Chapters 9 and 10 Nominations, Campaigns, Elections and Voting

So, You Want to Run for POTUS?  Nomination  First step is to seek official endorsement of a party  Campaign against other candidates for the votes of convention delegates

Lets Get Ready to Rumble!  Compete for the votes of convention delegates  The campaigning is on now!  Caucuses- first is in Iowa  The first primary is normally New Hampshire

Primary v. Caucus Elections CaucusPrimary Voting Method Voting is conducted at local party meetings and is done by raising hands or breaking up into groups. An election is held/ secret ballot Who Can Vote? Only members registered with the political party can participate (if closed system) Depends upon the state. Some states allow only registered party members to vote; some allow party registrations on the same day; some are completely open to all residents of the state. States States that use the caucus system are Alaska, Colorado, Hawaii, Kansas, Maine, Minnesota, Nevada, North Dakota, Wyoming and Iowa All other states

Congrats You’re the Nominee!  Each party will send the winning (primary/caucus) candidate to the general elections

Campaigns Regulations  Federal Election Campaign Act  Created the Federal Election Commission (FEC)  Limit influence of wealthy and special interest groups  Regulate spending in campaigns  Deter abuses by mandating public disclosure of campaign finances

Federal Election Campaign Act ( )  Provided public financing for presidential primaries and general elections  Rules:  Candidates who raise $5,000 in at least 20 states can get individual contributions of up to $250 matched by the federal treasury  Each major party gets a fixed amount of money to cover all campaign expenses

Federal Election Campaign Act ( )  Limited presidential campaign spending (Optional)  If candidates accept federal support, they agree to:  Limit campaign expenditures  General Election Limit: $91.2 million  Overall Primary Limit: $45.6 million

Federal Election Campaign Act ( )  Required disclosure  Candidates must file periodic reports with the FEC, listing who contributed and total spent

Campaigning  Campaigns normally reinforce and activate, rarely convert

Campaigning  Selective perception  Process people only perceive what they desire to and ignores other viewpoints

Campaigning  Party identification  Split ticket and straight ticket voting

Campaigning  Incumbents  Overwhelming advantage in funding and name recognition  Over 90% of incumbents get re- elected in the US Senate Type of Candidate Total Raised Number of Cands Avg Raised Incumbent$352,187,50329$12,144,397 Challenger$168,573,106138$1,221,544 Open Seat$151,512,63865$2,330,964 Grand Total$672,273,247232$2,897,730 House Type of Candidate Total Raised Number of Cands Avg Raised Incumbent$661,948,352425$1,557,526 Challenger$172,734,534669$258,198 Open Seat$205,157,975348$589,534 Grand Total$1,039,840,8 62 1,442$721,110

Other Decisions  No constitutional provision provide elections for policy questions  Referendum  Voters are given a chance to vote on an act proposed by the legislature  Initiative petition  Requires signatures to show support

Election History  Primaries, conventions, or speeches were nonexistent  Little campaigning, it was considered below the dignity of the President  Elections focused on the state legislatures desires

Election History  Elections began to focus on issues  National nominating conventions became the norm  Campaigning increased as a result, spending began to increase

Election History  Campaigns become increasingly more elaborate  More focus on “grass roots” campaigning and addressing the needs of groups within mass society  Large amounts of money spent on media, travel… etc

Election History 2000  2000 Presidential election  First, Gore announced as the winner in Florida (polls weren’t closed yet, so FL recanted)  Hours later, nearly all results were in and Bush was declared the winner  As Gore prepared to concede, networks reported it was too close to call  Bush’s lead was less than 1/10 th of 1%, FL law mandated an automatic recount

Election History 2000  FL Supreme Court ordered a by hand recount of 62,000 “undervotes”  Votes undetected by machine  “Hanging chads” became an issue  US Supreme Court overrulled the decision and ended the election with Bush the winner  Bush declared winner with 537 votes more than Gore

2000 Presidential Election Map

Voting (Suffrage)  US gradually introduced universal suffrage for numerous reasons  African Americans: 15 th Amendment, 1870  Women: 19 th Amendment, 1920  Native Americans: Indian Citizen Act, 1924  18 year-olds: 26 th Amendment, 1971

Voting  Registration  Some states allow voters to register on election day  1993 Motor Voter Act

Voting  By demographics  Mandate theory of elections  Party identification  How we see the candidates  Policy voting

The Electoral College  Presidential election isn’t based on the popular vote  The founders wanted the nation’s elite to decide, created the electoral college  Left the decision to the states to determine electors

The Electoral College  Each state has as many electoral votes as it has US senators and representatives  Parties select these electors as rewards for faithful service

The Electoral College  Electors vote as a bloc for the winner, regardless of the popular vote  State electors meet in December and mail their votes to the vice president  The votes are counted when the new congress session opens in January

Why the Electoral College?  Since every state has 2 senators, less populated states are over-represented  The winner takes all rule encourages candidates to focus on competitive states

Group conversation on the 2000 election

Self Assessment