Chapter 6 Sec 1 THE RIGHT TO VOTE

The History of Voting Rights Suffrage – the right to vote Voting was restricted to white male property owners when the Constitution went into effect in 1789 1 out of 15 adult white males could vote in the elections Today nearly 210 million people, nearly all citizens, who are at least 18 years of age, are qualified to vote

The Power to Set Voting Qualifications The power to set suffrage qualifications belong to the states, however, the Constitution does place five restrictions on how the state uses that power.

Extending Suffrage: The Five Stages Religious Test No state has had a religious test since 1810 States began to eliminate property ownership and tax payment qualifications By mid-century, almost all adult white males could vote 15th amendment Ratified in 1870 Protected any citizen from being denied the right to vote because of race or color African Americans were systematically prevented from voting Literacy Test Poll Tax

Extending Suffrage: The Five Stages 19th amendment Prohibited the right to vote because of sex Ratified in 1920 Voting Rights Act of 1965 Racial equality became fact in polling booths Focused on securing African Americans a full role in the electoral process District of Columbia was added to the electorate Eliminate the poll tax 26th amendment Set the minimum age for voting to age 18

Chapter 6 Sec 2 VOTER QUALIFICATIONS

UNIVERSAL REQUIREMENTS Residence One must be a legal resident of the State is which he/she wishes to cast a ballot States adopted this for two reasons To keep a political machine from importing outsiders (bribing) to affect the outcome of the election. Allow new voters at least some time to become familiar with the candidates and issues in an election Citizenship Aliens are generally denied the right to vote Nothing in the Constitution says that aliens cannot vote Any State could allow them to do so if it chooses Western states typically did this to attract settlers Age 26th amendment Must be at least 18 years of age

OTHER QUALIFICATIONS Registration Tax Payment 49 states require all voters to be registered (North Dakota does not) Registration gives officials a list of person who are qualified to vote Voter registration became common in the early 1900s Literacy No state has a suffrage qualification based on voter literacy Tax Payment Property ownership was a very common suffrage qualification Poll Tax Found throughout the south (began in Florida) Discouraged African Americans to vote Persons Denied the Vote People in mental institutions (all states) Convicted of serious crime (nearly all states) Dishonorably discharged from the military (few states)

SUFFRAGE AND CIVIL RIGHTS Chapter 6 Sec 3 SUFFRAGE AND CIVIL RIGHTS

THE 15TH AMENDMENT Ratified in 1870 Declares that the right to vote cannot be denied to any citizen of the US because of race, color or previous servitude African American were systematically kept from the polls in much of the South. Literacy Tests – white officials regularly manipulated the tests to disenfranchise African American citizens. Gerrymandering- Practice of drawing electoral district lines in order to limit the voting strength of a particular group or party

Early Civil Rights Legislation First law to implement the 15th amendment was the Civil Rights Act of 1957 Gave the attorney general the power to seek federal court orders to prevent interference with any person’s tight to vote in any federal election. The Civil Rights Act of 1960 added an additional safeguard Provided for the appointment of federal voting referees These officials were to serve anywhere a federal court found voter discrimination

THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964 Outlaws discrimination in several areas: Job-related matters Forbids the use of any voter registration or literacy requirement in an unfair or discriminatory manner

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 Made the 15th amendment a truly effective part of the Constitution Only intended to be effective 5 years Congress has extended the life three times (1970, 1975, 1982)

PRECLEARANCE No new election laws and no changes to the election laws could go into effect in any states without first being approved by the Department of Justice Location of polling places The boundaries of election districts Deadlines in the election process From ward or district election to at-large elections Qualifications candidates must meet in order to run for office.

VOTER BEHAVIOR WHY PEOPLE DO NOT VOTE “Cannot-voters” Out of the 100 million voters who did not vote in the last presidential election; 10 million are resident aliens Another 5 to 6 million citizens were so ill or disabled they could not vote in the election 2 to 3 million traveled unexpectedly 500,000 in mental health care facilities or some form of legal restraint Nearly 2 million or in jail or prison As many as 100,000 cannot vote (do not) for their religious beliefs

VOTER BEHAVIOR ACTUAL NONVOTERS In 2000, more than 80 million Americans that could have voted in the presidential election did not. People deliberately chose not to go to the polls Convinced that their vote makes no “real” difference Others are satisfied in the political world they live Distrust of politics and/or politicians

VOTER BEHAVIOR FACTORS AFFECTING TURNOUT Lack of interest Cumbersome election procedures “Time-zone fallout” Polls close in eastern and central time zones prior to the polls in the mountain and pacific time zones Media often project the outcome of the election before all the voters in the West have gone to the poll Lack of interest These voters do not know even the simplest facts about candidates and issues involved in an election

NONVOTERS vs VOTERS Most likely: Most likely: NONVOTERS VOTERS Younger than 35 Unmarried Unskilled Live in the south Men (women are more likely to vote) Most likely: Higher levels of income Education Career Well integrated in community Strong sense of party affiliation Believe that voter is an important act

Studying Voting Behavior Most of what is known about voter behavior comes from three sources: The results of particular elections The field of survey research Studies of political socialization Process of by which people gain their political attitudes and opinions

FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE VOTERS Sociological behaviors Study of groups and how people behave within the groups Income/Occupation Education Gender/Age Religious/Ethnic Background Geography Family and other groups

Sociological Behaviors Income/Occupation Voters in lower income brackets, tend to be Democrats/voters with higher incomes, tend to be Republicans Education College graduates tend to vote Republican over those with a just a high-school diploma Gender/Age Women tend to favor Democrats Younger voters tend to be Democrats

Sociological Behaviors Religious/Ethnic Background Catholics and the Jewish population are much more likely to be Democrats Protestants prefer the GOP Nonwhites (in recent times) have supported the Democratic Party 36 million African-Americans Make up the second most important racial minority group in the country

Sociological Behaviors Geography Generally, the Democrats draw the strength from the big cities of the North and East Republican voters still dominate much of suburban America Voters in smaller cities and rural area are also likely to be Republican Family and Other Groups Family members vote in strikingly similar ways

Psychological Factors You must look at the voters’ perceptions of politics: How they see and react to the parties, the candidates, and the issues in an election Party Identification Candidates and Issues

Psychological Factors Party Identification The loyalty of people to a particular political party Democrats will mostly vote Democrat Republican will mostly vote Republican Straight-ticket Voting Practice of voting for candidates of only one party in an election Split-ticket Voting Practice of voting for candidates of more than one party in an election Independents People who have no party affiliation

Psychological Factors Candidates and Issues Short term factors can cause voters to vote against their party Most important of these short term issues are: Candidates Issues Who Chooses to Vote and Why?