Download presentation
Presentation is loading. Please wait.
Published byMarvin O’Neal’ Modified over 9 years ago
1
Voter Turnout Learning Objective 4: Analyze changes in voting patterns and behavior over time among demographic groups including religion, gender, race, age, and education.
2
Historical Qualifications Religion (eliminated by state leg.) Property (eliminated by state leg.) Race (eliminated by 15 th amend.) Sex (eliminated by 19 th amend.) Income (eliminated by 24 th amend; poll tax) Literacy (eliminated by Voting Rights Act ’65) Min. age of 21 (eliminated by 26 th amend.)
3
Current Qualifications Citizenship Residency (21 days before election in OR.) Age (18; 26 th Amend) Registration (in all states, except N. Dakota)
4
Turnout in the U.S. U.S. -- 50% in presidential, 30-40% in midterm congressional elec., lower in state/local (decline since ’60) Industrialized countries (W. Europe)-- as high as 90% Why? Some countries impose penalties (e.g, fines, stamped papers) Multi-party system allows for more clear choices Automatic/same day registration Voting as national holiday or on weekends
5
General elections National 60.1% in ’04 36.8% in ’06 mid-terms 61.7% in ’08 general 37.8% in ’10 mid-terms 58.7% in ’12 general Oregon 64.3% in ‘12 (#14 in Country) 48.7% in ‘10 mid-terms 85.6% in ’08 gneral Learning Objective 4: Analyze changes in voting patterns and behavior over time among demographic groups including religion, gender, race, age, and education.
6
Barriers to Voting Registration: National Voter Registration Act 1993: “Motor Voter Bill” designed to increase turnout Ballot Fatigue (excessive number of measures/offices to vote on) Excessive number of elections Type of election General Election > Primary Election (where you vote for nominee of party) Presidential > Legislative National > State
7
Barriers Continued Absentee ballots (if living abroad) Young people have lowest turnout Political Reasons Political efficacy Dissatisfaction Lack of strong 2-party competition Weakness of parties in mobilizing voters
8
Who Votes? Level of education: greatest predictor of voting, those with higher income vote more regardless of race, sex, or income status Income: higher income level votes more often Age: older voters more likely to vote Race: whites more likely to vote, blacks more likely than hispanics Sex: historically women voted at lower rate than men, comparable today.
9
Does Turnout Matter If voters represented a true cross section of the U.S. (e.g., race, gender, income), than low turnout would matter Older whites with high levels of income are over- represented (problem of class bias) Studies show that nonvoters are not that politically different from voters and would not vote in a significantly different way Learning Objective 4: Analyze changes in voting patterns and behavior over time among demographic groups including religion, gender, race, age, and education.
10
Other Forms of Participation Petitions Demonstrations/Marches Local Party Mtgs. Campaign Contributions Writing letters/e-mail Trying to persuade others
Similar presentations
© 2025 SlidePlayer.com. Inc.
All rights reserved.