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Suffrage; the right to vote, is not mentioned anywhere
in the Constitution until the 15th Amendment.
The Fifteenth Amendment (Amendment XV) to the
United States Constitution prohibits each government
in the United States from denying a citizen the right to vote
based on that citizen's "race, color, or previous condition of
servitude."
Ratified on February 3, 1870
Since the 15th Amendment, who can vote is
the subject of other Amendments
19th Amendment - The right of citizens of the United States to
vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by
any State on account of sex. (1920)
24th Amendment - The right of citizens of the United States to vote in
any primary or other election for President or Vice President, for
electors for President or Vice President, or for Senator or
Representative in Congress, shall not be denied or abridged by the
United States or any State by reason of people pay poll tax or other
tax. (1964)
26th Amendment - The right of citizens of the United States, who are
eighteen years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged
by the United States or by any State on account of age. (1971)
The Twenty-third Amendment (Amendment XXIII) to the
United States Constitution permits citizens in the District of
Columbia to vote for Electors for President and Vice President.
The amendment was proposed by Congress on June 17, 1960,
and ratified by the states on March 29, 1961. The first
Presidential election in which it was in effect was the presidential
election of 1964.
Campaign
• An organized, planned action for the purpose of
getting a candidate elected. It may include
campaign manager(s), political consultants, fund
raisers, speech writers and speeches, press
secretary, policy experts, lawyers and
accountants, researchers, travel planner, events
coordinator, image building, etc. It is how the
candidate will become known to voters.
Platform
• A platform is the
candidate’s or
political party’s
declaration of
beliefs in areas such
as crime, drug
abuse, education.
Primary Election
• Is an election held
before the general
election in which
candidates from the
same party compete for
the party nomination.
Primary Election
In a primary election, Democrats run against Democrats and
Republicans run against Republicans. The Democrat winner
and the Republican winner face each other in the general
election.
There are two
types of
primaries;
open primary
and closed
primary.
In a closed primary
only registered
party members may
take part in the
election and vote
for their party’s
candidate.
In an open
primary any
registered voter
may vote for any
Candidate
running in the
election.
General Elections
• Regularly scheduled
statewide elections
at which voters make
the final selection for
public office-holders
Run-off Election
• A repeat election between
2 front runners in a prior
election when no
candidate has received a
majority of votes. Run-off
elections are usually held
in places where the law
requires a majority vote.
All states have different election laws.
How elections are run is a state right to decide.
Majority vs. plurality election
In a majority election one candidate must receive more than
50% of the vote usually in a two person race.
Candidate A: 50.1%
Candidate B: 49.9%
In a plurality election the candidate that receives the highest
percentage of votes wins the election
Candidate A: 37%
Candidate B: 32%
Candidate C: 19%
Candidate D: 12%
The only nationwide election in the country is
the Presidential election.
The election for president begins in January of the election
year. A party primary is held in nearly every state from
January till the summer months leading into the party
convention where the party candidate is chosen.
Some states may hold a caucus rather than a primary. A
caucus is a meeting of members of a political party to
coordinate members' actions, choose group policy, or
nominate candidates for office.
Once all primaries and caucuses are held, the
Candidate that has won the most delegates to the
convention for their party will become the party
nominee.
On the first Tuesday of November an election is held for
president between the Democrat candidate and the
Republican candidate. Other parties may run candidates as
well, these are 3rd parties.
In December the electors from each state meet in their state
capitols the cast their Electoral College vote for president
based on the popular vote of the people.
Electoral College
• The group of electors who are selected
by the voters in each state to officially
elect the president and vice president.
The number of electors in each state is
equal to the number of each state’s
representatives in both houses of
Congress.
Many people believe the Electoral College is an
undemocratic way to elect the president.
Do you think the Electoral College should be eliminated?
How the Electoral College works?
Each state has a number of electors equal to the number of its
U.S. senators plus the number of its U.S. representatives.
Currently, the Electoral College includes 538 electors,
535 for the total number of congressional members, and three
who represent Washington, D.C., as allowed by the 23rd
Amendment. On the Monday following the second
Wednesday in December, the electors of each state meet in
their respective state capitals to officially cast their votes for
president and vice president. These votes are then sealed and
sent to the president of the Senate, who on January 6th opens
and reads the votes in the presence of both houses of
Congress. The winner is sworn into office at noon on January
20th.
How the Electoral College works?
When a candidate wins the popular vote of a state
on election day, that candidate wins the party
electors for that state and those electors will vote in
their respective state capitol for president.
What makes the Electoral College democratic is that it is based
on the popular vote of the state. A candidate may win the
popular vote in the whole country but lose the Electoral College
vote.
1980 Electoral vote, Reagan vs. Carter
1984 Electoral vote, Reagan vs. Mondale
1988 Electoral vote, Bush vs. Dukakis
Bush was Reagan’s VP, notice the support change
1992 Electoral vote, Bush vs. Clinton
1996 Electoral vote, Clinton vs. Dole
2000 Electoral vote, Bush vs. Gore
2004 Electoral vote, Bush vs. Kerry
2008 Electoral vote, Obama vs. McCain
Analyzing the Electoral vote
Which parts of the country consistently support the Republicans?
Which parts of the country consistently support the Democrats?
Which states have switched party support during the years?
Which states have lost Electoral College votes over the years?
Which states have gained Electoral College votes over the years?
What would cause a state to gain or lose Electoral College votes?
What election is conducted with the Electoral College
system?
What is the number of electors in each state determined by?
Terms
primary/general elections
run-off elections
Electoral College
independent voter
secret (Australian) ballot
Political
Parties
What are political parties
Organizations
of people
with similar
ideas that are
formed to win
elections.
What are political parties
• Political parties can
form from factions.
• Washington warned
against factions
tearing the country
apart.
• Madison wrote in
Federalist 10 that
they were bound to
develop.
Political Party History
• The 1st political party was the
Federalists from 1789 -1815 began
by Madison and Hamilton.
• The Democratic-Republicans began
in 1792 by Thomas Jefferson
Democrats
• In 1828 the
modern
Democrat
party began
and elected
Andrew
Jackson as
their first
President.
Whigs
• The Whig Party
began around
1834 and
ended around
1852.
Republicans
• In 1853 the
Republican Party
grew from the
abolition
movement.
• The abolition
movement was a
started to end
slavery.
Republicans
• In 1860
Abraham
Lincoln
became the 1st
Republican
president. He
ran on the
issue to end
slavery.
Third Parties
• Over time Third
Parties have
formed in an
effort to
challenge the
Dems and
Repubs
Some 3rd Parties
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Anti-Masonic
Constitutional, Southern Democrats
Populist
Progressive
States’ Rights
Socialist-Labor
American Independent
Libertarian
Green
Communist
Structure
•
National Committee
State Central Committee
County Committees
Precinct Level
Party Workers
Political Parties
•
•
•
•
Nominate candidates
Pick the best person to run
Governs
Acts as a watchdog
Political Parties
• A multi-party system brings a broader
and more diverse electorate but it also
causes instability.
• A one-party system is the same as a noparty system.
Political Parties
• Democrat electorate usually consists of
Catholics, Jews, African-Americans, highschool graduates single, younger.
• Republican electorate usually consists of
Protestants, business people, college
graduates, married, older.
Political Action Committees
• Political Action
Committees,
commonly called
"PACs," are
organizations
dedicated to raising
and spending money
to either elect or
defeat political
candidates.
Political Action Committees
• Most PACs are
directly connected
to specific
corporations, labor
groups, or
recognized political
parties.
Political Action Committees
• Examples of
these PACs
include Microsoft
(a corporate PAC)
and the
Teamsters Union
(organized labor).
Political Action Committees
• PACs solicit
contributions from
employees or
members and make
contributions in the
PACs name to
candidates or
political parties.
Political Action Committees
• Non-connected or
ideological PACs
raise and spend
money to elect
candidates -- from
any political party -who support their
ideals or agendas
Political Action Committees
• Non-connected
PACs are made up
of individuals or
groups of U.S.
citizens, not
connected to a
corporation, a labor
party or a political
party.
Political Action Committees
• Examples of nonconnected PACs include
the National Rifle
Association (gun owner
rights) and Emily's List
(abortion, pro-choice). A
non-connected PAC can
solicit contributions from
the general public of U.S.
citizens and permanent
residents.
Political Action Committees
• A third type of PAC,
called "leadership
PACs" are formed
by politicians to
help fund the
campaigns of other
politicians.
Political Action Committees
• Politicians often
create leadership
PACs in an effort to
prove their party
loyalty or to further
their goal of being
elected to a higher
office.
Political Action Committees
• Under federal election
laws, PACs can legally
contribute only $5,000 to
a candidate committee
per election (primary,
general or special). They
can also give up to
$15,000 annually to any
national party committee,
and $5,000 annually to
any other PAC.
Lobbyists
• Someone who
tries to
persuade
legislators to
vote for bills
that the
lobbyists favor
Lobbyists
• A lobbyist is one
who is
professionally
employed to lobby
on behalf of clients
or who advises
clients on how to
lobby on their own
behalf.
What Are Interest Groups?
• An interest group (special interests) is an
organization of people with similar policy
goals that try to influence the political
process to try to achieve those goals.
• Interest groups try to influence every
branch and every level of government.
The Roots and Development
of American Interest Groups
• Interest groups have been part of the
American political landscape since
the country’s founding.
What Do Interest Groups Do?
• The most common and effective interest
group technique is lobbying or seeking to
influence and persuade others to support
a group's position.
What Do Interest Groups Do?
• Lobbyists are hired by a college or
university, businesses, foreign countries,
trade associations, and anyone else
wanting their voice heard on policy
matters.
Important Points to Think About
Interest Groups:
• Promote interest in public affairs
• Provide useful information
• Serve as watchdogs
• Represent the interest of citizens
Interest Groups and PACS
The Media and Public Opinion
Public opinion is a dominant force in American politics and
especially so during the long electoral process. If a presidential
candidate fails to hit it off with the media at the first primary,
then that presidential candidate is likely to have a political
mountain to climb up to the November election.
National television has ensured that candidates pitch every
word that they say with great care. What a candidate does,
what a candidate will do on a campaign trail and what he says is
usually determined by the availability of television coverage. It is
the primary purpose of a campaign manager to ensure that a
candidate gets this. Speeches have now become orientated to
television and 30 seconds sound bites have become the norm
rather than a classic speech. Short, sharp quotes are far more
media friendly than a long speech on financial reform, welfare
reform etc
In the modern United States, four types
of groups, known as
"LINKAGE" INSTITUTIONS,
play a vital role in connecting citizens to the
government. They are not officially
a part of the government, but without them,
a democracy would be very difficult to
maintain. These groups in American politics
include the following:
Political parties
Media
Campaigns and elections
Interest groups
POLITICAL PARTIES represent broad points
of view — or IDEOLOGIES — that present
people with alternative approaches to how
the government should be run. Each party
seeks political power by electing people to
office so that its positions and philosophy
become public policy. For example, both the
Republican and Democratic candidates for
President present competing plans for
solving a wide array of public issues. People,
then, link to their government by identifying
themselves as "Democrats," "Republicans,"
or "Reform" party members
CAMPAIGNS and elections involve citizens
by reminding them of their ultimate power
— the vote. Campaigns today are
increasingly elaborate and long, costing
millions of dollars, and attracting the
public's attention in any way they can. For
all the expense and glitz, the process of
electing government officials provides
citizens with vital information regarding
issues and candidates' qualifications for
office.
INTEREST GROUPS organize people with
common interests and attitudes to
influence government to support their
points of view. They generally represent
only one issue or a closely related set of
concerns. So, people can organize
according to their profession, business,
corporation, or hobby — yet another way
to "link" to government.
The MEDIA play an important role in
connecting people to government. Most of
us find out about candidates for office,
public officials' activities, and the burning
issues of the day through television,
newspapers, radio, and the Internet. The
media's power to shape the American
mind has often been criticized, but it also
allows people to give feedback to the
government.
Political process:
political parties
two-party system
third parties
campaign
platform
national conventions (Republican, Democratic)
role of media
special interest groups and associations
PACs
Lobbyists
Political spectrum
reactionary
conservative
moderate
liberal
radical
hawk
dove