1. 8
Campaigns and Elections Democracy in Action

2. Elections: The Rules of the Game
8.1
Elections: The Rules of the Game
Regularly Scheduled Elections
Fixed, Staggered, and Sometimes
Limited Terms
Term Limits
Winner Take All
The Electoral College

3. Regularly Scheduled Elections
8.1
Regularly Scheduled Elections
Elections held at fixed intervals
Party in power cannot change date
Congressional elections held on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November of even-numbered year
Presidential elections every four years

4. Fixed, Staggered, and Sometimes Limited Terms
8.1
Fixed, Staggered, and Sometimes Limited Terms
Fixed Terms of Office
U.S. Representative = 2 years
U.S. Senator = 6 years
President = 4 years
Staggered Terms of Office
All House members run every two years
Only 1/3 of Senate also run every two years

5. Term Limits 8.1 President limited to two terms
Twenty-Second Amendment
Efforts to limit terms of state legislators
State-level limits largely adopted in 1990s
Proposals for federal office limits defeated by Congress and Supreme Court

6. Winner Take All 8.1 Plurality of votes wins Single-member districts
Majority is not required
Favors moderates
Single-member districts
Usually only one winner per office
In combination with winner-take-all system, virtually
guarantees two-party system
Proportional representation

7. The Electoral College 8.1 Electoral system
Number of electors same as number of representatives and senators
Electors vote for candidate who wins state
Candidate with majority of electoral votes wins
If no majority, House of Reps. chooses
Electoral College influences politics
Candidates must win in most populous states
2000 Election – Al Gore

8. 8.1
TABLE 8.1: 2004, 2008, and 2012 battleground states

9. 8.2
Counting Votes
Different types of ballots
Subject to miscounts

10. Counting Votes 8.2 Absentee ballots and mail voting
Importance of poll workers
Determining who can vote

11. Running for Congress 8.3 The House of Representatives
Most House races are not competitive
Partisan gerrymandering

12. 8.3
FIGURE 8.1: Safe and competitive House seats, 2000–2010

13. Running for Congress 8.3 The Senate Better financed than House races
Midterm elections

14. 8.3
FIGURE 8.2: Seats gained or lost by the president’s party in midterm elections,
1974–2010

15. The House of Representatives
8.3
The House of Representatives
Mounting a primary campaign
Fundraising
Personal organization
Media visibility
Campaigning for the general election
More voters than primary
Partisanship is more important
Name recognition for incumbents and funding

16. The Senate 8.3 Higher profile Higher cost of Senate campaigns
Six-year terms
Higher cost of Senate campaigns
Interest groups often commit more money to competitive races in smaller states

17. 8.3
Figure 8.3: Rising campaign costs in congressional general elections

18. 8.3
The Senate
Incumbency advantage
Not as great as U.S. House

19. Running for President 8.4 Stage 1: The Nomination
Stage 2: The National Party Convention
Stage 3: The General Election

20. Stage 1: The Nomination 8.4 Presidential primaries
Delegates and superdelegates
Various types of primaries
“Front loading”

21. Stage 1: The Nomination 8.4 Caucuses and conventions Strategies
Delegates selected by party members
Strategies
Appeal to partisanship in primaries
Appeal to moderates in general elections

22. Stage 2: The National Party Convention
8.4
Stage 2: The National Party Convention
The party platform
Defines the direction a party wants to take on policy
The vice presidential nominee
Choice attracts wide media attention
The value of conventions
Nomination by petition
Must meet each state’s ballot access requirements

23. Stage 3: The General Election
8.4
Stage 3: The General Election
Presidential debates
“Joint appearance” instead of true debate
Television and radio advertising
More aggressive in battleground states
Target ads to specific audiences

24. Stage 3: The General Election
8.4
Stage 3: The General Election
The Outcome
State of the economy probably most deciding factor of who wins

25. Money in U.S. Elections 8.5 Efforts at Reform
Continuing Problems with Campaign Finance

26. Efforts at Reform 8.5 The Federal Election Campaign Act
Followed by creation of the Federal Election Commission
Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA)
Soft money
Contribution limits and disclosure
Independent expenditures

27. 8.5
FIGURE 8.4: Presidential primary cumulative receipts, 2011–2012 (millions of dollars)

28. 8.5
FIGURE 8.5: Super PACs and million dollar donors

29. Continuing Problems with Campaign Finance
8.5
Continuing Problems with Campaign Finance
Costly campaigns only for the wealthy
Incumbents have the advantage
PAC money goes to incumbents

30. 8.5
TABLE 8.2: Average campaign expenditures of candidates for House of Representatives, 1988–2010 general election

31. 8.5
FIGURE 8.6: How PACs and others allocated campaign contributions to House candidates, 2009–2010

32. Continuing Problems with Campaign Finance
8.5
Continuing Problems with Campaign Finance
Candidates’ personal wealth
Growth in individual contributions and use of the Internet to fund campaigns

33. Improving Elections 8.6 Reforming Campaign Finance
Reforming the Nominating Process
Reforming the Electoral College
The Importance of Elections

34. Reforming Campaign Finance
8.6
Reforming Campaign Finance
Regulation of presidential campaign contributions
More aggressive reform than BCRA
Reform of the FEC

35. Reforming the Nominating Process
8.6
Reforming the Nominating Process
Reasons for reform
Disproportionate influence of the early primary states

36. 8.6
FIGURE 8.7: Voter turnout in the 2008 presidential primaries

37. Reforming the Nominating Process
8.6
Reforming the Nominating Process
Reasons for reform
Strong ideological bias of primary voters
Difficulty in producing a clear winner
Proportional voting
Role of superdelegates

38. Reforming the Electoral College
8.6
Reforming the Electoral College
Direct popular election of president
Most frequently proposed reform
Would give every voter equal weight
Opposition to reform
Would undermine federalism
Encourage unrestrained majority rule
Would hurt most competitive states

39. The Importance of Elections
8.6
The Importance of Elections
Elections are complex
The rules of the game affect how it is played
Rules can be changed
Elections are central to democracy
Outcome must have legitimacy
Elections have undergone structural and institutional improvements
Participation still most important aspect