Influences on Voters

1. Influences on Voters

2. Personal Background • Background includes such things as upbringing, family, age, occupation, income level and even general outlook on life. • Age – Older voters have different needs than younger voters, and middle age voters have even a different view. • Occupation- White collar professionals have different needs and wants from gov’t than lower level blue collar workers.

3. Other influences are education, religion, racial or ethnic background. • Education – The higher your level of education the more likely you are to vote. • Religion – Your belief system helps determine which candidate you will choose. • Race –Minorities vote less than the majority. • Individuals do not always vote the way their backgrounds might lead us to expect them to.

4. Cross-pressured Voter • Someone who is caught between conflicting elements in his own life. • Example – • Catholics tend to vote Democrat • Wealthy business executives traditionally vote Republican • What if you are both on these? Put on top of that that your friends are pushing you to vote for the Green party to help the environment. • For this voter, the campaign issues and personalities of the candidates will come into play in making a choice.

5. Effect of Political Parties • Party Loyalty plays and important party in who voters choose. • Loyal party members will choose their party’s candidate no matter what • Weak party members will lean toward their party’s candidate but will vote outside the party if they feel the other candidate is better.

6. Independent Voters • These are people that do not link themselves to any party. • They vote the issues. • The number of independent voters has increased over the past few years. • As the number continues to increase the influence of political parties on elections will lessen.

7. Issues • Today’s voters are better informed of the issues than ever before. • Television reaches almost every household. • Voters are better educated than in the past. • Current issues have a greater impact on the lives of individual voters than ever before in our history. • Examples; taxes, education, war, social security, environment, gun rights, abortion, immigration

8. Candidate’s Image • Americans want a president they can trust. • The person must have past experience. • Sometimes the personal image a candidate puts out can influence the voters. • Example: many women voted for JFK because he was handsome and his wife was stylish. • If the party in power has done a good job, the people will transfer that image to anyone in that party running for an office. • A candidate must be able to portray the image that he has the qualities voters expect.

9. Propaganda • The using of ideas information, or rumors to influence opinion. • Propaganda is not necessarily lying or deception, though this is the image it has. • Propaganda was first used by advertisers to sell products • Later political campaigns picked up the idea.

10. Propaganda Techniques - pg 496

11. Why People Don’t Vote • Political apathy-indifference • Unable to get to polls • Lower level of gov’t being elected -- the lower the voter turnout • Elections with little of no media attention have low voter turnout • Barriers to voting- residency, problems getting registered • People are relatively satisfied with gov’t and its policies