Warm Up List 2 or 3 different reasons people would give as to why they don’t vote

Political Socialization How we acquire our political opinions, beliefs and values Some values are lifelong Others are fleeting Examples?

Where Do Opinions Come From? Primary Agents Secondary Agents Family Peers School Media Church Leaders

Voting Rights Who could vote in the late 1700s? What has happened to the electorate over the past 250 years? What has happened to the power of the states over a citizen’s right to vote in the past 250 years?

Voting Rights 15th Amendment 1870 – 19th Amendment 1920 – 23rd Amendment 1961 – 14th Amendment 1964 – Voting Rights Act of 1965 – 26th Amendment 1971 –

Voter Participation What is suffrage? What is voter turnout? What is the voter turnout in most elections? What is voter registration? What is the point of registering?

Is it a problem that only 40-55% of people who can vote actually vote?

Voter Registration Think – Pair – Share Should we have a government issued photo-ID to be able to vote? Why would voter identification cards be supported by the Republicans and opposed by the Democrats? Should the government make voting compulsory?

Frequency of Elections How does the election schedule place a burden on voters? Americans are asked to vote 2-3 times more Why does our voting day matter? How could we fix this issue? Will this issue be fixed? HoR every 2 years, President every 4, state and local elections are separate, city offices on odd years, primaries

Who Votes? Who votes in America? Education – Income – Age – Race – Gender – What else can be done other than voting? Campaigning and Lobbying, Virtual Participation, Community Activities

Potential for Influence How is individualism a reason to NOT vote? What is the paradox of this statement and the reality? What is political efficacy? Those who have the most power in the marketplace also have the most power in the political arena.

Nonvoting Reasons Voter Registration Lack of Political Efficacy Frequent Elections Weekday, non-holiday coting http://www.electproject.org/home/voter-turnout/demographics

Ways to Make Voting Better Change Election Day Relax ID laws Make E-Day a holiday Easier Voting for the Disabled Early Voting Compulsory Voting Mail Voting Online Voting Registration for Everyone Make a propaganda poster for one of the ways to make voting better.