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Voting for Congress. The Statics and Dynamics of Party Ideology. Learning Objectives. Analyze the theories of why people vote and apply them to the 2012 Election . Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of how presidential and congressional elections are financed. Why Parties Move?.
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Voting for Congress The Statics and Dynamics of Party Ideology
Learning Objectives • Analyze the theories of why people vote and apply them to the 2012 Election. • Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of how presidential and congressional elections are financed.
Party Movement • When do parties change ideologies • When do the diverge? • When do they resemble each other
Where To Build a Bar in Central Texas? Here… in Bastrop
Or Here? 6th Street
Lets Apply this to Ideology • Here is a distribution with 0 representing policy liberalism, and 100 representing policy conservativism • A and B represent political parties
Where Parties Should Go in A Normal Distribution They Move To the Center
Why go to the Center • You Cant leapfrog the other party • More voters • At what point do you stop moving to the Center?
The Problem of Being Too Moderate • A Third Party could grab your flank • Too many of your people stay home
A Polymodal System • In PR systems, 1 party for Each hump • How might this differ in a Single Member District System?
Party Movement in Multiparty Systems • Stay Put! • Distinguish yourself from your enemies
How our Parties Deal with the Humps • Social and Economic Conservatives (within the GOP) • The Many Humps within the Democratic Party
How Many Parties in Majority Elections • Duverger’s Law • Mechanical Effect • Psychological Effect
The Kinds of Parties • Those who are there to win • Those that are there to influence
How many parties in a PR system? • As many parties as humps exist • Depends on the threshold
Getting New Parties in Our System • Existing parties cant jump over each other • New Parties come from • Between the gap • On the fringe
What New parties Want to Do Win elections Threaten Existing Parties
How can Third Parties Win? A Shift In Franchise…. The electorate changes!
Goals of Congressperson • The Primary Goal is to Get Elected • The Next goal is to get re-elected (Mayhew, 1974)
Lower turnout in Congressional Elections • Lower Excitement • Lower Salience • Lower Information
Partisanship is Most Important • The biggest factor in Congressional election • Even in open seat elections
Safe Seats • Seat Maximization through Gerrymandering • Majority Minority Districts
Major Factor 2 Incumbency
Incumbency • Can Eclipse Partisanship in some places • A resource that provides many benefits
Incumbency • The incumbent dominates the discourse • The incumbent has the advantages • It is the Incumbent’s seat to lose
Incumbent Benefit - Money • Attract Money at Higher Rates • The War Chest
Incumbent Benefit- Name Recognition • We Vote For Who We Know • What can Incumbents Do?