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UIUC PS 101 - Voting Behaviors

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PS 101 1st Edition Lecture 16Outline of Last Lecture I. Review of MicrotargetingII. Microtargeting in Action-Why?-Who is targeted?III. Video Review QuestionsOutline of Current Lecture I. Functions of Voting In DemocracyII. The Paradox of Voting-Who VotesIII. Explanations for VariationIV. Voting Cues-The “personal vote” -The “reasonable vote”V. Political Scientists’ Classifications -Seven Category DivisionVI. Myth of the Independent VoterVII. “Normal” Elections-Split ticket voting -Straight ticket votingCurrent Lecture: Voting Behavior in U.S. ElectionsI. Functions of Voting in DemocracyA. Way in which popular participation and majority rule are institutionalizedB. Enable voters to choose candidates they believe would best serve their interestsC. Serve as a mechanism for accountabilityD. Elections socialize political activity How Many People Vote?These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor’s lecture. GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes, not as a substitute.II. The Paradox of VotingA. Is it rational to vote?1. Do the coasts of voting exceed its expected benefits?B. What is the likelihood that your vote will determine the outcome?C. Why, then, do people vote? 1. Satisfaction from participating if there is a close election2. Civic dutyD. Who Votes? (Those underlined are more likely to vote)1. High income vs. low income?2. Highly educated vs. less educated?3. Older vs. younger?4. Established in community vs. newcomers?5. Employed vs. unemployed?6. Strong partisans vs. weak partisans and independents?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8tlfphtsRQAn Example:III. Explanations for VariationA. Voting is compulsory in some countries 1. Australia, Belgium, LuxemborgB. Registration requirements (different across states)C. Election Day here is a workday1. May mean people can’t make it to the pollsD. Two party vs multiparty systemE. Voter fatigue?1. There are a lot of elections, so people may not vote in all of them making numbers seem lowF. How Do People Decide?1. Issue votersa. People who are informed about their own policy preferences and knowledgeable about the candidates, and who use all of this information when they decide how to vote2. Everyone else uses voting cuesa. Pieces of information about a candidate that are readily available, easy to interpret, and that lead a citizen to decide to vote for a particular candidateIV. Voting CuesA. IncumbencyB. PartisanshipC. Personal characteristics1. If the candidate seems similar to you, knowledgable, etc.D. The “personal vote” 1. Vote for the incumbent if he has helped you or your district with government servicesE. Retrospective evaluations1. Focus on small set of votes made by the incumbent on issues you care about; vote for the incumbent if he or she has behaved the way you want on thoseF. For (or against) the party in power1. Vote for a candidate based on a comparison of that candidate’s party with an assessment of the party in powerG. The “Reasonable Vote”1. A vote is said to be reasonable if it is likely to be consistent with the voter’s true (i.e., fully informed) preference for one candidate over the others2. Voting cues often help people to make reasonable votes in theabsence of full informationPartisans and IndependentsV. Political Scientists’ ClassificationsA. Three category division oversimplifies (Democrat, Republican, Independent)B. Use seven category division1. Strong Democrat2. Weak Democrat3. Independent Leaning Democrat 4. Pure Independent5. Independent Leaning Republican 6. Weak Republican7. Strong RepublicanVI. Myth of the Independent VoterA. Most independents are closet partisans B. “Pure” independents are a small groupC. Conventional wisdom about these pure independents is that: 1. They evaluate candidates on the basis of their qualifications andpolicy stances 2. Are more engaged and informed than partisansVII. “Normal” ElectionsA. In most congressional elections, voters use cues related to candidates themselves1. Partisanship, incumbency, personal characteristics 2. Not affected by the President, Congress, or national issues B. “All politics is local”1. This means that congressional elections are usually decided locallyC. Cues in Normal ElectionD. Patterns in Normal Elections1. Little evidence of coattailsa. Idea that a popular president can generate additional support for copartisan candidates2. Lots of split ticket votinga. When a voter selects Democrats for some offices and Republicans for others (on the same ballot) i. Voting Republican for president but Democrat for Senatorb. Opposite is straight ticket votingE. Nationalized Elections1. When voters use aggregate or national-level cues to choose between congressional candidatesa. Whether they like the party in powerb. Which party is doing a better job on a pressing issue c. Typically hurt president’s party2. More rare than normal elections, but we’ve seen several in recent yearsa. 2006, 2008, 2010F. Where Does this Leave Us?1. Responsible Party Government Modela. Parties should present clear and coherent programs to votersb. Voters should choose candidates on the basis of party programsc. The winning party should carry out its programs once inoffice d. Voters should hold the governing party responsible at the next


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UIUC PS 101 - Voting Behaviors

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