Elections & Voting

5 Stages of Suffrage Suffrage: The right to vote 1. Early 1880s- got rid of qualifications of white males. No longer had to won property, or pay a certain amount of taxes. 2. 15th amendment prevent people from being denied to vote because of color. 3. 19th amendment: Gave women the right to vote 4. Voting Rights Act of 1965. Racial intimidation at polling places was punishable with jail time. 5. 26th Amendment: 1971– no state can set the minimum voting age under 18.

3 Requirements for voting 1. Citizenship: Foreign born residents that have not become citizens are not allowed to vote. The States have set this rule, not the Constitution. 2. Residence: legal resident of the State in which you are voting. Must live there for a certain amount of time. 1. keep dirty politics away from bribing ppl to come to the state to vote a certain way. 2. allow new voters time to become familiar with the local politics, make them informed. No transients– ppl who will only live there for a short time. College students, armed service, sales people. 3. Age–At least 18 years old to vote.

4 Restrictions for voting in States The Constitution does not give the Federal Gov’t the power to set voting qualifications, that is up to the States. BUT: the fed gov’t does set restrictions on how they can use that power. 1. No State can deprive any person the right to vote based on race, color, or previous servitude. (15th) 2. No State can deprive any person the right to vote based on sex. (19th) 3. No State can require payment of any tax in connection with the election of a President, VP or Congress. (24th) 4. No State can deprive any person of at least 18 years of age the right to vote. (26th)

Why people vote they way they do 1. Income & Occupation: Income: Occupation: Professional & business people & other people with higher income=Republicans Manual laborers and union workers=Democrats 2. Education: 3. Gender & Age:

Why people vote they way they do 4. Religion & Ethnicity: Very Religious: Republicans Ethnicity: minorities=Dems 5. Geography: the State or part of the state where they live North & big cities=Dems South & small towns=Republicans 6. Friends & Family: People generally vote same as family or close friends

Why people don’t vote 1. Cannot Vote: Resident aliens. If you do not establish residency you cannot vote. Ill or physically disabled so much so that they cannot vote. Sudden or unexpected travel at the time of the election Under mental or legal restraint– mental hospitals & jail Who do not vote because of religious reasons 2. Distrust of politics & politicians. Feel that it does not matter who wins, the world will go on. Lack any sense of their own influence or effectiveness in politics. No longer believe in “gov’t by the people”

Why people don’t vote 3. Annoying election procedures Inconvenient registration requirements Long ballots Long lines at polling places Bad weather Time-zone fallout In presidential elections, polls in States in the eastern & central time zones close before polls in States in Mountain & Pacific time zones. Often the winner of the election has been called before the people on the West coast can finish voting. 4. Lack of Interest Very simply, people chose not to vote because they do not want to; they are not interested in politics. Some do not even know the simplest facts about the candidates and issues involved in the election.