Electoral process & direct democracy

Question 1

What are primaries and caucuses?

Answer 1

• the method used to select candidates for elected office
• Are held Jan/Feb to early June

Question 2

What are invisible primaries?

Answer 2

• candidate announcements
• increasing candidates name recognition
• takes place when candidates announce candidacy to when the voting begins at primaries

Question 3

What does article 2, clause 5 state about presidential qualifications?

Answer 3

• candidate must be a born citizen
• at leats 35 years old
• must have lives in US for at at least 14 years

Question 4

Difference between primaries and caucuses

Answer 4

• Primaries involve a formal secret voting
• While caucuses are more informal party gatherings that select delegates who turn choose the candidates

Question 5

National nominating conventions

Answer 5

• Held by each party in the summer of the presidential election year to formally elect their presidential candidate
• July/August

Question 6

What electoral system is used in the US

Answer 6

• majoritarian - 2 party dominance

Question 7

When are all the elections held?

Answer 7

• Presidential elections every 4 years
• HOR elections is every 2 years
• 1/3 Senate is every 2 years
• congressional elections occurring fr president are called mid terms and indicate how popular a president is

Question 8

2018 mid-terms

Answer 8

• The Democrats got 40 seats in the House, but lost two seats in the Senate
• Gained control of the House which enabled them to launch impeachment processes and investigations
• eg: House Oversight & Reform committee investigated republican Senate leader Mitchell McConnell for abuse of office for personal family gain

Question 9

Types of primaries

Answer 9

• Closed primaries - can only participate in the primary of the party they are registered with.
• Open primaries - voters can vote in any party’s primary.
• New Hampshire primaries are always first.

Question 10

Caucuses

Answer 10

• Iowa is the first caucus of the season

Question 11

What is super Tuesday?

Answer 11

• A Tuesday in Feb or early March when the most important states hold their primaries and caucuses to gain influence.

Question 12

Factors that affect turnout in primaries

Answer 12

• Type of primary - open primaries are more likely to attract higher turnout.
• How competitive the nomination race is - in 2006 & 2016 when both primaries had a competitive nomination race, turnout was veery high
• Whether the nomination has been decided or not - Primaries scheduled earlier in nomination calendar will more likely to attract higher turnout

Question 13

Electoral college

Answer 13

• Only used to elect the president
• Indirect form of election
• Nearly all states use a winner-takes-all formal
• The number of ECV is calculated by size of each states congressional delegation
• Maine and Nebraska use a different system to allocate their ECV
• A simple majority (270) is needed for a victory

Question 14

Arguments for Electoral college

Answer 14

• delivers a result that reflect the popular vote 2012 and 2020
• ## Reflects the federal nature of the USA

Question 15

Factors that affect outcome of the US elections

Answer 15

• Money - higher spending candidates have a greater