Political Beliefs & Participation
advertisement
POLITICAL BELIEFS & PARTICIPATION DIFFERENCES BETWEEN BELIEFS AND BEHAVIORS BELIEFS are opinions Cannot be seen Can be expressed in writing BEHAVIORS are actions Can be observed Voting, writing letters to officials, supporting candidates in elections, running for office, etc. POLITICAL PARTICIPATION FORMS OF PARTICIPATION Voting in elections Most common Americans less likely to vote than citizens of other democracies Discussing politics & attending political meetings Forming interest groups and PACs Contacting public officials Campaigning for candidates or political parties Contributing money to candidates or parties Running for office Protesting government decisions POLITICAL BELIEFS & BEHAVIORS POLITICAL BELIEFS Beliefs that citizens hold about government and its leaders Different from political ideology – a coherent set of values & beliefs about public policy COMPONENTS OF POLITICAL OPINIONS Once you have a political opinion, it will have 4 components Direction – pro or con Degree – strongly or mildly for or against Salience – how the issue affects your life directly Intensity – degree of commitment (what will you do as a result? Vote, write letters, protest, get arrested?) Example: A vegan with an organic farm would have a very strong opinion in support of legislation that limits GMOs. That issue is salient to the farmer and depending on the person, she may protest GMOs to get her point across. POLITICAL IDEOLOGY Definition: Consistent set of beliefs about what policies governments ought to pursue Measured in two ways How frequently people use broad political categories (liberal, conservative, or radical) to describe views or justify preferences Consistency of a citizen’s preferences over time or if based on consistent principles at any one time How accurately can you predict a person’s view on a topic Moderates are largest group among American voters Conservatives are second largest Liberals are smallest Self-identification surveys don’t tell us how or whether most people think about politics in an ideological manner Don’t feel need to be “consistent” Ask variety of questions & fit into series of categories POLITICAL SPECTRUM LIBERALS & CONSERVATIVES Terms’ meanings have changed over time Liberals disapproved of strong central government Conservatives believed government was best left to political elites Reversed in 1930s with New Deal Terms do capture views held by many people in the political elite Often refers to activists in the US Greater consistency among political elites for several reasons More information more interest in politics more consistency More active more association with people who agree with you & start matching their views on other topics Elites raise & frame political issues in the media (environmentalism, problems abroad, etc.) Sate norms by which issues should be settled (AIDS example: fear support) See Liberals & Conservatives Chart POLITICAL SPECTRUM POLITICAL SOCIALIZATION POLITICAL SOCIALIZATION Agents of Socialization Family Schools Peers Mass Media Religion Teach you how to live in society Shape beliefs & values FAMILY Families are primary agents of socialization Most children adopt political views of parents Transfer of political beliefs from one generation to the next Not always a discussion at the dinner table, but can be! Is it genetic? Identical twins are more likely to share similar political views than fraternal twins Roughly 1/3 of differences among people about political beliefs comes from genetic makeup 1/10 of differences come from family influences Half of our political views come from family & half from life experiences Beliefs aren’t the same as party affiliation Can be a liberal Republican or conservative Democrat Party affiliation dependent on what we learn from parents Party affiliation declining Ability of family to instill a strong sense of party affiliation has declined in recent years Younger voters have weaker sense of partisanship than older voters Age-related differences in opinions on issues that break ideological molds (gay marriage, women’s rights, etc.) RELIGION Also linked to family Religious differences make for political differences More complicated than at first glance Usually social issues: abortion, gay marriage, LGBT Rights, war Opinions vary within given religious traditions SCHOOL Primary school includes indoctrination What it means to be an American Patriotism Teach political involvement (voting, protest, etc.) Later grades give opportunity for questioning society, politics, government, the status quo… Encounter more controversial vies in & out of the classroom in college May resonate or challenge existing views Opportunities to participate in politics on campus PEERS & COMMUNITY Teenagers: peer pressure is less evident in developing political values Unless it directly affects you, like a war draft or minimum wage Later on, peers are often in your same occupation Professionals like teachers or doctors often have similar political opinions on matters related to their careers MASS MEDIA TV shows, news reports, magazines, celebrities, Facebook pages, Twitter feeds, Instagram accounts – they all shape your political opinion! Provide information about relevant issues: drugs, abortion, crime, war, etc. It all has some bias Leads to political discussion You shape opinions based on the information & how it is presented & sometimes who supports the same idea You are also biased in your interpretation of information Selection Bias – read or watch sources that reinforce your own views Perception Bias – miss or ignore contradictions to your views EXTENSION Socialization Scrapbook Create a scrapbook Show how each agent of socialization has impacted your political beliefs or behaviors Family Religion School Peers/Community Mass Media VOTING PARTICIPATION THROUGH VOTING Elections are the basis of the democratic process All nations have requirements for voting Suffrage – right to vote Changes in the US include Elimination of religious qualifications, property ownership, and tax payments after 1800 Elimination of race disqualifications in 1870 (15th amendment) Elimination of gender disqualifications in 1920 (19th amendment) Elimination of grandfather clauses, white primaries, and literacy requirements in 1965 (Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Act) Allowing residents of Washington, DC to vote in presidential elections in 1961 (23rd amendment) Elimination of poll taxes in federal elections in 1964 (24th amendment) Lowering minimum age for voting in federal elections to 18 in 1971 (26th amendment) TYPES OF VOTING Issue or Policy Voting Direct primary allows citizens to nominate candidates Recall is a special election initiated by petition to allow citizens to remove an official from office Referendums allow citizens to vote directly on propositions (proposed laws or amendments) Initiatives allow voters to petition to propose issues to be decided by qualified voters Candidate Voting Voting for candidates Most common form of political participation LOW VOTER TURNOUT Decreased in contrast to other nations & in the US over time Higher if election is seen as important Higher in presidential elections Several reasons Expansion of electorate-increase in the number of potential voters Failure of political parties to mobilize voters No perceived differences between candidates or parties Mistrust of government Apathy – lack of interest in politics or belief voting is not important Satisfaction with the way things are Mobility of electorate – moving around leads to lack of social belonging Registration process – barriers in registration procedures from state to state FACTORS INFLUENCING VOTING Education – higher education, more likely a person is to vote Most important indicator of voting behavior Occupation & Income – white-collar jobs & higher income more likely to vote Age – older people more likely to vote than younger people Race – minorities are less likely to vote than whites, unless they have similar SES Religion – people more active within their religion are more likely to vote Marital status – married people are more likely to vote Union membership – unions encourage participation & members tend to vote regularly Community membership – people well integrated in community life more likely to vote Party identification – strong sense of party identification increases voting Geography – residents of states with interparty competition & close elections may be more likely to vote CHECK YOUR UNDERSTANDING 1. What is the most common form of political participation? 2. What is one type of issue or policy voting? 3. What is the biggest determinant of voter participation? 4. What are 3 other factors influencing a person’s likelihood to vote? ELECTIONS Purpose: citizens vote for representatives and public officials in a democratic system Several types of elections Held according to local, state, and federal laws Congress decided all congressional and presidential elections are held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November Congressional elections are held every even-numbered year Presidential elections held every 4 years TYPES OF ELECTIONS Primary Elections – voters choose candidates from each party who will run for office Closed Primary – only voters registered in that party can choose candidates Open Primary – voters may choose candidates of either party, whether they belong to it or not Blanket Primary – votes choose candidates of either party, a republican for one office and a democrat for another (AK and WA only) Runoff Primary – when no candidate from a party receives a majority of the votes, the top two candidates face each other General Elections – voters choose from among all candidates nominated by political parties or running as independents Special Elections – held when an issue must be decided by voters before a primary or general election is held CONGRESSIONAL ELECTIONS Held every 2 years Voter turnout in off-year elections (no presidential election) is lower than during presidential years Popularity of presidential candidate may create a coattail effect, allowing lesserknown candidates from the party to win PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS Process to get to the White House may start years before the election Exploration – determine whether you have enough political & financial support to win Announcement – announce candidacy in a press conference Presidential Primaries & Caucuses – state party officials meet in a caucus to endorse party candidates prior to presidential primaries; most states use presidential preference primary Nominating Convention – each political party holds nominating convention in the summer prior to the general election to choose party’s presidential and vice-presidential nominees & write party platform Campaigning– each candidate campaigns for the general election, generally traveling to swing states & appearing moderate in an effort to win largest # of votes; televised debates General Election – held to determine which candidate wins electoral college vote for each state (popular vote) Electoral College – popular vote is for electors. Each state has a number of electors equal to its senators & representatives in Congress (DC has 3 electoral votes). Candidate that wins majority of popular votes in a state in the general election wins all the state’s electoral votes in the electoral college (winner-takes-all). Votes are sent to Congress to be counted before a joint session. Candidate who receives a majority (270) of electoral votes wins! PARTISANSHIP IN ELECTIONS Just because there are more Republicans than Democrats or vice versa, doesn’t mean that party’s candidate will win an election Maintaining Election – traditional majority power maintains power based on party loyalty of voters Deviating Election – minority party wins support of majority-party members, independents, & new voters Critical Election – sharp changes in existing patterns of party loyalty due to changing social & economic conditions Realigning Election – minority party wins by building new coalition of voters that continues over successive elections, usually associated with national crisis (Great Depression) Dealigning Election – party loyalty becomes less important to voters
