AP
GOVERNMENT
Chapter 9:
Campaigns and Elections
The Rules of the Game
Elections: Rules of the Game
 The
Constitution sets some electoral
conditions and requirements
Most
details left up to states
 Representatives,
Senators, and Presidents
have fixed terms
Representatives
= 2 years
Senators = 6 years
President = 4 years
Term Limits



22nd Amendment – President has a 2 term limit
Lame Duck – candidate who can’t or won’t run again
¾ of voters favor term limits, especially state offices
 Federal term limits are unconstitutional
U.S.
Term Limits Inc. v. Thornton (1995)
Constitutional amendment would be required
 17
states have enacted term limits for their state
legislatures and even more states limit the term
of governors
 Idaho has no term limits
Winner Take All
 Most
American elections are based on a plurality
 Moderate candidates most common because they
are more likely to secure a plurality or majority

Vote for a third party candidate is a “wasted vote” and
may help elect the voter’s least desired candidate
 Most
American electoral districts are singlemember districts – in a district voter’s choose one
representative or official

Single member district + winner take all
= 3rd parties DON’T WIN
Proportional Representation
Political
parties receive a portion of seats =
to the % of vote they receive in the election
Party A = 50%
 Party B = 40%
 Party C = 10%

Rewards
minor parties and permits them to
participate in government
Examples: Germany, Israel, and Japan
Running for Congress
Most
Congressional elections are not close
Safe Seats are those seats dominated by one party
 House seats are often less competitive than Senate races
 Availability of campaign funds
 President, senate and governor races much closer

effect – boost given to candidates
by popular candidates for higher offices
Midterm elections – presidential popularity
& economic conditions
Coattail
House Elections
2
year terms
Up to 1,000 candidates incl. ~ 400 incumbents

Possibly unopposed
Primary
1st step - Raise hundreds of thousands of dollars
 Build personal organization
 #1 hurdle is to gain visibility

General
Election
95% of incumbents win
 Incumbents outspend challengers 3 to 1
 Remember incumbent advantage (bellringer)

Senate Elections
6
year terms
1/3 elected every 2 years

Continuous body
Incumbency is
less important in Senate races
Potentially cost millions of $
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBfx95frNDc
 Advantages
of Proportional
Representation
More
accurately reveals the preferences of
voters and gives those who do not vote for
the winning candidate a sense that they
have some influence as a result of their
vote
 Could
encourage greater voter turnout
Encourage
issue-oriented campaigns and
enhance the representation of women and
minorities
 Disadvantages
Makes
it harder to have a clear winner,
especially if minor parties are likely to
receive representation
It may contribute to political instability
and ideological extremism
 Example
on Israel (pg. 168)
ELECTING THE
PRESIDENT
3 Stages of Presidential Election
1.
2.
3.
Nomination
- States are assigned # of delegates and
must decide how to assign them
National Convention
- President & VP candidates picked
- Platform announced
General Election
- Electoral College
video
Stage 3: The Electoral College
 President & VP are elected through indirect
device, not popular election
 Electors = Reps + Senators
Total (Idaho – 4)
 State legislature chooses how its electors are selected
 Each party nominates a slate (list) of electors
 Electors are expected to cast their votes for the
party’s candidates for Pres. and VP
 538
“faithless elector”
 No faithless elector has ever cast the deciding vote

Stage 3: The Electoral College

How it works
 Election
of electors in November
 Winner-take-all (except NE and ME)
 Electors go to state capital on the first Monday
after the second Wednesday in December to
cast their votes
 Ballots are sent to Congress in January
 January - Congress formally counts and
declares the winner – 270 to win

No majority winner
– the House of Reps. chooses from
the top 3 candidates – each state gets 1 vote
 President
1800 (Jefferson and Burr) – 12th Amendment
 1824 (John Q. Adams, Andrew Jackson and
William Crawford)

– Senate chooses from top 2 candidates
with each senator casting a vote
 V.P.
 Winning
Most
the popular vote?
“popular” candidate may not win
 Andrew
Jackson/ John Quincy Adams 1824
 Samuel Tilden/ Rutherford B. Hayes 1876
 Grover Cleveland/ Benjamin Harrison 1888
 Al Gore/ George W. Bush 2000

How to win
 Appeal
to voters in big states like California,
New York, Texas, Florida, Illinois, and Ohio
 Battleground
States - Emphasize states
where race is close, even if small population
 Don’t
waste time campaigning in a state
unless they have a fighting chance to win
the state or if their party is a sure winner

Nixon was last to campaign in all 50 states (1960)
Is the system broken or
does it work adequately?
Campaign Finance Reform



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5kHACjrdEY
http://www.c-span.org/video/?304267-5/role-federal-electioncommission
http://www.c-span.org/video/?317224-4/efforts-update-voting-rightslegislation