VOTING AND VOTER BEHAVIOR

AP UNIT 3 (CONTINUED)

VOTING TERMS

• suffrage - the legal right to vote (now extended to all U.S. citizens 18 years or older)• electorate - the population of people who are

eligible to vote in a given election• nonvoter - a person who is eligible to vote but

chooses not to• “cannot” voter - a person who cannot vote given

their circumstances (felon, under 18, non-citizen, in prison, institutionalized, hospitalized, etc.)

REQUIREMENTS TO VOTE

•U.S. citizen•18 years of age•Registered in the county you live in•Vote where you’re registered

REGISTERING TO VOTE

•Must register to vote and be put on the electoral roll in order to vote• Some states allow voters to register on

Election Day, others a period before•Motor Voter Act (1993) – made voter

registration easier by allowing people to register to vote when they apply for or renew their driver’s license

VOTING FACTORS

1.) Gender: women tend to vote more than men-trend: women vote Dem., men vote GOP

2.) Age: the older an individual, the more likely they are to vote (young people 18-29 are lowest voting group)

-trend: younger votes Dem., older voteGOP

3.) Education: Higher education levels (post-high school) are more politically involved

4.) Race/Ethnicity: White/Non-Hispanic tend to vote more than minority groups

-trend: minorities vote Dem., whites vote GOP

5.) Marital Status: Married people are more likely to vote than singles

6.) Party Identification: those who identify with a certain political party will vote more than those without affiliation

7.) Income - People with incomes of at least $50,000 or more vote more than lower incomes

-trend: incomes lower than $50,000 vote Dem., above $50,000 vote GOP

8.) Voting habits - have voted once, tend to vote again9.) people with a high political efficacy- believe their

vote and voice MATTERS and that they can make a difference in the political process (through political participation)

-low political efficacy = low voter turnout

EXPLAINING HOW PEOPLE VOTE

•mandate theory of elections - the idea that the winning candidate is given a mandate (order) by the people to carry out certain policies

(“the people have spoken by choosing me”)

• Party Identification:–People tend to align themselves with a

certain party they agree with and keep this affiliation for a long time

–Growing trend: some people are voting less strictly on party lines and more for the candidate they see fit to govern

• Candidate image:–How a candidate is perceived (attractive,

intelligent, competent, trustworthy, etc.) has an impact on how people vote

–Voters judge a candidate’s personality to gauge how they would perform in office, then vote accordingly

–Since TV, people pay attention more to the candidates themselves than ever

• Policy issues:– policy voting - People will vote according to

their views on given policy issuesRequires them to:1.) Know their own positions on the policies2.) Know the candidates’ positions on the

policies3.) See the difference between candidates on

the issues4.) Vote accordingly

OBSTRUCTING THE VOTE

• In the past, tactics have been used to keep people from voting:

1.) literacy tests - voters had to prove they could read and write before they could vote

2.) poll taxes - voters had to pay a fee to vote3.) gerrymandering - drawing of Congressional

districts to give a political party an advantage--Congressional districts were drawn to keep certain populations from voting in a district

4.) Voter ID laws* - must show a valid ID to vote in some states

EXPANDING SUFFRAGE

• Original requirements: male, white, owned property• 15th Amendment (1870) - banned all

discrimination in voting based on race (all men could now vote)• 19th Amendment (1920) - women gained

suffrage• 26th Amendment (1971) - minimum voting age

set at 18 years (used to be 21)

VOTING ON STATE MEASURES

• Initiative - voters want to change their state laws and petition to put it on the ballot/send to state legislature

–VOTERS start the process with petitions

• Referendum - state legislature sends a measure/possible law for voter feedback/approval on ballot• Ex: changes to a state constitution must be

approved by the state’s residents

• Recall - lets voters remove/replace a gov’t official before they finish their term in office