Electoral Process

Nomination Process• Critical component of Democracy

• Nomination – first step in process– Two ways of nomination

» Party Affiliation» Self Appointment

• Self-Appointment– Oldest forum of Nomination process– Often used on local level; rarely on National

» Who wants to run – publicly declares a bid for an office

» Usually used by someone who failed to receive party nomination (e.g. Theodore Roosevelt – Bull Moose Party)

» Recent examples – Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ross Perot

• Caucus – like minded people who select candidates for election

– Parties form caucus’s to help promote a candidate– Selective not all participated – (e.g. legislative

caucus’s)» Unrepresentative nature» System died after 1824

Nomination Process• National Conventions

• Means of making nominations on all levels– Local, state, or national caucus’s are formed– Choose who will run for what office

» Local convention chooses candidates for local office & delegates

» Local delegates – county convention – nominate county elections & county delegates

» County delegates – state convention –nominate for state election – choose state delegates

» State delegates – go to national convention – make pres/vice-pres nominations.

– Theory – rank and file members will always be nominated

– Rank & file advance through the representative levels

• Highly corruptible – money & party boss’s formed caucus’s to get officials elected (locally)

– They receive kick backs for promoting and campaigning a nominee

– System collapse after 1870s

Nomination Process• Direct Primaries

• Intra-party election – party members get together – choose candidate for election

• Most states use some form of direction primaries

• Two forms of primaries – Open & Closed

• Closed Primary – 24 States• Only declared party members can cast a

vote/nominate– Party membership declared through registration– Voters can only vote on their parties ticket

• Open Primary – 26 States• Party nomination election any qualified voter

can cast a ballot• Voters handed ballots with both parties on

ballot – vote how they want– Three kinds of open-primaries

Nomination Process• Open Primaries

• Blanket Primaries– Voters all receive the same “blanket” ballot– Voters have choice – vote according to

party; or switch back & forth between parties

• Run-off Primaries – 10 States– Absolute majority needed to win a vote– If a majority is not reached – a runoff is

held» Two top vote-getters face each other

for party nomination» Winner takes all

• Non-partisan Primary– Candidates not identified by party labels

» Judges, sheriffs, some county positions run as non-partisan

– Non-partisan primary winners then allowed to run for election

Nomination Process• Evaluation of the Primary

• Primaries are intra-party nomination elections– Intended to put nomination power in the party’s

membership – not the party leaders– Gives party members an opportunity to participate in

core politics• Weakness’s

– Closed primaries – declaration of party affiliation before voting

– No voting for more than one candidate– Exclusion of independents from the ballots – penciled

in nominees – Primary campaigns are costly

» Intra-party - trying to capture the vote» Leads to Money problems of American politics –

no money = no office– Intra-party conflicts – wound and divide a party

» It has split parties– Un-informed cliental

» General public doesn’t understand primaries» Low voter turn out» Most notable individuals usually get the

nomination

Nomination Process• Petition Process

• Nomination by petition– Popular on the local level

» Used usually for minor parties or non-partisan officials

– Collection of signatures to put someone in office…or kick them out.

Elections• Law to govern elections

• Any year 500,000 people voted into 87,000 different offices of the U.S.

– What makes all this work…laws/regulations– Constitution sets days in which elections will be held

(Presidential)» States determine their own elections

• Elections occur simultaneously– States hold elections same time as other elections –

(Presidential & Gubernatorial)• Several methods of casting a ballot

– Absentee voting – someone votes without going to the polls

» Intended to help serve the ill & geriatric– Automated Voting

» Voting electronically– Poll Place (Precinct Voting) –

» Smallest district in a voting procedure» Helps maintain order – everyone goes to their

own precinct to vote– Mail in ballots (Oregon)

» Modified form of the Absentee ballot – promote more cooperation in voting

Elections• Election essential – Ballot

• Device by which a voters voice & choice is made

– All ballots in all states are secret» Much of history has been dominated

by paper ballots– 1856 new ballot form – Australian Ballot

» Ballot printed at public expense» Lists the names of all candidates in

elections» Given out only at polls» It is a secret ballot

• Three differing varieties of Australian Ballot

– Office Group Ballot» Nominees are all listed under various

offices they seek– Party Column Ballot

» Encourages straight ticket voting» All nominees are listed under their

parties

Elections• Bed-sheet Ballots

– Idea is the greatest number of nominees = more democratic process

» County corners, treasurer, assessor, surveyor etc…

– Promotes long voting cessions

• Arguments against Bed-sheets– More offices and nominees = less

informed citizenry– Balloting fatigue– The above positions carry no policy

making power/authority

• Electronic or Automated Voting• Half the U.S. uses automated