Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

US Politics > Electoral process and democracy > Flashcards

Electoral process and democracy Flashcards

You may prefer our related Brainscape-certified flashcards:
U.S. Geography flashcards
1
Q

main elections in the USA

A

presidential elections = indirectly select the occupant of the White House for the next 4 years

congressional elections = directly elect members of both chambers

primaries/caucuses = select candidates for each party for presidential elections, congressional and state elections

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

direct democracy

A

various types including ballot initiatives, referendums and recall elections

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

timings of elections

A

presidential elections = every 4 years in November and formal inauguration in January

congressional elections = every two years where whole of house and 1/3 of senate is up for elections

  • timings for all other elections is decided by individual states and often occur once or twice a year (eg. Wisconsin at the height of COVID went to the polls)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

gerrymandering definition

A

deliberate manipulation of electoral districts for party advantage at elections (only applies to house districts)
- recently North Carolina and Maryland have been subject to significant partisan gerrymanders
- usually occurs after 10 yearly national consensus where districts are reapportioned due to population changes

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

role of states

A
  • beyond federal rules surrounding disability access, race and gender voting, there is plenty scope for state variations
  • possibility of political ingenuity such as gerrymandering
  • leeway on things such as photo ID laws and how party elections are organised, voter registration systems, ballot access laws
  • parties also have input (eg. determining the procedure for awarding delegates to the national nominating conventions
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

national nominating conventions

A

occasion when the successful candidate is formally endorsed as their party’s candidate for the forthcoming presidential election

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

the electoral system

A
  • nearly all US elections take majoritarian approach
  • there are some variations (eg. Georgia’s election law requires a top-two election for its senate seat, California with non-partisan blanket primary law, Maine has ranked-choice voting system
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

presidential election system

A
  • indirect method of election
  • each state receives an allocation of Electoral College votes equivalent to the size of their congressional delegation
  • california has largest number (55), DC has 3
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

US electoral system strengths

A
  • elections offer opportunities to increase political participation
  • majoritarian system ensures clear results and single party control
  • primaries and caucuses enable ordinary voters to play key role in selecting candidates for political parties
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

US electoral systems weakeness

A
  • tends to favour two party dominant system with little scope for third parties
  • two parties often control one chamber each making deadlock more common
  • electoral distortion via the Electoral College which exaggerates the power of smaller states
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

significant characteristics of elections campaigns

A
  • regularity and ‘constant’ campaigning
  • more emphasis on getting out the vote than changing voters minds
  • huge expense
  • emphasis on individual candidates not whole parties
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

frequency of election campaigns

A
  • campaigning begins straight after midterms when ‘invisible primaries’ start
  • eg, Trump had played up to the USAs economic performance during his unsuccessful 2020 election bid
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

individuality in election campaigns

A
  • if you want to run, you create a campaign team and get on the ballot by securing nomination signatures and raise campaign funds for things such as ads (all candidates referred to as self-starters)
  • Trump’s 2016 victory showed that with enough public profile, funds and campaigning skill you can become president
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

Trump’s successful individuality and campaigning

A
  • sizeable minority of americans put their trust in him not as a republican but as an individual
  • personal slogans such as Make America Great Again
  • sold his self proclaimed ability as a great business person and dealmaker
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

getting the right people to vote

A
  • most candidates have a strong appeal to certain segments of the electorate
  • eg, in 2004, Republicans ran a national campaign promoting state ballot measures banning same-sex marriage to incentivise white conservative evangelicals
  • many individual campaigns aim to discourage or suppress certain groups of voters (eg. few republicans want african americans to vote)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

the swing movement

A
  • most campaigning in US national elections takes place in relatively small states
  • for presidentials, more money is spent on swing states (Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania) instead of safe states (California, Texas)
  • in primary campaigns, emphasis is on states that come first in the primary and caucus diary (eg, Iowa)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

caucuses definiton

A

informal meetings of party supporters at a local level to decide the awarding of delegates
- there are a series of tiered meetings at a state level culminating in a convention that chooses the delegates for the national nominating convention

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

cost of campaigning and elections

A
  • total price tag for 2020 elections was $14 billion of which $7 billion was spent on races for Senate and House
  • Bernie Saunders pulled in $46 million in donations in February 2020 alone
  • money doesn’t guarantee election outcome (Clinton significantly outspent Trump and lost)
  • reasons for high spending is down to the vast size of the USA and the absence of effective laws to limit and regulate such spending
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

midterm blues without limits

A
  • midterms are an important indicator of public confidence in the president’s performance
  • most presidents see their party lose grounds in the midterms (Bush after 9/11 is the exception)
  • nearly all presidents make promises they cant keep
  • midterms often result in the presidents party losing control in Congress making it much harder to pass legislation (eg. Obama becoming a lame duck president)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

2018 midterms

A
  • 34% saw their midterm vote as a vote against Trump
  • Democrats captured 40 districts from the Republicans but lost ground in the Senate
  • In California 7 districts went blue
  • gaining control of the House benefitted the Democrats as they could launch impeachment proceedings soon after
  • Senate elections confirmed the importance of personality and incumbency
  • 49% of those able to vote, did (the ‘Trump effect’ incentivised people to get out and vote)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

incumbency definition

A
  • an incumbent is a politician already elected and standing for re-election
  • they have key advantage over challenger candidates, including funding and name recognition
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

purpose of primaries and caucuses

A
  • to select delegates who are pledged to vote for a particular candidate at their national nominating convention
  • primaries used to select candidates for state and congressional election
  • presidents planning re-election bids rarely face primary opposition (eg. Trump 2020)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q
A
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

origins of primaries

A
  • primary elections emerged from the progressive era at the turn of the 20th century
  • represented desire to break away from candidates being selected behind closed doors of a meeting
  • did not become popular until 1970s (before used as ‘beauty contest’)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Q

popularity of caucuses

A
  • only a shrinking minority (mainly rural and sparsely populated states) still use them
  • 2020 only 3 states retained them for the democrat presidential candidate campaign
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
26
Q

purpose of primaries and caucuses

A
  • to select delegates who are pledged to vote for a specific candidate in their national nominating convention
  • used to select party candidates for state and congressional elections
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
27
Q

primary and caucus turnout

A
  • often low
  • consists of party’s core supporters
    -candidates frequently veer to the left or to the right to attract enough votes from their more ideologically hardened supporters
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
28
Q

animosity and negativity in primaries and caucuses

A
  • candidates often accused of being out of touch, too moderate, not radical enough
  • 2016 primaries Trump gave names to his opponents (eg. Cry Baby Rubio, Lyin Cruz)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
29
Q

primary and caucus differences between states

A
  • Oregon and New York have closed primaries (have to be pre-registered to specific patry to vote)
  • Georgia has open primaries (all registered can vote for any party)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
30
Q

frontloading

A
  • a state moving their primary/caucus closer to the start in order to gain more influence over the final outcome
  • 2020 california moved theirs from June to March
  • only 4 states are allowed to select their candidates in February (Iowa etc)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
31
Q

super tuesday

A
  • many states have contest together one day in March
    -2020 3rd March 14 states held their democrat primaries which awarded over 1/3 of delegates
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
32
Q

invisible primaries

A
  • when potential candidates may announce their intention to run, set up committee/ campaign team
  • raise their public profile, buy airtime, build chest of donations
  • many candidates never make it to Iowa
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
33
Q

2020 democrat elections

A
  • started with 29 candidates
  • 6 women 1 gay 2 billionaires
  • contest came down to two ideals - the heart (a liberal populist) and the head (moderate mainstream candidate) of the democrat party
  • Biden initially did poorly but gained traction after African American congressmen endorsement
  • Biden won 10/14 Super Tuesday contests
  • two frontrunners where white males
  • the ‘head’ won (Biden over Saunders)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
34
Q

advantages of primary/caucus system

A
  • boost opportunity for political participation as it allows ordinary voters to choose their party’s candidate
  • allow political outsider to run for office (eg. Trump a businessman)
  • road test candidates qualities for the office (eg fundraising skills)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
35
Q

disadvantages of primary/caucus system

A
  • increases focus on candidates as opposed to party or policies which exacerbates division within candidates (eg. with Bill and Bernie)
  • primaries add to the overall cost and length of campaigns and increase ‘voter fatigue’
  • caucus meetings lack voter secrecy and involve a lengthy time commitment and are not suited to the modern age of politics
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
36
Q

possibilities to replace current system

A
  • a single national primary election on one day (would remove the federal aspect of the process and disadvantage small states and unknown candidates seeking to build up along the way
  • rotating regional primaries where country is divided into 4 regions each taking turns on the same day (candidates with strong support in a particular region might gain initial advantage/disadvantage
  • Delaware plan allowing smaller states to go first
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
37
Q

national nominating conventions

A
  • formal coronations of the successful candidates
  • often take place in swing states
  • held in July/August
  • gives chance to unite a divided party as formal rivals line up to endorse eventual winner
  • it gives momentum to candidates campaign via publicity to explain and outline policy themes
  • marks the formal beginning of the presidential campaign
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
38
Q

electoral college

A
  • 538 people
  • set down by the constitution reflecting founding fathers concern on the mass popular vote
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
39
Q

number of ECV’s

A

-number per state is equivalent to the overall size of the congressional delegation
- min. 3 (eg. Alaska, Wyoming)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
40
Q

EC: ways of awarding voters

A
  • mainly on winner takes all basis
  • Maine = winner of each district gets 1 ECV
  • 2020 Joe Biden won 1 ECV
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
41
Q

EC: who are the electors

A
  • chosen among the local party faithful
  • eg. Bill and Hillary Clinton were New York state electors
  • you can choose to be a faithless elector although pledged to vote for their party’s candidate (7 in 2016)
  • faithless electors have never affected the outcome of an election (protest vote)
42
Q

EC: popular vote

A
  • sometimes the winner of the popular vote loses the EC
  • this happened in 1888, 2000, 2016
  • all three occasions, Republican candidates emerged victorious
43
Q

EC: final results

A
  • final results can hang on a few thousand votes
  • eg. Biden won by clear margin down to some slender victories in some states (if Trump won more in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Georgia he would’ve won)
44
Q

EC: stalemate

A
  • if no single candidate has outright majority
  • last happened in 1824
  • the House would have to choose the president and Senate the vice president
45
Q

EC: debate and discussion

A
  • arguments for its abolition or at least reform
  • no consensus for alternatives
46
Q

the EC should be abolished

A
  • winner of the popular vote can fail to be elected as the president (eg. Al Gore in 2000 and Hilary in 2016
  • exaggerates margins of victory (eg. Reagan won 59% of popular vote and 97% of ECV’s)
  • created by founding fathers in a very different political era (smaller and less diverse)
47
Q

EC should not be abolished

A
  • reflects federal nature of the USA ensuring candidates have to campaign in a range of states not just most populated
  • no superior method has gained widespread bipartisan support
  • faithless electors have never effected final election outcome
48
Q

why has the EC never been abolished

A
  • would require constitutional amendment (2/3 majority + ratification)
  • smaller states would lose out and therefore would frequently vetoE
49
Q

EC alternatives

A
  • direct popular vote where all votes are collected and tallied up and winner is the one with the most votes
  • ranked voting system
    (campaigning would centre on large urban centres and undermine federal nature of USA)
  • expand Maine system nationwide (could intensify gerrymandering)
  • NPVIC ( electors pledge to vote for whichever candidate wins popular vote
50
Q

incumbency

A
  • being an existing elected representative up for re-election
  • 2018, 90.5% of Congress incumbents were successful
  • no guarantee of job security (2018 midterms 4 democrats lost re-election)
  • Carter and Trump only genuine examples of non-incumbent presidents
51
Q

advantages of incumbency

A
  • higher level of name recognition
  • boast of past achievements
    (‘bringing home the bacon’)
  • boast experience and a commitment to public office
  • established campaign organisation and donor base
52
Q

issues: economy

A
  • economy is the key issue in most campaigns for voters (Clinton won by attacking incumbent presidents for their economic records)
  • low taxes, falling unemployment, optimism used to secure re-election
53
Q

issues: crisis

A
  • competence and surety to handle crisis at home and abroad
  • George W Bush response to 9/11 lauded for bringing the USA together and his approval ratings soared to 90% helping his re-election bid in 2004
54
Q

issues: ‘October Surprise’ news event

A
  • timed before the polls open in early November
  • can either boost or lower support
  • 2016 a tape from 2005 emerged of Trump making vulgar comments about a woman and Hilary was found to be using a private email server while secretary of state
55
Q

media: political ads

A
  • portraying desired image and sometimes attacking the opponent
  • 2012 Obama’s campaign ad called ‘Remember’ promoting renewable energy and attacking his opponent for being in the pocket of big oil companies
56
Q

media: televised debates

A
  • long standing feature of presidential campaigns
  • 1960 Nixon refused to be made up making him look weak and pale in comparison to healthy looking Kennedy
  • 2016 debate broke viewing figures when 84 million tuned in
  • most chaotic was Biden-Trump 2020 campaign (3rd most viewed)
57
Q

media: social media

A
  • most digital users tend to follow, like or retweet candidates they support
  • allows candidates to air their views with no filter
58
Q

media: mainstream

A
  • growing partisanship
  • ## eg. Fox (Republican) and MSNBC (Democrat)
59
Q

individual qualities in candidates

A
  • focus on personality at the expense of party
  • most campaign ads barely mention party affiliation
  • ‘Hope and Change’ and ‘Make America Great Again’ both personal not party slogans
  • reflects role of primaries where candidates fund their own campaigns
  • wins owe much to their own efforts and abilities
  • social media overwhelmingly individuals not parties (seen by disparities in follower count)
60
Q

voter profile

A
  • gender, race, religion, education, geography, age as well as self-identification with ideologies are important to voter behaviour
61
Q

money

A
  • money cannot buy outcomes (Clinton out-spent Trump and lost but Biden out-spent Trump and won)
  • without access to funding candidates have a slimmer chance at winning
62
Q

America: the divided nation

A
  • ‘red America vs blue America’
    -eg. COVID-19 Republicans less concerned about the virus saying it had been exaggerated
  • some voters can cast negative votes (eg. white evangelicals didn’t like thrice-married Trump but were united to stop Clinton from entering the White House)
63
Q

race affecting voter behaviour

A
  • black (87%), hispanic (65%), asian (61%) = democrat
  • white (58%) = republican
64
Q

gender affecting voter behaviour

A
  • women (57%)= democrat
  • men (53%) = republican
65
Q

religion affecting voter behaviour

A
  • white christians (76%) = republican
  • non religious (65%) = republican
66
Q

wealth affecting voter behaviour

A
  • $100,00+ (54%) = Trump
  • $50,00 (55%) = Biden
67
Q

age affecting voter behaviour

A
  • under 30s (60%) = democrat
  • 65s+ (52%) = republican
68
Q

political philosophy affecting voter behavior

A
  • conservatives (85%) = Trump
  • liberals (89%) = Biden
69
Q

sexual orientation affecting voter behaviour

A
  • LGBTQIA+ (64%) = Biden
70
Q

geography affecting voter behaviour

A
  • towns/cities with large populations (60%) = Biden
  • smaller rural areas (57%) = Trump
71
Q

political realignment

A

occurs when a particular group changed or realigns with a fresh political party/candidate having a lasting impact and setting a pattern in voting behaviour

72
Q

southern strategy

A
  • realignment of the conservative white vote towards republicans
  • associated with Goldwater and Nixon
  • conservative white southerners felt betrayed by democrats support of civil rights measures
73
Q

1932 election

A
  • Roosevelt won landslide victory over incumbent president Hoover
  • Roosevelts New Deal platform aimed to address the Great Depression through government intervention and social welfare programs
  • traditional Republican voters supported Roosevelts Democratic platform
  • signaled a transition towards Democratic dominance known as the New Deal coalition
  • consisted of workers, minorities, farmers, southern democrats
74
Q

2016 election

A
  • Trumps victory highlighted the appeal of populist rhetoric and ant-establishment sentiment
  • republicans saw rising support from working class and rural voters
  • republicans shifted towards nationalism and democrats towards modern and progressive ideologies
  • loyal democrat blue collar workers swung behind Trump
75
Q

core voters

A
  • bedrock of each party’s support
  • parties aim to fuse together complementary groups while appealing to more individually minded groups
  • danger is that core voters would defect to abstention
76
Q

republican core voting group

A
  • white evangelical christians = pro-life, pro-Israel, traditional social values
  • gun owners = defence of 2nd amendment
77
Q

democrat core voting group

A
  • blacks = support for civil rights, opposition to voter suppression tactics, tackling poverty
  • public sector labour unions = increasing minimum wage, greater investment in public services, protection of workers rights
78
Q

2020 elections and finance

A
  • total campaign bill under $14 billion (higher than the GDP of some countries
  • double the estimated amount of the 2016 campaign
  • most expensive Senate race was South California ($227 million)
  • Micheal Bloomberg spent $1 billion and won no states
79
Q

Where does the money go?

A
  • predominantly on people and publicity
  • campaigns need to employ specialists, strategists, web designers, open staff offices across the nation
  • national campaigns involves miles of travel, buying airtime for political ads, social media ads
  • 2020 Biden and Trump combined spent $175 million on Facebook ads
80
Q

Wealthy candidates may self-fund

A
  • Trump pumped $66 million of his own money into the 2016 campaign
  • advantage is freedom from influence of donors and government restrictions
  • disadvantage is that in encourages the perception that US politics is only for the wealthy
  • voters may shun a hugely wealthy candidate seeing them as arrogant
81
Q

limits on donations from supporters

A
  • hard money (money contributed directly to a specific candidate) is limited by BCRA
  • no individual can donate more than $2,800 a year to a single candidate amd $35,000 to national party
82
Q

Political Action Committees

A
  • established in 1940s
  • described as candidate supporter groups
  • can raise and distribute up to $5,000
83
Q

Independent expenditure

A
  • ‘soft money’
  • money spent indirectly to promote a candidate or attack opponent
  • groups that raise or spend this money cannot formally coordinate with candidate own official campaign
  • many major candidates have Super PAC’s behind them (eg. Future Forward USA backed Joe Biden)
84
Q

Federal government funding

A
  • least significant source of funding
  • introduced theory that if candidates knew government would match their own fundraising they would be less consumed by constant fundraising
  • Obama rejected it by calculating that he could raise more by his own efforts
  • John McCain last major candidate to use matched federal funding
85
Q

does money make a difference

A
  • high level of correlation between the biggest spenders and the eventual winner
  • the highest spending candidate only won 4/10 most expensive senate elections compared incumbents 7/10
86
Q

Maryland’s 7th Congressional District 2020

A
  • in 2020, the safely Democrat 7th district in Maryland saw Republican challenger Klacik greatly outspend candidate Mfume yet Mfume ($4.8 million vs $602,000) held the seat with ease securing 72% of the vote
87
Q

should campaign finance be reformed

A
  • ‘constitution v corruption’ debate
  • opponents of regulation point to first amendment (freedom of political expression)
  • supporters of regulation would say current approach promotes corruption (those who give expect something in return)
88
Q

campaign finance pro regulation

A
  • there are plenty instances of dark money and non disclosures, several funding platforms don’t require the names of donors to be made public
  • election expenditure has gotten out of control in recent years , 2020 saw more money spent than previous 2 elections combined
  • the cost of elections means that only the personally wealthy or well connected can really afford to enter politics (eg. Trump)
89
Q

campaign finance anti regulation

A
  • 2016 saw slightly less spent than in 2008 and 2012, campaign finance inflation is not continual
  • political donations are apart of the free market, causes and candidates who are most popular attract the most funding
  • key part of the democratic process, allows supporters to show additional loyalty to their favourite candidates and causes
90
Q

ballot initiatives

A
  • laws or measures are proposed by voters, if enough signatures, are placed on ballot
  • have been held on various topics (eg. marijuana, same sex marriage)
  • most significant and widely used form of direct democracy
91
Q

recall elections

A
  • voters can force elected state officials (eg. mayor) to face re-election before their full term expires
  • most high profile was 2012 Republican governor Scott Walker (enough signatures for a re-election but he survived)
  • Aaron Persky successfully recalled in 2018 due to comments in support of someone guilty of sexual assault
92
Q

referendums

A
  • can occur when state legislatures pass a law but needs to submit directly to voters for approval
  • 2018, Alabama where 78% voters supported an amendment to the state constitution allowing the display of the 10 commandments in state courthouses
93
Q

direct democracy works well

A
  • allows voters to have a direct say in framing laws, represents purer form of democracy
  • allows variation in laws between different types of states that reflect their different political priorities and complexion
  • adds an additional check and balance to state executives and legislatures between elections
94
Q

direct democracy doesn’t work well

A
  • can lead to ‘tyranny of the majority’ (eg. requiring driving tests to only be in English)
  • can lead to inconsistencies between states eg. with same sex marriage before Obergefell verdict
  • often simply a political tactic used by ‘sore losers’ or those unhappy with specific polices, undermines representatives gov
95
Q

split ticket voting definition

A

when a voter decides to vote for candidates from different parties in the same election (eg. in 2020 voting for Biden but voting for a republican in senate or house elections)

96
Q

reasons for split ticket voting

A
  • reflects preferences for personalities over parties in some cases
  • US parties proving to be less ‘broadchurch’
  • sheer number of elected offices offers many opportunities to split ones ballot
97
Q

consequences of split ticket voting

A
  • can lead o divided government at either state or national level
  • split senate delegations, where there is one senator from each party (eg. Ohio, Montana and West Virginia 2020-22)
  • split ticket voting declined because the divide between parties has never been bigger
98
Q

abstention definition

A

not turning out to vote

99
Q

high abstention levels

A
  • despite more opportunities for voters to participate and vote than many other western democracies, the USA has relatively low turnout rates
  • 2016 55.7% of voting age pop turned out to vote
  • under 30% turnout for the average primary (Democrats in 2020 New Hampshire 26% turnout)
100
Q

reasons for high abstention levels

A
  • some states have introduced tougher voter ID to discourage voter fraud (states such as Georgia actively remove voter roles, between 2012 and 2018 1.4 million votes cancelled)
  • Americans have to proactively register to vote
  • lack of viable choice in a two party system
    -majoritarian electoral system discriminates against third parties
  • many voters feel their vote changes nothing
  • many states uncompetitive and victory always goes to the same party
101
Q
A

US Politics (8 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions