POLITICAL PARTICIPATION

Gladiatorial Activities Holding public and party office Being a candidate for office Soliciting political funds Attending a caucus or strategy meeting Becoming an active political party member Contributing time in a political campaign

Transitional Activities Attending a political meeting or rally Making a monetary contribution to a party or candidate Contacting a public official or a political leader

Spectator Activities Political button, bumper sticker Attempting to talk another into voting a certain way Initiating a political discussion Voting Exposing oneself to political stimuli (reading/watching media) Apathetics

Why don’t Americans vote? 15th Amendment interpreted to mean that someone could not be denied the right to vote based on race Literacy Test White Primaries (ended 1944) Grandfather clause: could vote if ancestors before 1867 could vote (unconstitutional 1915) Poll tax Harassment of minorities

Why don’t Americans vote? Women could not vote until 19th Amendment (1920) Initially voted like men and not as frequently 18 year old could not vote until 26th Amendment (1971) Low (42%) turnout in 1972 elections Most voted for Nixon College graduates voted for McGovern Today, 20-30% of 18-24 year olds vote

Why don’t Americans vote? In late 1800s: Long residency requirements Register many months before election

Why don’t Americans vote? People do not register Do not like candidate Not interested in politics Politics is distasteful Voting is not compulsory No difference between candidates Vote does not matter People are happy with status quo Parties have become “distant, national bureaucracies” Other ways to participate…

Methods to make voting easier and fairer End laws against minorities 19th and 26th amendments Australian Ballot: secret ballot Voting Rights Act (1965): ended literacy tests and appointed federal examiners 30 day residency maximum Motor-Voter Law (1993): Has not changed party balance Has increased independent registration Voting on Sunday (done in Europe not here)

Trends Nonvoters more likely to be poor, black or Hispanic Blacks vote and participate in other ways more than Hispanics Percentage of voters has declined but participating in other political activities has increased More elections more often than in Europe so vote seems more important in Europe White collar vote is overrepresented Blacks vote less than whites, but blacks vote more than whites of same socioeconomic status (income and schooling)

Trends College graduates are more likely to vote than those with less education, but proportion of college graduates not voting has increased to 18% in 1980) People cynical about leaders are just as likely to vote as those not cynical Turnout is declining for all economic classes More voters see more important differences between the parties today than in the1960s Voters and nonvoters differ very little in policy preferences or party affiliation Levels of turnout do not significantly impact election results