Unit 5.1 - Voting Rights and Models of Voting Behavior (Perusall Reading)

What is an electorate?

A large percentage of Americans who vote (usually every four years).

What actually makes American citizens vote? Hint: 3 big things!

Popular sovereignty, individualism, and republicanism.

What is a franchise?

The right to vote.

How did voting work in the late 1700s?

The Constitution originally called for state legislatures to appoint electors who would choose the president. This is how it worked for Washington.

Why was it that many Americans couldn’t vote in early America?

You had to own property and be white.

When did all states allow for a popular selection of electors (aka the people would vote)?

In 1823.

After 1823 (when all states did popular voting) what were some of the requirements to actually vote?

You had to own property, pass religious tests, and pay a poll tax.

Who was the person who advocated to extend voting to all white males? Why?

Andrew Jackson. This is because he grew up very poor.

What is the 15th amendment?

The 15th Amendment prohibits the federal and state governments from denying a citizen the right to vote based on "race, color, or previous condition of servitude." Ratified in 1870, it aimed to protect the voting rights of African American men after the Civil War.

What is the 19th amendment?

The amendment that granted women the right to vote in the United States.

What is the 23rd amendment?

The 23rd Amendment grants the District of Columbia electors in the Electoral College, allowing residents to vote in presidential elections.

What is the 24th amendment?

The 24th amendment prohibits the use of poll taxes in federal elections, ensuring that voting rights are not dependent on payment of taxes.

What is the 26th amendment?

The 26th Amendment lowers the voting age to 18 years, ensuring that citizens who are 18 or older cannot be denied the right to vote based on age.

After the Reconstruction Era, what did the south do to prevent black male voting?

Southern states implemented discriminatory laws such as literacy tests, poll taxes, grandfather clause, intimidation via the KKK.

What is a white primary?

It was a popular method in southern states to keep African Americans from voting. It involved organizations that would only allow white people in.

What is the 17th amendment?

The 17th Amendment established the direct election of U.S. Senators by popular vote, rather than being elected by state legislatures.

What is Guinn v. United States? When was it?

In 1915, it was a court case that struck down the grandfather clause, saying it was unconstitutional.

What was Smith v. Allwright?

In 1944, it stated that white primaries were unconstitutional because it violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th amendment.

What “things” in the United States effectively INCREASED black suffrage?

Growing protests about equality and the post-World War II civil rights movement.

Who was Susan B. Anthony?

She was a leading suffragist for women’s rights in the late 1800s. She spoke at political conventions and helped organize different associations.

What was the 1957 Civil Rights Act?

It addressed discrimination in voter registration and established the U.S. Office of Civil Rights in the Justice Department.

What acts in legislation helped to improve voting for women and black individuals?

The Civil Rights Act of 1957 and of 1964. The Twenty-fourth amemdment also helped by outlawing poll-taxes.

What was the Supreme Court’s message on poll taxes for any election?

They were all unconstitutional beacuse they violated the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment.

What was the 1965 Voting Rights Act?

It was an EXTREMELY effective bill to bring back the black populace into the political process. It outlawed literacy tests and put lower-voter-turnout state’s under strict supervision by the Justice Department.

What was the preclearance provision? How did it come to be?

It became a thing AFTER the 1965 Voting Rights Act.

This provision put states with less than 50% voter turnout under federal supervision if they attempted to invent new loopholes to diminish black suffrage, like moving polling places or gerrymandering.

What is a voting model?

It’s a type of voting process that voters use when choosing a candidate. The type of model can affect voting behavior with various levels of influence.

What is the rational-choice voting model? How influential is this at swaying MANY voters?

It’s when voters closely examine an issue or candidate and then vote in the way that seems most beneficial to the voter.

It isn’t very influential for many voters because people have different opinions on certain topics, so they will vote differently.

What is retrospective voting? How influential is this at swaying MANY Americans?

It’s when citizens look backward to consider candidates’ track record. This focuses on previous actions and policies of candidates, often focusing on the economy and outcomes of past governance.

It can be extremely influential, especially if there’s a bad economy during a Republican’s term. This will likely make people vote Democrat.

What is prospective voting?

It’s when citizens anticipate the future and consider how candidates or proposed acts might affect their lives/the operation of government.

What is party-line voting?

It’s when citizens vote consistently with a political party that they’ve agreed with for many years. It reflects loyalty to a party's platform and candidates.