CAMPAIGNS AND ELECTIONS. PURPOSES OF ELECTIONS legitimize governments fill public offices and organize governments allow people with different views and.

CAMPAIGNS AND ELECTIONS

PURPOSES OF ELECTIONS

• legitimize governments

• fill public offices and organize governments

• allow people with different views and policy agendas to come to power

• ensure that the government remains accountable to the people

• involve the electorate

• provide mandates-- A command, indicated by an electorate’s voters, for the elected officials to carry out their platforms

CAMPAIGNS TODAY

• Campaign tasks performed by• Media consultants• Direct-mail firms• Polling firms• Political technology firms

• Expensive• $7.1 billion in 2012 campaign cycle (combined races)• Media consultants and ads largest campaign expense

• Ads mostly target voters’ fears• Some work to engage positive emotions• Unclear if ads influence election outcomes

• Candidate centered

CAMPAIGNS TODAY

• Better or Worse?• Extensive polling• High-tech canvassing (micro-targeting)• Campaigning = fundraising

• Here and Abroad• U.S. elections have two crucial phases:

• Getting nominated and getting elected• Requires individual effort

• In most of Europe, party organization decides• Who is allowed to run• What candidates appear on ballots

KINDS OF ELECTIONS

• Primary Election (Begins in New Hampshire for presidential candidates)

• Election in which voters decide which of the candidates within a party will represent the party in the general election. Begins in New Hampshire.

• Closed• Open

• Crossover voting

• Caucus (Begins in Iowa for presidential candidates)

• General Election• Voters actually choose the person to fill the vacant office

KINDS OF ELECTIONS

• Initiative• An election that allows citizens to propose legislation and submit it to the

state electorate for popular vote

• Referendum• An election whereby the state legislature submits proposed legislation to the

state’s voters for approval

• Recall• Voters can remove an incumbent from office by popular vote, are very rare

PRIMARY CAMPAIGN VS. GENERAL CAMPAIGN

General Campaign

• Mobilize voters

• Ideological center

Primary Campaign

Mobilize political activists

Ideological extremes

CONGRESSIONAL ELECTIONS

• Lesser known candidates, more difficulty getting media attention

• TURNOUT IS LOW IN PRIMARIES• Only 25% of potential voters participate

• activists tend to turn out• More ideologically liberal and conservative than the general population

• Incumbency Advantage (80-90%)• Incumbents are rarely challenged but Senate more than House• OPEN SEATS no incumbent running• Name recognition & high visibility are the keys to success • INCUMBENTS outspend challengers 3 to 1

CONGRESSIONAL ELECTIONS• Why Do Incumbents win?

• franking privilege• constituent service and large

professional Congressional staff• free news maker press coverage &

visibility• seniority and plums of committee

assignments• help from party, big donors, and

interest groups-- money, expertise, etc

• Reasons for rare incumbent loses:• Redistricting/Gerrymandering

• Baker v. Carr• Wesberry v. Sanders• Miller v. Johnson

• Scandals• Presidential coattails


• Midterm Congressional Elections• Election takes place in the middle of a presidential term (2014)• President’s party usually loses seats in midterms• Tendency for voters to punish the president’s party more severely in the sixth

year of an eight year presidency• Retrospective voting

• Senate races• Very expensive (average campaign cost $3.5 million)• Challengers are usually experienced, popular politicians—more competitive• Seen as stepping stone to the White House


• House races• Small constituency• Fewer serious challengers; many safe seats due to redistricting• Less expensive to run• More sensitive to voters demands because of 2 year election cycle

CHANGES IN THE PROCESS:1.PARTY LEADERS CHOSE NOMINEES2.NOW CITIZENS VOTE AT THE STATE LEVEL TO

CHOOSE NOMINEES

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS


Voters Delegates nominee


• Parties hold nominating elections in each state

• PRIMARY • CAUCUS • Howard Dean after losing Iowa:• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5FzCeV0ZFc

• SUPER TUESDAY

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS• Primary/Caucus Vote Count Overview:

• THE NATIONAL PARTY GIVES A CERTAIN NUMBER OF DELEGATE VOTES TO EACH STATE (similar to electors being allowed to represent each state)

• EACH STATE WILL HOLD A PRIMARY OR A CAUCUS• THE CANDIDATE RECEIVING A MAJORITY OF THE VOTE IN THE PRIMARY OR

CAUCUS WILL BE AWARDED THAT STATE’S DELEGATES TO THE NATIONAL CONVENTION BY ONE OF TWO FORMULAS:

• WINNER TAKE ALL (Republicans)• PROPORTIONAL REPRESENTATION (Democrats)

• For example, the Dems give GA 124 delegates and the Repubs give GA 76 delegates.

• In 2008, Barack Obama won GA’s Democratic primary with 66% of the votes, he received 82 delegates. Hillary Clinton came in 2nd with 30% of the vote. She received 37 delegates.

• In 2012, Newt Gingrich won GA’s Repub primary, he received all 76 delegates


State of Oceana has 100 delegates to both conventions

10% of vote goes to candidate A

40% of vote goes to candidate B

50% of votes goes to candidate C

•How many delegates to the Democratic national convention does A,B, and C receive?

•How many delegates to the Republican national convention does A,B, and C receive?


• The National Conventions• ONCE A TIME OF SUSPENSE, NOW JUST A BIG POLITICAL STAGE SHOW• DELEGATE VOTES COUNTED, NOMINEE OFFICIALLY ANNOUNCED • RUNNING MATE ANNOUNCED• SPEECHES AND RATIFICATION OF PARTY PLATFORM• A BIG POLITICAL PEP RALLY


• 1968 Democratic Convention, A Turning Point• George McGovern initiated changes to the rules to prevent another

convention disaster• Quota for female and minority delegates was established• proportional representation was mandated and a requirement to vote by

state rule• Due to the great debate within Democratic party about changes

• Compromise was made – SUPERDELEGATES• How important are superdelegates• Will Dems keep Superdelegates?


• 1968 Democratic Convention, A Turning Point• George McGovern initiated changes to the rules to prevent another

convention disaster• Quota for female and minority delegates was established• proportional representation was mandated and a requirement to vote by

state rule

PRESIDENTIAL VERSUSCONGRESSIONAL CAMPAIGNS

Presidential Race

• More competitive• Winner usually gets

less than 55% of the vote

• More voters

• Held responsible by voters

Congressional Race

• Less Competitive• Winner usually gets

over 60 % of the vote

• Fewer voters (non- presidential years)

• Closer to constituents

• Can deny responsibility

• Incumbency advantage

Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

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THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE


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• #electors per state = #House+ # of Senators

• Voters electors candidate

• Majority (270) to win or a runoff occurs in House

• Winner take all (except Maine and Nebraska)



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• #electors per state = #House+ # of Senators

• Voterselectors candidate

• Majority (270) to win or a runoff occurs in House

• Winner take all (except Maine and Nebraska)


• Result of compromise• Framers did not trust the people

• ex. George Mason: “allowing the people to choose the president was like entrusting a trial of colors to a blind man”

• Framers knew that the group with the power to select the President would have great power over him/her.

• Small states feared a direct election would give larger states an advantage• Gouverneur Morris worried that indirect election by Congress or state

legislatures would lead to corruption


• Three essentials to understanding the design of the Electoral College

1. Constructed to work without political parties2. Constructed to cover both the nominating and electing phases

of presidential selection3. Constructed to produce a nonpartisan president

• 12th. amend.--corrects the tie between President & VP because they run as pairs from a single party


• If no candidate receives a majority:• top 3 presidential candidate's names go to House -- each state

delegation has one vote; each state= 1 vote -- 26 votes wins• Framers believed this was how all elections would be decided• top TWO vice presidential candidates names go to Senate -- 1

man equals 1 vote -- 51 votes wins

• The Electoral College Today• apportionment matters—has recently favored Republicans• Representation of states in the Electoral College is altered every

ten years to reflect population shifts


• Reform?• unlikely because of exaggerated influence of small states

• Reform proposals:• complete abolition—go to direct election

• Proportional electoral count• Electoral vote is proportional to the popular vote in each state• Congressional district plan

• each candidate would receive1 electoral vote for each congressional district he/she wins. Winner of the pop. vote for the state would get 2 bonus votes

CAMPAIGNS AND ELECTIONS. PURPOSES OF ELECTIONS legitimize governments fill public offices and organize governments allow people with different views and.

Documents

elections slide

rare slide

purposes of elections

states voters

electorates voters

potential voters

vacant office slide

kinds of elections initiative