Chapter 8: Political Participation
I. Political Participation
A. Definition and Examples:
1.
2.
3.
B. THEN:
1.
2.
C. NOW:
1.
2.
II. Nonvoting
A. VAP:
1.
B. VEP:
1.
C. Registered Voters:
1.
2.
D. Why People Don’t Vote
1.
2.
E. Proposals for Reform:
1. Shift Election Day from Tuesday to Sunday
2. Make Election Day a national holiday
3. National Registration so that voter registration follows voters when they move
4. Following the 2000 Florida debacle, Congress passed a measure that requires states to have a
measure for counting the disputed ballots of voters whose names were left official registration lists.
F. Europe v. U.S.:
1.
2.
G. Motor Voter Law
1.
2.
H. Mail-In Voting:
1.
2.
III. State v. Federal Control
A. Suffrage- the right to vote
1. At the beginning of the American Republic, only around 5-6% of population was eligible to vote
2. Only white, male, property owners could vote and some regions in the United States even placed
restrictions based on Religion
3. Andrew Jackson broadened the right to vote to all white adult males except for in New Jersey who
did not change until 1844 and North Carolina in 1856
4. By 1880 only an estimated 14% of all adult males could vote
B. State Control1.
2.
C. Federal Control1.
2.
IV. The Rise of the American Electorate
A. 15th Amendment (1870) 1.
2.
3.
B. African American Barriers1. Literary Testa.
2. Grandfather Clausea.
b.
3. Poll Taxa.
b.
c. 24th Amendment4. White Primary
a.
b. Smith v. Allwright (1944):
C. Voting Rights Acts
1.
2.
3.
D. Abigail Adams wrote the John while he was attending the 2nd Continental Congress not to forget the ladies
1. Described the independence of men should also be the independence of women
E. Seneca Falls Convention (July 19, 1848) - group early feminists met in New York to begin to fight for
equal rights
1. Declaration of Sentiments listed grievances against their oppression and goals they were
seeking
2. Western states were the earliest states to give women the right to vote
3. 1890- the territory of Wyoming which had already extended the right to vote to women became a
state
4. Montana granted women the right to vote in 1914 and was 1of 11 states
5. Jeannette Rankin- first female Congresswoman in 1916
F. 19th Amendment (1920)1.
G. 26th Amendment (1971) –
1.
2.
V. Voter Turnout
A. Requirements
1. Must be an American (U.S.) citizen
2. At Least 18 Years of Age
3. Residency- must be a resident of the state voting
a. Voting Rights Act of 1970 created a residence period of 30 days
b. New Mexico has no residency requirements
3. Registration- must register in city, state where voting
a. North Dakota, you don’t have to register, just show up to vote
B. Disqualifications
1.
2
C. Elections- the % of people voting in the United States has generally declined and is the lowest in the
industrial world
1. Presidential Elections>Congressional>state>local
2.
D. Reasons For Decline
1.
2.
E. Australian Ballot1.
2.
D. Strict Voter Registration- Has also been used to try to cut back on fraudulent voting
1. Strict voter registration such as in the 1890’s decreases voter participation
2.
VI. Who Participates in Politics
A. Regular Voters- more educated, Middle-aged- (highest), personal income, religious involvement, ethnicity
1. Whites voted 87% of the total population
a. can be explained socioeconomically as well within this category
b. blacks tend to be poorer, less educated
c. when they are equal, blacks vote more often than whites
2. 18-29 years old have lowest voter turnout
3. Republicans fare best when low voter white Democrats favor high turnout
4. Those that are active church goers are usually active in the community and vote at a high rate
5. Men and women vote at about the same rate
B. Voting Specialists1.
C. Campaigners1.
2.
D. Communalists1.
2.
E. Parochial Participants1.
2.
VII. Participation: Causes and Meaning
A. Reasons for Decline1. Youthfulness of the population and growing numbers of minorities
2. Growing ineffectiveness of political parties
3. Impediments to registration- in some states, it is much more difficult to register
4. Voting is voluntary-some nations make voting compulsory or penalize nonvoters
5. Increasing view that voting does not matter
B. Religion:
1.
C. Political Activism:
1.
D. Number of Offices:
1.
2.
E. Number of Elections:
1.
2.
F. Comparison w/other Nations/Conclusion:
1.
VIII. Ballot Additions
A. Initiative- a procedure by which voters may propose a law or a state Constitutional Amendment
1. Must obtain a sufficient # of signatures on a petition to be placed on a ballot
2. Direct Initiative- decided by voters
3. Indirect Initiative- decided by state legislatures
B. Referendum- a procedure by which voters approve or disapprove a measure the state Legislature passed
1. Usually just for controversial issues
C. Recall- special elections called to remove public officials who are incompetent or u