1. AP United States Government and Politics Exam Review
Review Day -- FOUR
Edwards Chapters 9 and 10
(Unit 4 from our course)
Chapter 8 in the review book
(Nominations, Campaigns, Elections, and Voting Behavior)

2. Nominations and Campaigns
Chapter 9

3. Nominations and Campaigns
To run for a political office
must first receive a party’s official nomination
with the party’s endorsement and assistance, the candidate must campaign to win the support of voters
these two processes require a great deal of money and media exposure
Presidential campaigning has become a major part of the political process in the United States
Campaign strategy is the plan of candidates to win the election
the nomination and campaign process is so taxing that many qualified individuals make a decision not to run.

4. The Nomination Game
Politicians begin their bid for a presidential nomination more than a year in advance of their election
in most other countries, campaigns are limited to only a few months
most candidates have previously held a government post, such as representative, senator, governor, or military general

5. Competing for Delegates
Each state selects delegates to send to the Democratic and the Republican national conventions, which have the supreme power to select the Presidential nominee for the party
a few states will use traditional caucuses to choose delegates
closed meetings of party regulars who participate in party building activities and select nominees
most states can now use primaries
voters can nominate a presidential candidate directly, or else they can choose delegates who have pledged to vote for that candidate
state parties may have open primaries, where any registered voter can fill out a party nomination ballot, or closed primaries, where advanced party registration is required

6. Competing for Delegates
political parties in each state decide how to divide its delegates’ votes
Delegates are apportioned to each candidate based in their proportion of the vote in each state congressional district
Republican Party gives all votes to the candidate with the majority vote in each district
Democratic Party divides delegates proportionally by district and statewide
also has “superdelegates”, which are not committed by primary or caucus votes, and make their own choices at the national party convention
rise of primaries has allowed the electorate to take control of the election process away from political parties

7. Evaluating the Primary and Caucus System
primary system has raised numerous criticisms:
1) The early caucuses and primaries receive far too much media attention, which can distort campaigns
This places too much attention on the outcome of early caucuses and primaries-notably in Iowa and New Hampshire, two states that are not very representative of the country as a whole

8. Evaluating the Primary and Caucus System
primary system has raised numerous criticisms:
1) The early caucuses and primaries receive far too much media attention, which can distort campaigns
Candidates who do not score early victories are likely to be dismissed by the media and the public and to be unable to raise funds to continue campaigning
States, to cast influential votes, try to hold their primaries early, before other states
called frontloading, has made the campaign process longer

9. Evaluating the Primary and Caucus System
primary system has raised numerous criticisms:
2) The lengthy campaign and rigors of the primary season discourage some capable politicians from running
3) It requires and encourages an exorbitant amount of spending in campaigns
4) Primaries are unrepresentative of the electorate because few people vote in them, and those who do are more likely to be older and wealthier than the majority of Americans
5) It allows the media, which focuses on winners and dismisses losers early in the running, tremendous influence in shaping campaigns

10. Evaluating the Primary and Caucus System
A national primary is a proposal by critics of the current system who would like to replace the extended primary calendar with a nationwide primary held one day
Regional primaries are another proposal by critics of the current system who would like to replace the extended primary calendar with a nationwide primary held on one day

11. The Convention Send-Off
delegates selected in each state’s primary attend the national convention, where they cast their votes for their presidential candidate
parties, especially the Democrats, have made efforts to reform delegate selection to ensure representation of youth, minorities, women, and organized labor at the convention, particularly after the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, when violence erupted both out on the streets and inside the convention center

12. The Convention Send-Off
some convention seats are reserved for superdelegates, party leaders and politicians who automatically earn a vote at the convention
Democratic Party makes greater use of superdelegates than the Republican Party
outcome of conventions today is usually predetermined by previous primary results, so conventions today are media events

13. The Convention Send-Off
At a national convention:
delegates support their candidate
the party presents its official party platform for the next four years
the winning candidate formally accepts the party’s nomination
vice president is chosen, usually based on the presidential nominee’s preference for a running mate

14. The Campaign Game
The two presidential candidates then embark on a national campaign to win the votes of different groups in different regions of the country
Campaigns today are run fairly independently by each candidate
Modern campaign techniques include:
television advertising
televised public appearances
direct mail campaigns
an official web site to advance the candidate’s platform and collect campaign contributions.

15. The Campaign Game media closely follows campaigns
coverage focuses on candidate’s daily activities, campaign strategies, and poll results
studies show that voters learn more about the candidates’ positions on important uses from their advertisements than from the news
critics fear that campaigns have become centered on candidates’ images rather than their political beliefs
to coordinate a campaign, a candidate must hire a campaign team that serves both to organize his or her daily activities and to conduct public relations
adds significantly to the enormous cost a campaign

16. Money and Campaigning
Candidates rely on television to communicate directly with the electorate, and air time often translates into votes
therefore, the necessity of television has made American campaigns extremely expensive
Politicians spend as much time fund-raising as doing their jobs

17. Money and Campaigning
1974, Congress passed the Federal Election Campaign Act to attempt to control campaigns
established the Federal Election Commission to enforce campaign laws
Initiated public financing of elections – taxpayers can choose to donate $3 to a federal campaign fund that is divided among all candidates by checking a box on their income tax form (Presidential Election Campaign Fund)
set a limit for spending in each election by those who accept public funds
required candidates to report all campaign contributions and how the money was spent
individual campaign contributions were limited to $2000

18. Money and Campaigning
Soft money is one loophole through which businesses and wealthy individuals can make unlimited contributions
Soft money is intended for a party’s general use is therefore not a donation to a specific candidate, but it can be channeled into presidential campaigns
Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (McCain-Feingold) attempted to ban soft money, as the candidate often rewards contributors once he or she is in office
Supreme Court upheld the Act against a constitutional challenge in 2003
loophole in the BCRA allowed 527 organizations to form and raise unlimited amounts to spend on advertising and voter mobilization efforts

19. Money and Campaigning
Political action committees (PACs) are another method, established by the 1974 F.E.C. Act, through which interest groups try to influence policy through campaign contributions
to contribute to a campaign, an interest group must channel money through a PAC, which must be registered with FEC so that it can be monitored
no limit to the amount PACs can spend
PACs can act independently of the candidate and his or her campaign team, by running an advertisement without the candidate’s approval
Candidates rely on PACs to help finance costly campaigns

20. Money and Campaigning
PACs play a greater role in congressional elections than in presidential elections
created to provide unions and other groups the opportunity to contribute, PACs have been organized and used by businesses to affect elections
despite the massive amount of money spent on campaigns and the media’s constant focus on them, campaigns rarely convert voters away from their predisposed party identification

21. Elections and Voting Behavior
Chapter 10

22. Elections and Voting Behavior
Elections are the process through which power changes hands
change is possible because elections bestow legitimacy both on the process and on the incoming officials who have been chosen to lead by a majority of the people
according to the theory of democracy, elections give voters a voice in the policymaking because they allow people to choose the candidate who is most likely to act in their interests or according to their political beliefs
for this to work in practice, however, candidates must represent distinct stands on the issues

23. How American Elections Work
three kinds of elections in the United States:
primary elections
general elections
elections on specific policy issues
take place at the local level through referendum (state-level method of direct legislation) and initiative petition (voter proposed changes in the state constitution)

24. Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice
Suffrage has been expanded several times throughout American history
Constitution left suffrage up to the states, generally only white, male, property-owners had the right to vote
today, almost all Americans over the age of 18 can vote in elections
Fifteenth Amendment granted suffrage to African Americans
Nineteenth Amendment extended voting privileges to women
Twenty-Sixth Amendment set the minimum voting age at 18

25. Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice
Although more people are able to vote, fewer people are exercising this right. Some of their reasons for not voting:
believe that one vote in more than 100 million makes little difference
unable to take off work to vote on Tuesday
reformers have suggested moving voting day to Sunday
voter registration is difficult or inconvenient in most states
procedures have been made easier, especially with the Motor Voter Act, but turnout has still decreased

26. Whether to Vote: A Citizen’s First Choice
Some reasons people are more likely to vote:
perceive a significant ideological difference between the two party candidates
sense of political efficacy- they believe their vote will make a difference
want to perform their civic duty in a democracy

27. Who Votes? People with a college education
Older people, especially senior citizens
Hispanic Americans and African Americans are less likely to vote, but those with higher levels of educations vote in a greater percentage than educated Caucasians
More women than men voted in recent elections
Union members
People who are married

28. Who Votes?
Politicians who rely on these voters to be elected are more likely to address their concerns in the policy arena
Studies show that if turnout increased among groups with low rates, Democrats would probably receive more votes

29. How Americans Vote: Explaining Citizens’ Decisions
People vote according to their party identification
candidate of their chosen party probably shares their political beliefs
do not have to decide on or become informed about every issue
Voters evaluate what they know and see of the candidates’ personalities to make a decision
candidate’s appearance may play an unconscious role in voter decision-making
people tend to value integrity, competence, and reliability in a candidate
voters with a college education are more likely to base their decision on a candidate’s personality
make inferences about the candidate’s performance

30. How Americans Vote: Explaining Citizens’ Decisions
People vote for candidates who share their policy preferences
Voters have firm policy convictions
familiar with each candidate’s policy preferences
able to discern differences among candidates’ stands on issues
person may also vote retrospectively by choosing a candidate who vows to continue policies helpful to him or her, or by choosing the opposition candidate who promises to change the policy
candidates may avoid taking a clear stand on a controversial issue, making policy voting difficult
requires a lot of effort on the part of the voters

31. The Last Battle: The Electoral College
President is not chosen directly by the people in the popular election
Electoral College casts the final vote
institution created by the framers to keep presidency at a distance from the masses
intended to allow only the elite to choose the president

32. The Last Battle: The Electoral College
Each state’s number of electors is equal to its total number of representatives and senators
Electors are chosen by the state party organizations
almost all states are winner-take-all:
candidate who receives the highest popular vote in the state gets all of that state’s electoral votes
Electors convene in December and deliver their votes to the president of the Senate (the vice president), who officially announces the majority winner at the opening of the congressional session in January
if no candidate receives a majority of the electoral votes (at least 270), the members of the House of Representatives vote, with each state delegation having one vote

33. The Last Battle: The Electoral College
This system has received an enormous amount of criticism
gives an unfair advantage to states with larger populations
have a greater number of electoral votes at stake, larger states and their policy concerns receive more attention from presidential candidates
candidate may need to win in only a few large states to win the election
neglects the less populous states (although George W. Bush used a small state strategy to win the presidency in 2000 and 2004)
Because most large states also have large cities, the system is biased in favor of urban voters.
it is possible to win the popular vote but lose the election because of the electoral votes
happened to Al Gore, who won the popular vote in 2000