Political Participation Notes

Includes voting, campaign events, volunteering, canvassing, contacting officials, donating, and challenging laws.
Also encompasses protests, demonstrations, and strikes.
Protests are protected by the First Amendment.
Examples: Civil rights movement, Tea Party Movement, Occupy Wall Street, March for Our Lives, Women's March.
Protests can lead to significant action and policy changes.
Other Activities: give money to candidates or political organizations, volunteer to work on campaigns, contact political officials, sign petitions, attend public meetings, join organizations, display campaign signs and pins, write letters to the editor , and attend rallies. They can also lobby their representatives in Congress, and they can even sue the government or run for elected office.

Most common form of political participation.
Ensures equal voice; each vote has the same value.
Selects officials who make laws.
Suffrage (right to vote) initially restricted to white males over 21 with property.
Restrictions included poll taxes and literacy tests, especially during the Jim Crow era.

Voting rights now granted to almost all American citizens aged 18 and above.
U.S. turnout is relatively low compared to other developed countries.
Turnout in 2012 and 2016 presidential elections was just over 58%.
Lower turnout among those with less education and lower incomes.
Low turnout and unequal participation can lead to skewed representation and policies.
Presidential election participation declined from 64% in 1960 to 52% in 1996 but has since improved, reaching 62% in 2008.
2016 had the third highest turnout and a record of 137.5 million ballots cast.