Voters and Voter Behavior

1. Voters and Voter Behavior Chapter 6

2. The history of Voting Rights • 4- 1960’s- Voting Rights Act 1965- racial equality. 23rd/24th amendments- District of Columbia voters were added, and eliminated the poll tax. • 5- Adoption of the 26th Amendment. Those who are 18 can vote. • 1- Voting rights came in the 1800’s- Each state at a time eliminated property ownership and tax payment qualifications. Mid century almost all white adult males could vote. • 2- Following the Civil War. 15th Amendment- protect any citizen from being denied the right to vote. • 3- 19th Amendment- Women’s Suffrage

3. The Power to set Voting Qualifications • Place five restrictions on how the States use the voting power. • 1- Each of the States allows the same voters to vote in all elections within the State. • 2- No state can deprive a person the right to vote based on their color, and or race. • 3- No state can deprive a person the right to vote based on their sex. • 4- No state can require payment of any tax as a condition for taking part in the election. • 5- No state can deprive a person who is at or at least 18 years of age.

4. Voter Qualifications

5. Universal Requirements • Age • 26th Amendment • “ The right of the citizens of the United States, who are 18 years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age.” • Citizenship • Aliens- Foreign born residents who are not citizens are denied the right to vote. • Residence • Must be a legal resident of that state. • Attach no time qualification.

6. Other Qualifications • Tax Payment • 24th Amendment outlawed a poll tax. • Persons Denied the Votes • People in mental institutions. • Convicted on serious crimes. • Dishonorably discharged from the army. • Registration • Must be registered to vote. • Prevent Fraud • Literacy • No Suffrage qualifications based on a person’s ability to read or write.

7. Suffrage and Civil Rights

8. The Fifteenth Amendment • The effort to extend the franchise to African Americans began with the 15th Amendment. • It declares that the right to vote cannot be denied to any citizen of the United States because of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. • Ensured that all African Americans had the right to vote!

9. Early Civil Rights Legislation • Civil Rights Act 1957- Set up the United States Civil Rights Commission. Reports any claims of voter discrimination. • Civil Rights Act 1960- Federal court officers were given the power to help qualify persons to register and vote in federal elections.

10. The Civil rights Act of 1964 • This act is much broader and more effective. • This outlaws discrimination in several areas, especially in job related matters. • This section forbids the use of any voter registration or literacy requirements in an unfair or discriminatory manner.

11. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 • This act made the 15th Amendment a truly effective part of the Constitution. • This law suspended literacy tests, and have people oversee the conduct of elections in those areas. • “ The Voting Rights Act was designed by Congress to banish the blight of racial discrimination in voting, which has infected the electoral process in parts of our country for nearly a century…. Congress assumed the power to prescribe these remedies from Section 2 of the 15th Amendment, which authorizes the National Legislature to effectuate by appropriate measures the constitutional prohibition against racial discrimination in voting. We hold that the sections of the Act which are properly before us are an appropriate means for carrying our Congress constitutional responsibilities and are consonant with all other provisions of the Constitutions.”

12. Voter Behavior

13. nonvoters • Why are those in America that can vote but don’t?

14. The Size of the Problem

15. Why People Do not Vote • Cannot Voters • Resident Aliens • Actual Nonvoters • Didn’t think that their vote could make a difference. • Some distrust politicians and politics. • Factors Affecting Turnout • Bad weather • Long ballots • Long Lines • Comparing Voters and Nonvoters • Those who vote- Higher levels of education • Well integrated into the community. • Nonvoters are likely to be younger.

17. Voters and Voting Behavior • Studying Voting Behavior • Factors that Influence Voters

18. Sociological Factors • Income, Occupation • Education • Gender, Age • Religious,, Ethnic Background • Geography • Family and Other Groups

19. Psychological Factors • Party Identification • Candidates and Issues