Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Longman PoliticalScienceInteractive Magleby & Light Government by the People Chapter 9 Campaigns and Elections

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Elections in the United States Some Cynics contend that elections do not matter and there is little point in voting. Agree or Disagree?

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman 2000 Presidential Election Al Gore won national popular vote by 539,947 votes. Bush won Florida by only 537 votes. Won 27 electoral votes. 2,843 votes were cast for the Independent candidate in Florida.

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Elections: The Rules of the Game Elections are held at fixed intervals that cannot be changed by the party in power Terms are fixed and, for some offices, staggered

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Fixed, Staggered, Sometimes Limited Constitution sets fixed terms for President, House of Representatives, Senate (not indefinite like judiciary) President – 4 Years Senator – 6 Years Representative – 2 Years Staggered for some: House of Representatives are all up for election every 2 years (even years) Senators seats are staggered; 1/3 of seats are up for re-election every 2 years. (allows them to run for President t the same time)

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Term Limits No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than once. But this Article shall not apply to any person holding the office of President when this Article was proposed by the Congress, and shall not prevent any person who may be holding the office of President, or acting as President, during the term within which this Article becomes operative from holding the office of President or acting as President during the remainder of such term. Twenty-second Amendment (1951)

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Term Limits Lame Duck - When an official cannot run again for office or was not re-elected. (20 th Amendment) Only 15 states have term limits for State Legislatures. Many have suggested that term limits apply to Congressional positions as well.

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Effects of a Winner-Takes-All, Single-Member District System To win state electoral votes, candidate does not need a majority of votes, just a plurality Wasted-vote syndrome Reinforcement of moderate and centrist candidates Difficult for minor parties to get elected Single-member districts: voters can only choose one candidate for seat

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Proportional Representation An election system in which each party running receives the proportion of legislative seats corresponding to its proportion of the vote Benefits: –More accurately reveals the division of voter preferences –Gives those who do not vote with the plurality some influence as a result of their vote Problems: –May make it harder to have a clear winner

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman The Electoral College

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman The Electoral College Why it exists: –The framers did not trust the choice of president to a direct vote of the people How it works: –Each state legislature is free to determine how to select its electors –Each party nominates a slate of electors, usually longtime party workers –In 48 states, candidates who win a plurality of the popular vote secure all of that state’s electoral votes –In NB and ME, electoral votes are allocated to the winner of each congressional district plus two electoral votes for the winner of the state as a whole

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman The Electoral College If no candidate gets a majority of the electoral votes, the House chooses among the top three candidates –Occurred in 1800 and 1824 Makes it possible for a presidential candidate to win the popular vote but lose the electoral vote –Occurred in 1824, 1876, 1888, and 2000

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Battleground States

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Running for Congress Very little competition due to incumbency factor (popular, name sake, campaign funding, etc.) Partisan gerrymandering (re-districting) Safe seats Coattail effect – Popular Presidential Candidate

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Safe and Competitive House Seats,

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Seats Lost by the President’s Party in Midterm Elections Incumbents have a strong advantage when seeking reelection –Name recognition –Campaign contributions –Resources of office

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman The House of Representatives Mounting a primary campaign –Raising money –Building a personal organization –Visibility in the media and among constituents Campaigning for the general election –Candidate appeal –National tide –Name recognition

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Advantages to Re-Election (Representatives)  Free mailings (Franking Privilege)  Free use of phones, media and staff  Constituent base  Name recognition  Gerrymandering

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman U.S. House Incumbents Reelected

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman The Senate Costs more than House races, but cost varies by state Need large amounts of money to get re-elected More likely than House seats to be seriously contested Need a campaign theme Interest group participation

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Rising Campaign Costs in Congressional General Elections

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Running For President Stage 1: The Nomination Campaigning begins well before any declaration of candidacy, as candidates try to: (Invisible Primary) –Line up supporters to win caucuses or primaries in key states –Raise money for their nomination effort –Decide on Primary Strategies

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Running For President Stage 1: The Nomination Primaries – used to select delegates for the national convention by ¾ states  Republicans Beauty contest – Popular Vote Actual voting for Delegates Winner-Takes-All  Democrats Proportional representation for delegates

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Running For President Stage 1: The Nomination Caucuses and Conventions: party members and supporters elect national delegates who in turn vote for the presidential nominee. Ex: Iowa Use by 12 states

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Primaries and Caucuses Iowa and New Hampshire are the first states to choose delegates for the National Convention (early January) Continue through June Front Loading

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Running For President Stage 2: The National Party Convention National Party Convention A national meeting of delegates elected in primaries, caucuses, or state conventions who assemble once every four years to nominate candidates for president and vice president, ratify the party platform, elect officers, and adopt rules

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman The Vice Presidential Nominee Presidential candidates usually submit their choice for vice president in the run- up to the party’s national convention

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Running For President Stage 3: The General Election - Debates - TV and Radio Advertising

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman The Presidential Campaign: Typical Campaign Organization

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Selecting a theme Negative Campaigning Using focus groups and polling News management Paid advertising Seeking free airtime Campaign Strategies

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Democracy Peaceful transfer of power.

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Money in U.S. Elections Watergate The 1972 Watergate scandal led to the discovery that large amounts of money from corporations and individuals were “laundered” in secret bank accounts outside the country and used by Nixon’s campaign for political and campaign uses.

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Efforts at Reform Three strategies used to prevent abuse in political contributions Imposing limitations on giving, receiving, and spending political money Disclosure laws Governmental subsidies to reduce reliance on campaign contributions

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman The Federal Election Campaign Act Serious campaign finance reform began in the 1970s with the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA)(1971) FECA was revised in 1974 and Federal Elections Commission (FEC) was created to administer new laws. Buckley v. Valeo (1976) challenged the constitutionality of campaign finance limits Now, politicians must get small amounts of money from many sources, with an exception for “soft” money (party building money) Led to the passing of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA) in 20002

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (2002) McCain – Feingold Bill Largely banned party soft money Restored prohibition on corporations and labor unions for using general treasury funds for electoral purposes Narrowed the definition of issue advocacy Senators John McCain (R-Ariz) and Russell Feingold (D-Wisc), sponsors of the BCRA

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Soft Money Until 1998, more important in presidential contests than in congressional contests Between 1998 and 2002, soft money contributions more than doubled Soft money enabled large donors to be major players in campaign finance Banned by BCRA

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Issue Advocacy Advertising Promoting/attacking candidates without explicitly saying “vote for” or “vote against” Surged in 1996 In recent elections, issue advocacy groups have sometimes spent more than the candidates did themselves Often more negative than the ads run by candidates Only partially addressed by BCRA

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Section 527 and 501(c) Organizations 527s: May advertise for or against candidates 501(c): Include nonprofits whose purpose is not political America Coming Together Media Fund Swift Boat Veterans

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Independent Expenditures Buckley v. Valeo (1976): –Individuals/groups have “First Amendment” right to spend as much money as they wish Restrictions: –Must be truly independent of the candidate –May not use corporate or union money

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Continuing Problems with Campaign Finance Rising costs of campaigns Declining competition Increasing dependence on PACs and wealthy donors Candidates’ personal wealth Growth in individual contributions and use of the Internet to fund campaigns

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Reforming the Nominating Process

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Possible Reforms National presidential primary Regional primaries Expand use of caucuses

Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc., Publishing as Longman Reforming the Electoral College Give every voter the same weight in presidential balloting Winners would have greater legitimacy Plan would undermine federalism Unrestrained majority rule Populous states would lose influence Should we use a direct popular election instead of the electoral college? ProsCons