1. What do you know and think about the Government?
Political Knowledge
What do you know and think about the Government?

2. How Smart are you compared to the Rest of the Nation?
How many Senators are in each state?
What fraction of both houses of Congress is required to overturn a Presidential Veto?
Name Georgia’s Senators
Name our representative in District 6 of the US House
Who is Theresa May and what position does she hold?
Who is John G. Roberts and what position does he hold?
2 (60 percent of Americans)
2/3rds (32 percent of Americans)
Issackson and Perdue (19 Percent of Americans)
Tom Price (15 Percent)
Prime Minister of GB (30 percent)
Chief Justice of Supreme Court (11 percent of Americans)

3. What we do know
According to 80 percent of the Polls, Americans DISTRUST our Government

4. Why do we Mistrust the Government
Divided Government
A situtation in which one party controls the White House and another party controls one or both Houses of Congress
Heightened partisanship
Decline of the middle (Moderates frozen out)
Frustration with the governmental process
Gridlock

5. Why do we Mistrust the Government
Scandals
High Cost of Elections
Candidates must spend more time raising money
Keeps good people from running for office
Wasteful Spending

6. Mistrust in the Government Leads to…
Low-Level of Political Efficacy
We don’t believe that anyone we vote for, or anything we do will make a political difference
Apathy
We just don’t care
Low Level of Political Efficacy and Apathy both lead to LOW VOTER TURNOUT!!!!

7. Types of Participation
2000 Election participation
82% watched the campaign on television
51% voted in the election
34% tried to influence others how to vote
10% put a sticker on their car
9% gave money to help a campaign
5% attended a political meeting
3% worked for a party or candidate

8. Who REALLY participates?
Different factors can tell us who votes
Education – MOST IMPORTANT, more education=more voting
Income- More income you have, the more you vote
Political Participation- The more you participate in other political activities, the more likely you are to vote
Age – is the lowest, and 45 and up is the highest

9. Voting Behavior
Voting is the most common way to participate in Politics
However, most people in America do not venture out to vote.
40 percent of the eligible adult population votes regularly
25 Percent are Occasional voters
35 Percent rarely or never vote
This is far below the average for advanced industrial democracies

10. Other forms of Political Participation
Joining a Campaign
Donating money
Running for Office
Protesting

11. Voter Turnout Registered Voter turnout Eligible Voter turnout
Voter Registration – blamed as one of the causes of low turnout
“Motor-Voter” (1993) – National Voter Registration Act – allowed people to register to vote while they get license

12. Why are we Not Rocking the Vote?
Too Busy
20 percent of Americans said they did not vote because they were too busy.
Another 15 percent claimed to have been ill, disabled, or dealing with a family emergency
Difficulty of Registration
Motor Voter Act has helped this problem
Number of Elections
“Burnout”

13. Other reasons for low turnout
Difficulty of Absentee Voting
Number of Offices to Elect too high
Weekday, non-holiday voting
Weak political parties – less “get-out-the-vote campaigns

14. Fix The Problem
Partner up with one or two students and talk about how we can fix the voting problem in America.
You are in charge of the entire election process, what changes or new programs would you implement?
Try to remember our Democratic Principles as you have the discussion…”Hold a gun to their heads and make them vote” will not be accepted