Influences on Elections

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Influences on Elections
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Public Opinion

• Attitudes held by a significant number of people
  on matters of government and politics
• Influenced by mass media , campaign
  advertisements, and or public opinion polls.

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Mass Media

• Include those means of communication (newspapers,
  magazines, radio , the internet and television)
  that can reach a large group simultaneously
• The information people receive from the media has
  a huge effect on the formation of public opinion
  and which candidates they choose to support.

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Mass Media cont.

• The Best way to get informed from the media is to
  explore a variety of sources of political
  information.

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Campaign Advertising

• Candidates or supporters of candidates use
  advertising to persuade and mobilize the
  electorate.
• Advertisements often use propaganda ( is a
  technique to influence people to adopt a
  particular belief, whether factual or non factual)

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Public Opinion Polls

• Scientific polling is used to measure the publics
  attitudes.
• Candidates often refine their campaign strategies
  based on the information found in these polls

http//www.pollingreport.com/
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Voter behavior

• Voter behavior is determined by Sociological
  (social and economic characteristics) and
  Psychological (preceptions of politics) factors

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Sociological Factors

• Income, education, age, gender, religious
  background, geography, family

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Psychological factors

• Party identification , feelings towards a
  candidate, or feelings toward issues

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Assignment I

• Use your books to match the following amendments
  to the correct number.
• 15th amendment , 17th amendment , 19th amendment,
  23rd , 26th
• -Ensures the right to vote regardless of race.
• -calls for direct election of US Senators
• -allows voters in Washington D.C. to vote for
  President and Vice-President
• -grants women the right to vote.
• -give the right to vote to citizens 18 years and
  older

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Suffrage Amendment 15 and the need for Voters
Rights Act of 1964

• Although the 15th amendment ensured the right to
  vote regardless of race, poll taxes , literacy
  test, threats and social pressures have been used
  to keep African Americans from voting.

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Cont.

• The Voters Right Act of 1964 was needed because
  the 15 amendment did not secure the rights of
  African Americans.
• The reason it did not secure their rights is b/c
  the federal government did not intervene to
  uphold the amendment.

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Voter Apathy

• Basically this means people who do not care about
  voting. These people are idiots.
• Voter apathy has contributed to the decline in
  voting.

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Voter Turnout

• Influenced by campaign issues, candidates, voter
  attitudes toward the government, voter loyalty to
  political parties and the type of election
  (presidential vs. non presidential elections).
• How does these things influence turnout. First,
  work with a partner and discuss, then we will
  discuss as a class.

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Assignment II

• You need to work in groups of two to three to
  create a plan with at least three ideas how to
  increase voter turnout and decrease voter apathy.