1. Voting and participation
Chapter 11

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Learning Objectives
11.1 Explain why there are battles over ballot access 11.2 Outline how the right to vote has expanded 11.3 Identify who tends to turn out in American elections 11.4 Articulate the main theoretical approaches that explain voting 11.5 Evaluate how low turnout is in American elections 11.6 Analyze how changes in voting laws have affected participation rates 11.7 Describe other important forms of participation
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3. The Practice and Theory of Voting
The Constitution and Voting
Left choices to the states
Led to a complicated system
Inequalities among the states
Competing Views of Participation
Suffrage
Hamiltonian model of participation
Jeffersonian model of participation
suffrage:
Right to vote; also called franchise.
Key Questions
Why does the Constitution say so little about voting?
Can you think of any reason why a citizen should not be allowed to vote?
Do you lean toward the Hamiltonian or the Jeffersonian model of participation?
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4. Hamiltonian and Jeffersonian Models of Participation
Figure 11.1
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5. The History of Voting in America
Expansion of Voting, 1790s to 1870
First nine elections popular votes not recorded
State legislators chose Electoral College
Jacksonian democracy and franchise
Fifteenth Amendment gave African American males right to vote
franchise:
Right to vote; also called suffrage.
Key Question
Why has Jackson been called “the people’s president”?
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6. Constitutional Amendments that Pertain to the Right to Vote
Figure 11.2
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7. The History of Voting in America
The Road to Women’s Suffrage,
Grew stronger after Civil War
Susan B. Anthony
Wyoming first to grant women right to vote
Nineteenth Amendment ratified in 1920
Overall voter turnout dropped in the short term
turnout:
Share of all eligible voters who actually cast ballots.
Key Questions
Describe theories of representation that could have been used to justify denying women the right to vote.
Why were women able to vote in some states but not in others?
Key Question
How did suffrage for women affect the responsiveness of government?
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8. The History of Voting in America
In the early 1870s, suffragists such as Susan B. Anthony tried to exercise the right to vote. When Virginia Minor was blocked from registering to vote in Missouri, she sued. Her case, decided by the Supreme Court in 1875, determined that women were citizens but that the Constitution does not confer a right to vote. In this drawing, Victoria Claflin Woodhull points to the Constitution as she tries to vote in a local New York City election; her sister, Tennessee Claflin, stands behind her.
Source: The Granger Collection, New York
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9. The History of Voting in America
The Denial of African American Suffrage, to 1965
Jim Crow laws
Literacy Tests
Poll Tax
Grandfather Clauses
The White Primary
Jim Crow laws:
Southern laws that established strict segregation of the races and gave their name to the segregation era.
literacy tests:
Tests requiring reading and interpretation skills in order to vote.
poll taxes:
Tax on voting; prohibited by the Twenty-Fourth Amendment (1964).
grandfather clauses:
Election rules that exempted people from difficult literacy and interpretation tests for voting if their grandfathers had been eligible to vote.
white primary:
Election rules that prohibited blacks from voting in Democratic primaries.
Key Question
What was the justification for denying African Americans the right to vote?
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10. Louisiana Literacy Test
These questions, excerpted from a three-page test, make it clear that the test was not intended to test literacy but to deny African Americans the right to vote.
Figure 11.3
Source: Rethinking Schools,
Key Questions
Should people have to be able to read before they can vote? Should people have to be able to read English before they can vote?
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11. The History of Voting in America
The Civil Rights Movement and African American Voting, 1950s and 1960s
Boycotts, sit-ins, marches
1964 Civil Rights Act
1965 Voting Rights Act
Voter registration
Voter apathy
voter registration:
Enrollment required prior to voting to establish eligibility.
voter apathy:
Lack of interest in voting and in politics generally.
Key Question
Using African Americans as an example, describe how voting affects government responsiveness.
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12. The History of Voting in America
The Latino Vote
Poll taxes and language barriers
Literacy tests were English-based
Language Assistance Amendments in 1975
Latino voting continues to lag
The Vote for 18-Year-Olds, 1971
Until 1971, voting age was 21
Key Question
How did the votes of 18-yearolds affect the responsiveness of government?
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13. Percent of Eligible Voters Who Lack Photo ID by Race and Ethnicity
Figure 11.4
Source: Matt A. Barreto, and Gabriel R. Sanchez, “Rates of Possession of Accepted Photo Identification,
Among Different Subgroups in the Eligible Voter Population, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin,”
Expert Report Submitted on Behalf of Plaintiffs in Frank v. Walker, Civil Action No. 2:11-cv-
01128(LA), April 23, 2012,
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14. Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Voter Turnout Rates in Presidential Elections by Race and Ethnicity,
Figure 11.5
Source: Pew Resource Center,
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Who Votes?
Turnout
Highest for presidential elections
The Demographics of Turnout
Sex
Age
Income
Education
Women turnout at a slightly higher rate than men
Turnout peaks once voters are about 60 years old.
The higher one’s income, the more likely one is to vote.
Number of years of education seems to be most important influence.
Key Questions
When some groups vote less frequently than other groups, what is the effect on government?
Why do better-educated, better paid, and older people vote at higher rates than less educated, more poorly paid, and younger people? What is the effect on government?
What can you do to get young people in your community to vote? Why is it important?
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Turnout by Demographic Group in Presidential Elections, 2004, 2008, and 2012
Figure 11.7
Source: Census Current Population Surveys
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17. Turnout by Education in Presidential Elections 1988-2012
Table 11.2
Source: Harold Stanley and Richard Niemi, Vital Statistics on American Politics (Washington, D.C.: CQ Press, 2013)
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Why Citizens Vote
An Economic Model of Voting
Self-interest
Rational voting
Civic duty
A Psychological Model of Voting
Civic interest
Efficacy
self-interest:
Concern for one’s own advantage and well-being.
rational voting:
Economic model of voting wherein citizens weigh the benefits of voting against the costs in order to take the most personally beneficial course of action.
civic duty:
Social force that binds a person to actively participate in public and political life.
civic interest:
Concern for the well-being of society and the nation as a whole.
efficacy:
Extent to which people believe their actions can affect public affairs and the actions of government.
Key Questions
Did you vote in the 2014 midterm elections? Why or why not?
Should the government adopt laws that advance the Jeffersonian or Hamiltonian approach to participation?
Do you feel like you have a civic duty to vote? If so, where did you get that sense of duty?
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Why Citizens Vote
An Institutional Model of Voting
Shaped by . . .
Rules of the system
Political party behavior
Ways candidates run campaigns
Context of the election
Is Voting in Your Genes?
Weather
institutional model:
Model of voting that focuses on the context of the election, including whether it is close and whether the rules encourage or discourage participation.
Key Questions
Have you participated in or been contacted by a get-out the-vote program? How did it affect you?
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Assessing Turnout
Is Turnout Low?
The United States Compared to Other Democracies
Compulsory voting; convenience
Trends in Turnout
Voting-age population
Generational replacement
Decline of party organizations
Harsh tone of political campaigns
A New Way to Measure Voting
Voting-eligible population
Key Question
Should the United States adopt compulsory voting?
compulsory voting:
Practice that requires citizens to vote in elections or face punitive measures such as community service, fines, or imprisonment.
voting-age population (VAP):
Used to calculate the rate of participation by dividing the number of voters by the number of people in the country who are 18 and over.
generational replacement:
Cycle whereby younger generations replace older generations in the electorate.
voting-eligible population (VEP):
Used to calculate the rate of participation by dividing the number of voters by the number of people in the country who are eligible to vote rather than just of voting age.
Key Questions
What does it mean for democracy when only 41 percent of Americans vote in midterm elections?
Should the United States vote on Saturday or Sunday instead of a weekday?
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Assessing Turnout
Do Turnout Rates Create Inequality?
Individuals with more resources participate more
Education
Wealth
Key Questions
What effect do negative ads have on you?
Do Americans have equality in voting?
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22. Presidential Turnout Rates, 1948-2012
Figure 11.8
The VAP measure is the traditional approach to assessing turnout, dividing the number of voters by the voting-age population. The VEP seeks to correct for overcounting in the voting-age population by removing noncitizens and people in jail who are not eligible to vote. Until 1972, this correction made only a modest difference. But given the surge of immigration and the growth in the number of convicted felons since then, the VEP measure is more accurate. Turnout in the 2004 and 2008 elections is actually comparable to turnout in the 1950s and 1960s, but dropped in 2012.
Source: Source: “Presidential Turnout Rates, 1948–2012,” United States Elections Project, accessed January 28, 2014, Copyright © 2012 by Michael McDonald. Reproduced by permission.
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23. Voting Laws and Regulations
Reforms to Voting Laws in the 1890s
Graveyard voting
Progressives called for voter registration
Prevented immigrants from voting
Australian ballot/secret ballot
The National Voter Registration Act
Motor Voter law
graveyard voting:
Corrupt practice of using a dead person’s name to cast a ballot in an election.
Key Questions
If you are a registered voter, what was your experience with registration? Was it a gate or a gateway?
How can the government prevent fraud and still encourage citizens to vote?
Should the government take steps to increase voting? Why?
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24. Voting Laws and Regulations
New Forms of Voting
Early voting
Vote-by-mail system
Some states recently enacted stricter procedures
In-person voting enhances political efficacy
vote-by-mail (VBM) system:
Method of voting in an election whereby ballots are distributed to voters by mail, and voters complete and return the ballots by mail.
Key Question
Aside from voting, how have you participated in politics and civic life?
Key Questions
What are the risks and benefits of early voting?
Of voting by mail?
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25. Absentee and Early Voting by State
Figure 11.9
Source:
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26. Participation beyond Voting
Involvement in Political Campaigns
Protest Politics
The Boston Tea Party
Vietnam antiwar protests
The Tea Party
E-Participation
Transformed fundraising
Key Question
Why is the right to protest important for democracy?
Key Questions
Have you ever contributed time or money to a political campaign? Why or why not?
What does today’s Tea Party movement have in common with the Boston Tea Party?
What is the effect of new technologies on voting and participation?
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27. Nonvoting Measure of Political Participation 1980-2012
Table 11.3
Source: American National Election Study,
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28. Participation beyond Voting
In 1932, when World War I army veterans assembled in Washington, D.C., to ask for early payment of bonuses, President Herbert Hoover ordered them to leave, and when some did not, he sent federal troops to disperse them.
Although the right to assemble and express political opinions is protected by the First Amendment, protests occasionally lead to violence.
Source: Jack Benton/Archive Photos/Getty Images
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29. Voting and Participation and Democracy
Danger to democracy from turnout distortion
A disparity in government responsiveness
The Influence of the Internet
Wealthier citizens have greater access
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30. Pennsylvania Upholds Controversial Voter I.D. Law
Click picture to view video
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31. Video Discussion Questions
Is voting fraud a major issue in election outcomes?
Which groups of voters are least likely to have photo identification? Why?
Should state laws regarding voter requirements and identification be uniform?
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