Representation and Direct Democracy

1. Representation and Direct Democracy 7 November 2011

2. Announcements • Reminder: Essays due next Thursday week at 4pm; You must also upload your paper to Turnitin through ELE: You only need to upload your paper once. • January exam will be multiple choice format and short answer. • Dissatisfied citizens can try to remove incumbents from office during their terms through: • initiatives. • referendums. • propositions.   • recall elections. • All of the above. • The exam will be comprehensive so to do well you will have to read all of the assigned material and you must also understand it!

3. Incumbency Advantage • Typically about 90 percent of House incumbents are reelected • In the Senate, 78.6 percent have won reelection in the postwar period • Even in years very unfavourable to one of the parties, a large majority win. In 1994, the Democrats worst year since 1946, 84 percent won. In 1974, 77 percent of the Republican incumbents who ran were returned to office. • In 2006, 94 percent of House incumbents won; in the Senate 79 percent were reelected.

4. Explanations for Incumbency Advantage • Name Recognition (opposed to party id as a cue) • Redistricting (in the House) • Campaign finance system

5. Elbridge Gerry’s Salamander

6. Gerrymandering • Equal populations • Partisan • Incumbency • Racial

7. 0 Racial Gerrmandering

8. Florida 3rd “ Gnawed Wishbone Texas 30th “Microscopic View of a Disease Illinois 4th Pair of Earmuffs Louisiana 4th Mark of Zorro Texas 29th Bird with Plumage New York 12th Bullwinkle

9. Campaign Money • A good candidate and a good message are not enough. Without money, the voters do not see the candidate or hear the message. • In contemporary candidate-centered campaigns, candidates (as opposed to the party organizations) must assemble their own campaign teams, raise their own money, hire consultants and technical specialists, and design and execute their own individual campaign strategies. • Recent elections reflect the rise in cost.

10. Money Raised in 2008 Source: www opensecrets.org

11. 0

12. Ethics and Honesty

13. Attitudes about Campaign Finance

14. The Campaign Finance Regulation System • Campaign finance operates through two parallel systems: • Money going directly to candidates is subject to limits on the size of contributions and full disclosure of sources. See Federal Election Commission. • The Federal Election Campaign Act (FEC) of 1974 imposed limits on both contributions and spending for congressional candidates. However the Supreme Court ruled in Buckley vs. Valeo that the spending limits were unconstitutional because such restrictions limited free speech. • Presidential candidates who accept public funds (voluntary) also must observe spending limits. But money raised and spent outside of the candidates’ campaigns (soft money, issue advocacy) is lightly regulated and not subject to limits. • Obama was the first presidential candidate to refuse public funds so he would not have to abide by limits

15. The Role of the Representative • Trustees—legislators who use their own judgment to decide what is right • Delegates-legislators who carry out the precise wishes of their constituents back home regardless of what they personally believe is best • Symbolic-does Congress look like America?

16. African American and Hispanics in Congress

17. Women in Congress

18. Policy Representation

19. Direct Democracy as an Alternative • Rather than voting for representatives, citizens are able to draft and vote directly on policy • Direct democracy allows citizens to be their own “legislators” • Direct democracy also allows citizens to set the policy agenda • Circumvent a non-responsive legislature

20. Recall the reasoning for the U.S. Constitutional Framework… • America is not so much a democracy as it is a republic. • The whole idea of the Constitution was to limit majority rule, to prevent tyranny of the majority. This is why citizens do not make laws directly, but elect representatives to do so, and supra-majorities or checks and balances are required in every step of legislation and execution. • Nevertheless, the Constitution reserves power to the states to determine their own laws. Many states allow voters to make laws directly.

21. Devices of Direct Democracy • The Referendum • Government places a question before the voters • The Initiative • Allows voters (or some organized group) to define the issue or question to be voted on • The Recall • Allows voters to undo elections by recalling elected officials

22. The Referendum • France and the Netherlands recently voted on the European Constitution (2005) • Constitution of Iraq (2005) • Australian Republic (1999) • Canada “Charlottetown Accord” (1992)— • divisions of powers between federal and provinces • Ireland (1995) held a referendum to decide whether divorce should be legal

23. The Initiative—Some Examples • Taxes • Prop 13 (California, 1978) • Medicinal marijuana • California’s Prop 315 (1996); Proposition 1 (Michigan 2008); Measure 67 (Oregon, 1998) • New proposals in California would legalise, tax and regulate the drug in what would be the first such law in the United States. Tax officials estimate that legislation could bring $1.4 billion a year. • Ban same-sex marriage • 11 states (2004); 3 states (2008) • Deny illegal immigrants social services, health care, and public education • Prop 187 (California, 1994)

24. The Recall • Typically used for local offices • Exception-California Governor (October 7, 2003) • Signatures • Results

25. Where Direct Democracy is used

26. Examples of Ballot MeasuresCalifornia (2010)

27. Vote on Legalizing Marijuana (CA) Source: CNN Exit Polls

28. Advantages • Allows citizens to circumvent unresponsive legislatures (example of term limits and other reforms) • Allows citizens to remove unpopular representatives (example of Gray Davis) • Empowers voters

29. Criticisms of Direct Democracy • Original intent of the framers was for a republican form of government • Too much money and “special interest” influence • Voters are incompetent • Concern about minority rights

30. Reasons Californians Support Direct Democracy Source: Table 7.1, p. 135 Donovan and Bowler

31. Voter Evaluations of Representative versus Direct Democracy Source: Table 7.2, p. 136 Donovan and Bowler