US History Flashcards
Election
● Selecting a leader-choice between 2 competing visions
○ Not just picking a person, but picking a policy direction for our country
● Picking a policy direction improves political efficacy
● Knowledge increases during elections
● Provide a safe exchange of power-built in way to overthrow a leader and put in a different one
Caucus-states that don’t have a primary (ex: Iowa)
More public than just casting a vote. You go to a community meeting where someone gives opportunities for representatives to speak. They physically divide the room. There is then a process of elimination. Lowest group of people andidate gets eliminated. Those people who chose that person now go to a different group. At the end, delegate is picked.
2
○ Democrats had caoitc convention. McCarthy shared Kennedy’s view on the war. The convention nominated someone else. Hubert Humohary (did not win a primary, not a critic)
■ Young people rallied and protested
■ Beat and pepper sprayed: kept repeating “the whole world is watching” it was all televised.
○ Reform: primaries and caucuses need to be binded
● Campaigns are a lot more expensive and take a lot more time: affects candidates attracted to the idea of being president
THE ORDER OF THE STATES MATTER
NEW HAMPSHIRE AND IOWA USUALLY GO FIRST. THEY WEED OUT A LOT OF LOSERS, BUT THESE STATES DON’T REPRESENT MOST OF US
REST OF STATES CAN BE LEFT WITH 2 PEOPLE LEFT
○ Leading democratic candidate in 1968-Robert Kennedy.
Against Vietnam War (stop sending young people) Young people really supported him. The last primary was CA. Kennedy won and went up to give his speech. He was murdered that night.
● 1968 and before: primaries were not binding.
They were not bound to the outcome
● Party convention:
States send delegates to the conventions representing republican or democrat. They put their support behind a candidate. Usually in Aug or early Sept
○ Delegates are selected through
a party primary-start around Jan of a presidential election year. Many nominees for each
○ Candidate that gets most votes wins that state
■ Bound to that decision, can’t say no
