why might certain cities be chosen for conventions more frequently than others? Who Is Nominated? President Barack Obama accepts the nomination as the Democratic presidential candidate in the 2012 election. Only five sitting presidents have failed to win the nomination to a second term. Who Is Nominated? The Presidential Campaign • Saturating the Country- how? • Targeting Key Voters- swing states • Election Day- waiting on the Electoral College The Presidential Campaign An 1864 campaign poster from the Civil War era depicts third-party candidates who later endorsed Lincoln. Even during the most challenging times, the U.S. has maintained its traditions. • Choosing Electors- chosen by popular vote The Electoral College Flaws in the Electoral College • The First Major Defect- winner take all? • The Second Major Defect- voting with the public • The Third Major Defect- Congress can choose Flaws in the Electoral College The 2000 presidential election, which pitted George W. Bush against Al Gore, was only the fourth time in U.S. history that the winner of the popular vote did not win the election. Flaws in the Electoral College Proposed Reforms and a Defense • District and Proportional Plans- two from state at large and the rest are elected from Congressional districts OR proportional votes • Direct Popular Election- abolish electoral college Proposed Reforms and a Defense Proposed Reforms and a Defense Quiz: Evaluation of the Presidential Primary In the caucus system, the political power is held by A. B. C. D. leaders of the political parties. elected state officials. voters. primary frontrunners. Quiz: The National Convention A typical national convention is best described as A. B. C. D. a chain of powerful debates staged for effect. a sequence of events whose outcomes are dependent on each other. a series of suspenseful, highly dramatic announcements. a checklist of formalities produced with high emotional appeal. Quiz: Flaws in the Electoral College Given the actual challenges faced by the electoral college system throughout history, which generalization about the electoral college is most true? A. Problems related to the system have become more frequent in the 21st century. B. The biggest fear of the system is that the voters' choices can be overridden. C. Worries about the House of Representatives determining the outcome of elections are unfounded. D. The electors have little power in reality. [ 11.4 ] Money and Elections The Price of an Election • How Much Gets Spent? • 2012 Presidential election $2.5 billion • House $1 million/seat • Senate up to $20 million/seat • What Does Campaign Money Pay For? The Price of an Election Where the Money Comes From •Individual Contributors •PACs •Fundraising •Government Money Where the Money Comes From Born in Texas in 1930, H. Ross Perot became one of America's wealthiest executives. He is best known for being one of the most successful third-party candidates in American history. Federal Finance Laws Arizona Republican Senator John McCain and Wisconsin Democratic Senator Russ Feingold coauthored the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002. FEC Requirements • The Presidential Election Campaign Fund- donate option on income taxes • Preconvention Campaigns- must raise at least $100,000 to qualify for money • National Conventions- automatically get a federal grant to pay for the convention • Presidential Election Campaigns- major parties automatically qualify for public funding during the general election • Minor Party Candidates- in order to qualify for funding the party must have won at least 5% of the popular vote or have at least 5% of the vote in the current election Political Action Committees (PAC’s)❖ Electioneering wing of interest groups- campaign for or against candidates, ballot initiatives, legislation. ❖ Replaced individual contributions, raise funds only from members. ❖ At least 50 members (voluntary) ❖ Give to at least 5 federal candidates ❖ Must report expenditures ❖ Give most $ to congressional candidates The Federal Election Commission (FEC) enforces: the timely disclosure of campaign finance information limits on campaign contributions limits on campaign expenditures provisions for public funding of presidential campaigns Campaign Finance Reform ❖ Buckley v. Valeo- Struck down provision of 1974 law that limited how much an individual candidate could spend of his own $ as violation of Free Speech. ❖ "Hard money" refers to tightly regulated contributions to candidates ❖ “Soft money" refers to unregulated, unlimited contributions to political parties for so-called "party-building" activities. Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act Banned soft money contributions to national parties from corporations and unions after the 2002 election Raised the limit on individual donations to $2,000 per candidate per election Corporations cannot use their own money for an advertisement referring to a candidate by name 30 days before a primary and 60 days before a general election 10 | 32 Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. 527 Organizations A new source of money under the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act Designed to permit the kind of soft money expenditures once made by political parties They can spend their money on politics so long as they do not coordinate with a candidate or lobby directly for that person 527: Swift Boat Veterans for Truth 10 | 33 Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. FEC Requirements FEC Requirements Wealthy individuals who make very large campaign contributions, such as W. Clement Stone (right), are often rewarded with access to the candidate or elected official. Independent-expenditure only committees a.k.a. Super PAC ❖ The super PACs were made possible by two court rulings: ❖ Citizens United v. FEC (2010)- The majority held that under the First Amendment corporate funding of independent political broadcasts in candidate elections cannot be limited. ❖ SpeechNow.org v. FEC (2010 US District Court). ❖ The groups can also mount the kind of direct attacks on candidates that were not allowed in the past. Loopholes in Finance Laws Fundraising happens even in the shadow of the Capitol. Analyze Political Cartoons How can fundraising be maximized while minimizing the potential for fraud by contributors? Loopholes in Finance Laws Interest groups spent large amounts of money in the 2012 election. Analyze ChartsApproximately by what factor did conservative groups outspend other groups in the 2012 election? Quiz: The Price of an Election Why might campaign spending pose a risk to the political process in a democracy? A. B. C. D. People of a particular race or ethnicity may have more political influence. People who are well-educated may have more political influence. People who know a candidate personally may have more political influence. People who have more money may have more political influence. Quiz: Where the Money Comes From Which of the following is an example of a political action committee (PAC)? A. B. C. D. Dairy Farmers of America Democratic Party Tea Party Committee to Elect Barack Obama Quiz: FEC Requirements What is the most likely reason why a candidate for president would refuse to accept money from the Presidential Election Campaign Fund established by the government? A. B. C. D. does not believe in spending taxpayer dollars prefers to remain independent of the government can raise more money from private sources does not believe in using advertising to influence the political process Quiz: Loopholes in Finance Laws Congress enacted the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act A. B. C. D. to reduce the amount of hard money received by candidates. to reduce the amount of soft money received by candidates. to reduce the amount of political advertising in presidential election years. to reduce the amount of money the government must spend to subsidize candidates.