Election Campaigns

 To be elected president, a candidate must win 270 of the 538 available electoral votes (simple majority)  Electoral votes are = to # of reps. and senators from all the states + 3 votes from the D. of Col.  Each state’s electoral votes = the # of its senators + reps  The candidate who wins the greatest number of pop. votes in any state usually receives all of that state’s electoral votes  When you cast your vote for president, you are really casting your vote for that president’s electors!

BushGore

 George W. Bush, son of former President George H.W. Bush, ran on the Republican ticket against Democratic candidate, and the sitting Vice President, Al Gore.  Though Gore held a slim popular vote victory of 543,895 (0.5%), Bush won the Electoral College , with one Gore Elector abstaining.  The election was plagued with allegations of voter fraud and disenfranchisement. Rumors of illegal road blocks, unclear ballots, and uncounted votes, particularly in swing states like Missouri and Florida, were rampant.  Florida became the key state as the election drew to a close. Consisting of nearly 6 million voters, Florida was officially won by a margin of 537 votes, after a process of recounting the votes and a Supreme Court ruling.  Voters complained about confusing ballots and many Florida voters believed that they accidentally voted for Pat Buchanan, a conservative running on the Reform ticket, when they meant to vote for Al Gore.  Another significant candidate in the 2000 election was Green Party candidate, Ralph Nader. Nader attracted just under 3% of voters with a progressive platform focused on social and environmental issues.  Democratic supporters targeted Nader as being a “spoiler” for Al Gore. Since Nader was left-of-center, Democrats argued that most of his voters would have otherwise supported Gore. In such a close election, many believe that Gore would have won if Nader had dropped out of the race.  The 2000 election resulted in numerous court battles over contested ballots and recounts. These lawsuits escalated to the U.S. Supreme Court where the final, 5-4 decision was made, ending the recounts and giving the state of Florida's Electoral votes to George W. Bush.  In the end, Gore conceded the election publicly, though he did not hide his displeasure at the Supreme Court’s ruling.

 The purpose of campaigning is to capture key states  Requires strategy and organization  Television is the most important communication tool for a pres. candidate ◦ Main way citizens find out about a candidate ◦ Image of candidate is extremely imp. ◦ Lots of resources used to “package” a candidate’s image ◦ Debates  Internet increasingly important ◦ Obama tapped into youth vote 2008 by making use of social networking and YouTube

 Campaigning is very expensive  Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) regulates campaign financing ◦ Requires public disclosure of candidates’ spending ◦ Provides federal funding for pres. elections ◦ Prohibits labor unions and business org. from making direct contributions ◦ Limits how much indiv. and groups can contribute ◦ Does not limit personal spending  2000 election got around FECA through use of issue ads and soft money ◦ Issue ads = ads that urge voters to support a certain position on gun control, health care, etc. and often contain a candidate’s name ◦ Soft money = contributions given directly to a party by PACs or indiv. for general purposes such as voter registration drives and mass mailings  Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BRCA) addressed this issue in 2002

 Citizen of US  At least 18 yrs old  Not a convicted felon or legally insane

 537 votes decided the 2000 presidential election!  Victory can hinge on a single vote! 1 vote decided an election for the town council in Cincinnati, Ohio  cialstudies/in_motion_10/usg/USG_489.swf cialstudies/in_motion_10/usg/USG_489.swf

 Voting registration is required as a way to stop voting fraud by identifying voters  Requirements vary by state  Usually, you must register days before an election

 You vote at a polling place in your home precinct. ◦ Look over the sample ballot posted on a wall near the entryway ◦ Go to the clerk or election judge’s table and sign in by writing your name and address on an application form ◦ The clerk will read your name aloud and pass the application to a challenger, a local election official representing a political party ◦ The challenger compares your signature with your voter registration form. If they match, the challenger initials your form and returns it to you ◦ Give your form to one of the judges and enter the booth to vote  You cannot be stopped from voting because of your race, gender, religion, income, or political beliefs

 Personal background (upbringing, family, age, occupation, income level, general outlook on life)  Loyalty to political party (strong v. weak party voters)  Issues in Election Campaigns (Social Security, health care, taxes, education, affirmative action, abortion, gun rights, environment)  Candidates image (the way voters perceive the issues)  Propaganda (use of ideas, info, or rumors to influence opinion)

 Labeling  Spin  Card stacking  Transfer  Plain folks  Testimonial  Bandwagon