Elections and Voting Behavior

1. Elections and Voting Behavior

2. Suffrage – The right to vote. • Who can’t vote in the U.S? • Incarcerated criminals • Non-citizens (immigrants) • In some states, Felons. • Some states ban those on parole from voting. Can you vote?!

3. Political Efficacy - The belief an individual has that their individual vote truly does make a difference in government • Civic Duty – The belief that an individual should vote to support the democratic process. • Voting preserves the right to vote To Vote, or Not To Vote

4. The requirement that voters must register before voting. • Some states require to be registered 30 days before the election • Some states allow day-of registration • These states had higher voting turn out than others in 2008 Voter Registration

5. 1. Many voters forget to register. • 2.Citizens vote more here than other nations • 1 official for 500 citizens. • 3. Choices are very similar • Not a radical choice like Democracy vs. Fascism • 4.Mid-week elections • One of the few nations without elections on the weekend. Why is voter turnout low?

6. Education – those with higher-than-average education vote more frequently than others • Age – Older citizens tend to vote more than younger • Race – racial minorities tend to be underrepresented Who votes anymore anyway?

7. Gender – Women were typically discouraged from voting, now they vote more often than men • Marital Status – People who are married vote more often • Government employee – Have something to lose The List Keeps Going

8. How many adults aren’t given the right to vote? • What does it mean to disenfranchise? • Where do the majority of these blocked voters live? • How does this make you feel? Felon’s Rights

9. Simplifies the Political sphere for voters • “People choose to identify with a party which they generally agree…As a result they need not concern themselves with every issue that comes along, but generally rely on their party designation to guide them” • Parties tend to rely on demographics for voters • Democrats – Jewish, and Minority voters • Republicans – Conservative evangelicals, and upper-class Americans Party Identifier

10. Floating voters – votes for the best candidates based on their research and concerns • Young people are likely to belong to this group • Vote differently regardless of party Floating Voters?

11. Candidates worrying about image concentrate on 3 dimensions • 1. Reliability • 2. Competence • 3. Integrity • More educated voters tend to take these into consideration when voting 3D

12. Voting in line with a candidate/party’s policies. • Stance on abortion, war, tax reform etc. • Candidates sometimes use vague language • Nixon and Humphrey avoided taking a clear stance on Vietnam Policy Voting

13. Policy voting generally follows 4 conditions • 1. Voters must have a clear sense of their policy views. • 2. Voters must know where candidates stand on policies • 3. Must see differences between candidates • 4. Must cast a vote in favor for a candidate with their views. • Tend to follow these rules 71% of the time Conditions