1. 10/18/10
Bell Ringer: KWL chart for elections and campaigns. Q: Is are current nomination and election process sufficient in producing good government officials? Explain your answer
Mission: Look at the United States nomination system as well as how general elections are run.
After Class: Review Notes from Chapter 9, Check out class blogs and see Mr. Kubey about Campaign Program

2. Nominations, Elections, and Campaigns
Chapter 9

3. Nomination Process
Why have a nomination process? To have parties choose who will be their candidate for election
Gone from more party centered to people centered.
Primary Election - Votes are cast by each individual within the party
For Prez primary...
Democratic party has every candidate above 15% get proportional number of delegates
Republicans do winner take all

4. Open vs. Closed Nomination for Congress and State Offices
Types of Primary Elections:
Closed primary: voters must declare their party affiliation to vote on that party’s potential nominees
Open primary: voters need not declare their party affiliation and can choose one party’s primary ballot to take into the voting booth
Modified closed primary: allows individual state parties decide whether to permit independents to vote in their primaries and for which office
Modified open primary: entitles independent voters to vote in a party’s primary

5. Caucus
Iowa, meeting of party voters who discuss issues and candidates to choose who each caucus will choose.
Any candidate over 15% will be valid
Check page 270 in text for exact differences
Why is nomination important? Party leaders vs. public nomination
I have a scream speech

6. Nominations Primary Election = select who in party will run for office
Primary can be more true party voters
Closed vs Open Primary = Party only voters vs anyone can vote
direct primary vs Caucus = vote with secret ballot vs local meeting
Front-loading (Iowa and New Hampshire)

7. Iowa and New Hampshire Nomination for President
Front Loading, Iowa and New Hampshire
Until the 1960s, delegates chose their party’s nominee at the national convention
Since 1972, national conventions have simply ratified the results of the complex process for selecting convention delegates

8. Benefits and Problems of Primaries
Earlier and earlier candidates announcing bid for presidency
favors more party oriented candidates
negative ads between party candidates can be used in general election
Long primary season makes sure candidate is liked by whole country
political and financial campaigning for candidates

9. General Election
General election: a national election held by law in November of every even-numbered year
All seats in the House of Representatives
One-third of the seats in the Senate
Numerous state and local offices
Presidential Elections and the Electoral College
The Electoral College: Structure
(for DC)
Need 270 votes to win
If no candidate receives a majority, election goes to the House of Representatives
Apportionment of votes changes after 2000 census

11. Abolish it? Presidential Elections and the Electoral College
The Electoral College: Abolish It?
Must distinguish between electoral “college” and electoral “system”
Electoral college is the set of individuals empowered to cast state’s electoral votes
-Elected directly -
-May be “faithless”
-May be good reason to oppose need for body of electors to translate the decision of voters

12. Popular Vote? Presidential Elections and the Electoral College
The Electoral College: Abolish It?
The electoral “system”
Candidate can win a plurality of the vote but still not win the presidency
From , the electoral college magnified the margin of victory
2000 election showed that the candidate could win the popular vote and still lose the federal election

13. Why keep it! Presidential Elections and the Electoral College
The Electoral College: Abolish It?
Reasons to support the electoral system
Gives small states more weight in the vote
Encourages candidates to campaign on foot and in rural areas
If a nationwide recount were necessary, the problems of Florida would be multiplied by 50

15. How People Vote Straight Ticket = vote for one single party
Split Ticket = vote for candidates from different parties for president and congress
How People Vote

16. Straight or Split? The Popular Vote and the Electoral Vote
Ballots list candidates for presidency, then national offices, then state and local offices
Straight ticket: in voting, a single party’s candidates for all the offices
Split ticket: in voting, candidates from different parties for different offices
Split ticket voting results in divided government

17. Different types of election systems
First past the post election - winner is the one with the most votes, even if its not a majority
rank order election - each voter ranks the candidates so that your vote will always be counted
coalition election - two minority parties will join together to form majority
Proportionate representation - each party will receive the percentage representation of votes they received

18. Regulating Campaign Finance
FEC(Federal Election Commission): bipartisan federal agency of 6 members that oversee the financing of national elections
enforcing limits, full disclosure of spending, admin public financing of prez elections
Hard (direct to candidate) and Soft (donations to party) Money contributions
is campaign contributions free speech?

19. Reforming Campaigns Finance
BCRA 2002 (Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act)
Bush and Kerry accepted public funds for the general election
Allows for 527 committees -unaffiliated groups that take position on an issues. Not work for party or candidates
contributions rose from $151 million in 2002 to $424 million in 2004