1. Chapter 7: Participation and Voting
Daily Dilemma: People have FOUGHT for their rights to vote and now almost ½ of the country doesn’t vote… Why is that?

2. Is protest un-American?
Does having an anti-war rally make participants unpatriotic?
Radical groups may threaten the political system with change, but superpatriots pose their own threat by denying others the nonviolent means of dissent

3. Healthcare Town Hall Meetings
Republican leaders welcomed the populist opposition to the Democratic healthcare plans but worried about containing the new activists’ anger, often directed at Republicans, too

4. Democracy and Political Participation
How much and what kind of citizen participation is necessary for democratic government?

5. Political participation
Elections are a necessary part of democracy, but they don’t guarantee democratic government
Political participation is activities of citizens that attempt to influence the structure of government, the selection of government officials or the policies of the government

6. Forms of Political Participation
Conventional Participation
Unconventional Participation
Relatively routine behavior that uses the established institutions of representative government, especially campaigning for candidates and voting in elections
Relatively uncommon behavior that challenges or defies established institutions or the dominant culture (and thus is personally stressful to participants and their opponents)

7. Terrorism An extreme case of unconventional behavior
Premeditated, politically motivated violence perpetrated against noncombatant targets intended to influence an audience
Political goals often influence terrorists but it does not qualify as a political act because terrorists don’t want to influence government, they want to destroy it

8. Daily Dilemma
What is the best way to influence public policy?

9. Unconventional Political Participation
Used by disadvantaged groups that resort to them in lieu of more conventional forms of participation
Accepts government and try to influence it
Stressful and sometimes violent, but can be worth the risk

10. Support for Unconventional Participation
The Boston Tea Party was one of the first acts of unconventional participation in our country
Less is known about unconventional than conventional participation
It’s easier to collect data on conventional practices
Political scientists are biased toward conventional practices

11. The Effectiveness of Unconventional Participation
Does unconventional participation even work (even when it provokes violence)?

12. Yes. However, it requires a special commitment and a group consciousness
Antiwar protesters helped convince Lyndon Johnson not to seek reelection
Civil Rights Legislation– 1957, 1960, 1964, 1968
Denied the usual opportunities for conventional participation, minorities used unconventional politics to pressure Congress to pass Civil Rights laws
Civil Rights Movement
Direct Action– Unconventional participation that involves assembling crowds to confront businesses and local governments to demand a hearing

13. Unconventional Participation around the world
Americans are just as likely as citizens of other countries to vote, sign a petition, be interested in politics or boycott products, but are less likely to join in demonstrations

14. Conventional Participation
A practical test of the democratic nature of any government is whether a citizens can affect policies by acting through institutions
If people must operate outside of the system, the system is not fully democratic

15. Supportive Behavior
Actions that show support for government policies and those that try to change or influence policies
Expresses allegiance to a country or government
Flying an American flag, reciting the Pledge of Allegiance
Require little effort, knowledge or personal courage

16. Influencing Behavior
Behavior that seeks to modify or reverse government policy to serve political interests
Can seek personal benefits from the government or more general broad policy objectives

17. Particular Benefits
1. Serving one’s self-interest through the voting process is consistent with democratic theory
2. Particularized contact might not be related to voting
3. This form of participation seems to be used more by people who advantaged by knowledge and/ or resources
Particularized participation might serve private interests to the detriment of the majority
Those who quietly obtain particular benefits pose a challenge to democracy
“Contacting behavior” is one large way people seek benefits
Related to socioeconomic status– people of higher status are more likely to contact public officials

18. Particular Benefits
1. Serving one’s self-interest through the voting process is consistent with democratic theory
2. Particularized contact might not be related to voting
3. This form of participation seems to be used more by people who advantaged by knowledge and/ or resources
Particularized participation might serve private interests to the detriment of the majority
Those who quietly obtain particular benefits pose a challenge to democracy
“Contacting behavior” is one large way people seek benefits
Related to socioeconomic status– people of higher status are more likely to contact public officials

19. Broad Policy Objectives
Some require little initiative (like voting) and other require high initiative (like attending political meetings or persuading others how to vote)
Some of the behaviors that influence broad policy objectives are tied to elections and others are not
Studies show that citizen contact in the U.S. is 2/3 for broad policy objectives and 1/3 for private gain
Class action suit can be brought on behalf of people in similar circumstances

20. Conventional Participation in America
Relatively few people are willing to participate in high initiative behavior
The most common form of participation is voting
Voter turnout in the U.S. is at the bottom of all the countries measured on p. 231

21. Participation Through Voting
The heart of democratic government lies in the electoral process
According to democratic theory, everyone should be able to vote…
Should voting be limited because of
Lack of Citizenship?
Criminal record?

22. Who is an American?

23. Expansion of Suffrage
When the Constitution was written, the idea of full adult suffrage was too radical to be considered seriously. Initially, white, male, taxpayers or property owners were the only people who could vote (wealth requirements also existed until about the 1850s).
THE ENFRANCHISEMENT OF BLACKS
The 15th Amendment prohibited states from denying the right to vote “on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude”
Work arounds: poll tax, grandfather clause, private primary elections

24. THE ENFRANCHISEMENT OF WOMEN
Women had to fight long and hard to win the right to vote
Until 1869, women could not vote anywhere in the world
Wyoming was the first state to allow women to vote in 1869
Women often took part in unconventional political behaviors (marches, demonstrations) which occasionally resulted in violent attacks from men and even other women
The 19th Amendment granted women’s suffrage
Of American women non-voters in 1923, 11% cited “disbelief in women voting” and 2% cited “objection from husband”
Clips: Iron Jawed Angels and Bad Romance

25. Evaluating the Expansion of Suffrage
Though groups had to fight for their rights, compared to other countries, we look pretty democratic
Kuwait granted full voting rights for women in 2005
In South Africa where blacks outnumber whites 4-1, blacks didn’t get the right to vote until 1994
Fewer than a dozen countries allow people under 18 to vote
Should we allow people under 18 to vote?

26. Voting on Policies
Direct Primaries– preliminary election, run by the state governments, in which voters choose the party’s candidates for the general election

27. Tea Party Movement
Distrust for political institutions, denounces Progressivism and a large national government

28. Voting on Policies (con’t)
Referendum: Direct vote by the people on either a proposed law or an amendment to the state constitution. Most are placed on the ballot by legislators, not voters. Allows politicians to not take a side on a heated issue
Initiative: Procedure where voters can propose a measure to be decided by the legislature or by the people in a referendum

29. Same-sex marriage
As of 2009, 31 states passed amendments that would define marriage between one man and one woman

30. The Role of the Internet
Citizens can much more easily become informed about issues, sign petitions and contact legislators. This makes initiatives easier because the Internet increases the ease of getting the thousands of petitions necessary for an initiative to be placed on the ballot

31. Voting for Candidates
This is the most visible form of political participation. It serves democratic government in multiple ways
Citizens can choose the candidates they think will best serve their interests
Voting allows the people to reelect the officials they guessed right about and to kick out those they guessed wrong about
The U.S. holds A LOT of elections compared to other countries!

32. Explaining Political Participation
Broken down into the following categories:
Conventional or unconventional
Little or much initiative
Support government or influence decisions

33. Patterns of participation over time
Voter turnout over the past 2 decades have decreased while other forms of participation have stayed about the same
Researchers have found that socioeconomic status is a good indicator of most types of conventional political participation
Those who protest tend to be better educated and younger
Younger people are more likely to take part in unconventional means of participation than conventional means
Education is the strongest single factor in explaining most types of conventional political participation

34. Low Voter Turnout in America
In economic models of rational behavior, individuals avoid actions that have no payoff… Elections are rarely so close that an individual voter decides the outcome
The voting age dropped to 18 in 1971… This actually had a negative affect on the overall percentage of people voting
People believe the government no longer responds to citizen, that politicians are fake and that campaigns are too long
ROCK THE VOTE:

35. U.S. Turnout Versus Other Countries’ Turnout
Differences in voting laws– “Why Tuesday?”
Nearly every other democratic country places the burden of registration on the government rather than on individual voters
Political parties don’t mobilize voters of particular social groups, especially low-income Americans
Citizens are more likely to vote when elections are close

36. Participation and Freedom & Order
Individuals should be free to participate in government and politics in the way they want and as much as they want
Normative perspective says we shouldn’t worry about low voter turnout because citizens should have the freedom not to vote as well as to vote
Each citizen should have equal ability to able to influence the government
“Protest is the great equalizer”

37. Participation and Order
Some types of participation promote order
To maintain order, the government has a stake in converting unconventional participation to conventional participation

38. Participation and the Models of Democracy
Elections socialize political activity
Elections institutionalize access to political power
Elections bolster the state’s power and authority

39. Participation and Majoritarianism
Favors conventional, institutionalized behavior– primarily voting
Participation and Pluralism
A decentralized system means that there are a lot of points of access for citizens to influence their government