US Democracy and Participation Flashcards
1
Q
Invisible Primary in 2020
A
- It was clear that Trump would be a candidate as he was unofficially endorsed by the Republican National Committee in Jan 2019.
- Trump has been campaigning since 2016 with frequent rallies, stirring the media.
- For the democrats the battle was between moderates Biden and progressives Sanders. Kamala Harris performed well in televised debates.
1
Q
What is the invisible primary?
A
- Once a candidate has announced their intention to run they enter the invisible primary, which can be a long time before the actual primaries.
It includes: - Fundraising (‘money primary’)
- Raising name recognition
- TV debates
- Endorsements by leading party figures
- Opinion polls
2
Q
Different Primaries and Caucuses
A
Primaries: candidates from the same party compete against each other in a public vote to win delegates, selects delegates to go to the National Convention, these delegates are party activists who will vote for a specific candidate according to how the voters in that state voted.
- Open primary states: allow any voter in the state to vote in either the Democrat or Republican primary (Texas)
- Semi-closed primary states: allow you to only vote for a party if you’re a registered supporter/registered independent (New Hampshire)
- Closed Primary states: only allow registered supporters of a party to vote , have to register months in advance (Florida)
- Caucus states: hold public meetings/debates before voting by raising hands or standing. Low turnouts and attracts radicals. (Iowa, Nevada, Colardo)
3
Q
What are the advantages of the primary/caucus system?
A
- Shows the proven ability/electability of the candidates, tests their ability to overcome issues and raise funds
- Raises key issues, competition tests different policies
- Offers voter choice which increases participation, choice between factions within a party
4
Q
What are the disadvantages of the primary/caucus system?
A
- Exposes internal divides within parties, infighting can be fierce, this reduces the popularity of winning candidates and creates negative campaigning within the party.
- Confusing as there are different rules for different states.
- Timing can cause voter fatigue, disenfranchising people in the later states, there might already be a clear leader.
5
Q
Choosing a VP candidate
A
- Chosen by presidential candidate/incumbent president.
- Now they are generally announced before the National Convention, but need to be confirmed by a majority vote at the National Convention.
- President and VP will attract support for different reasons, creating a balanced ticket. (Pence kept traditional Republican support whilst Trump attracted new voters)
6
Q
What is significant role of the National Party Convention?
A
- Selects the Presidential candidate and the VP candidate.
- Decides the policy of the party
(after the primaries/caucuses and before the presidential election)
7
Q
General Election Campaign
A
- The campaign between the candidates of parties
- Labour day, 1st Monday in September, until Election Day in early November.
- Media is central to this, ‘October Surprise’ such as 2000 Bush’s drink driving conviction, in 2016 FBI directors opened an investigation into Clinton over her email server.
7
Q
What is the superficial role of the National Party Convention
A
- Acts as publicity for the candidate, speeches by other politicians and endorsements by celebrities
- Reunites the party after the divisive primary process
- Enthuses the party faithful and electorate about their candidate, rallies party activists.
8
Q
Election Day
A
- Registered voters go to the polls.
9
Q
Electoral College Voting
A
- It is not simply the case of winning the popular vote.
- Each states electoral college votes are based on the number of Senators (always 2) and the number of members of the House of Representatives
- Candidates compete on a state by state basis with the winner receiving all the electoral college votes in that state.
- 538 Votes, winner needs 270
10
Q
What are the advantages of the electoral college?
A
- It respects the tradition of federalism by protecting smaller states. By basing votes in individual states candidates are required to win the support of these states to succeed, emphasising their importance.
Smaller states are deliberately overrepresented to make sure they are not intimidated by larger states
Thus while it is important to win large states like California and Texas, small states are key too and their interests must be protected. EG: California has 63x the population of Wyoming but only 18x the ECV. - Candidates have to concentrate on all regions of the nation, distinct issues and needs.
- Produces a clear winner, winner take all ensures once candidate receives a majority of the ECV, which in turn gives the elected president greater legitimacy.
- Protects low turnout areas, states are protected because they have a fixed value. In 2016, Utah and Hawaii had the lowest turnouts of 46 and 42%, despite this those who vote in Utah and Hawaii can still have an impact as their ECV of 4 and 6 remain intact.
- Makes it difficult for extreme parties to succeed, dominant parties have to appeal to the moderate centre of public opinion, however this can be undermined by the polarisation of the dominant parties recently
10
Q
What are the disadvantages of the electoral college?
A
- Small states are overrepresented, regardless of size each state has two Senators and a minimum of one Congressperson, so a vote in Wyoming has greater value than one in California. This restricts the fundamental democratic principle of political equality, the system causes huge disparities in the level of representation between states, meaning larger status are underrepresented. If California were represented on an equal scale to Wyoming it would have 205 rather than 55 electors.
- The loser can win, it is possible for one candidate to get the most votes, but the other candidate gets elected because they won the most ECV. EG: In 200 Al Gore won half a million more votes than Bush. In 2016, Clinton received 3 million more votes than Trump
- Risk of ‘rogue’ or ‘faithless’ electors, there are 21 states with no requirement that electors follow public voting, so some delegates could vote contrary to the wishes of the people.
- Some states are ‘solidly democrat’ or ‘solidly republican’, this means they are taken for granted, by contrast ‘swing states’ have a disproportionate influence over the result. This is because candidates will concentrate time and money on these states, offering greater political benefits to win them over.
- Voter apathy, the existence of safe seats can depress turnout. In 2012, turnout in the election was just 50.1% in Republican Texas, and the Democratic stronghold of Hawaii saw a low turnout of 44.5%.
- Minor parties have little to no chance of success.
11
Q
Incumbency meaning
A
- The person who holds the office running for re-election.
- Presidents running for a second term, incumbents, have a remarkable level of success.
- Trump has joined the incumbents who failed re-election.
- Clinton, Bush Jnr and Obama are incumbents who have been re-elected.
12
Q
Why is there an incumbency disadvantage?
A
- President’s can receive praise but also blame when things go wrong.
Obama was blamed for failure to pass healthcare reform, George Bush senior was blamed over the economy and failure to stick to promise of ‘no new taxes’ - Name recognition and media attention: If the challenger is as well known as the President and can outdo them under the media spotlight/Tv debates, then this undues the incumbents advantage.
Carter put Reagan in his place by asking the audience if they were any better off than they were 4 years ago. Biden had strong name recognition haven’t being a VP. - Electoral resources and experience: the incumbent can be outspent, in 1992 Clinton outspent and beat Bush Senior who was the incumbent. It can be argued that popularity is what raises money, not the other way around, so an unpopular president will struggle to attract financial backing.
- Lack of primary challenge: Primaries may give the challenger momentum, they have the opportunity to show political strength and take media attention away from the incumbent president.
12
Q
Why is there an incumbency advantage?
A
- Executive control and experience: Presidents can bring benefits to key voting groups or swing states, or make popular policy shifts before an election.
EG: Obama in 2011 appealed to Hispanic voters with policy on immigration and the appointment of the first Hispanic SCJ- Sotomayor. - Name recognition and media attention: Presidents can attract publicity and sell their message, their every word will be reported giving them an advantage. Trump has been accused of using addresses in the Rose Garden as campaign broadcasts, where rather than addressing issues and policy, he will make sweeping attacks on Biden and Harris.
- Electoral experience and resources: the incumbent has an established campaign team with a proven track record. Presidents outspend their opponents and due to their history of success will attract backers.
- Lack of primary challenge: Incumbents usually avoid the bruising experience of a primary challenge, this helps avoid party infighting and sets up a smoother campaign
13
Q
What is campaign finance?
A
- Refers to the funding of election campaigns.
- Candidates raise large amounts of money to run an effective campaign, a lot of this is spent on advertising. Without high levels of spending it is difficult for a candidate to compete.
- Campaign donations can go to national parties, presidential candidates and Super PAC’s
- Concerns: excessive influence of major donors, secrecy surrounding who is donating and receiving cash, inequality of expenditure between candidates or parties.
14
Q
Federal Election Campaign Act 1974
A
- Introduced to regulate money in elections.
- Places legal limits on campaign contributions, private individuals can only donate 2700 dollars and a group can only donate 5000 to an individual candidate.
- Creates a maximum expenditure limit for each candidate in the election and requires them to disclose their sources of campaign contributions and campaign expenditure.
- Created federal funding of presidential and primary elections, works on a matching fund basis (for every dollar a candidate raises, they are given a dollar by federal government).
- Created Political Action Committees, a PAC has to be created by any group wanting to donate money to a campaign and has to register to the Federal Election Commission who oversee finance rules.
