Test two, Government 2306, Dayley

Motor Voter Law

A national act, passed in 1993, that requires states to allow people to register to vote when applying for a drivers license

Voting Rights Act of 1965

Important legislation passed in order to ensure that African Americans would be guaranteed the right to vote; renewed several times since 1965, the act also prevents the dilution of minority voting strength

Voter turnout

In most elections, fewer than 50 percent of U.S. citizens vote. Education and income appear to be the two most important factors in determining whether someone votes, and this is often referred to as socioeconomic status (SES). In Texas, low levels of education and high levels of poverty are both the strongest predictors of low voter participation. low voter participation in Texas. White voter turn out 35.2 percent Latino voter turnout 22.4 percent Africa American 35.3 percent Asian 18.0 percent percent of registered voters voting 19.89%

What does it take to win an election?

Money and support from interest groups/PACs.

19th Amendment

The Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits the states and the federal government from denying the right to vote to citizens of the United States on the basis of sex. It was adopted on August 18, 1920.

Political socialization

The intro of individuals into the political culture; learning the underlying values on which the political system is based

What makes interest groups successful?

The main factors determining an interest group's effectiveness are its assets objectives alliances the visibility of its involvement in policy decisions and its responses to political change and crises plus of course the media's depiction of it.

Redistricting

The process of redrawing election districts and redistributing legislative representatives in the Texas House, Texas Senate, and U.S. House; this process usually happens every 10 years to reflect shifts in population or in response to legal challenges in existing districts

Gerrymandering

manipulate the boundaries of (an electoral constituency) so as to favor one party or class. Achieve (a result) by manipulating the boundaries of an electoral constituency.

Who Votes?

people who care greatly for a cause.

Political party state structure

provide a label under which candidates run and with which voters identify

Partisan polarization

which is the degree to which Republicans have become more conservative and Democrats have become more liberal, is beginning to become more pronounced in the Texas legislature. Partisan polarization in politics means that it is increasingly difficult for politicians to compromise on important policy issues. Compromise is often considered a sign of weakness and caving in to the other side.

Methods of voter suppression

Before the 19th amendment women could not vote. One restriction on voting that affected poor people in general during this era was the poll tax. Enacted in 1902, it required voters to pay a tax, presumably to cover the costs of elections by the end of January in an election that took place in early November. Texas continued to require early registration for voting—registration more than nine months before the general election. Early registration was required on a yearly basis. This requirement effectively prevented migrant workers from voting. Texas even prohibited anyone who was not a property owner from voting in revenue bond and tax elections until the practice was stopped by federal courts in 1975.9 Texas also required an unusually long period of residency. Until 1970 voters had to have lived in the state for at least one year and to have lived in the county for at least six months prior to voting. The most oppressive restriction on the franchise, however, was designed to minimize the political strength of African American voters. It was the white primary. This practice came under scrutiny by federal courts numerous times in the 21 years between 1923 and 1944;

Interest Group types

Decentralized interest groups-Ones with decision-making widely dispersed among the membership. Amorphous interest groups-One with tenuously connected membership and often unclear focus Centralized interest group-One with decision-making concentrated near the top among a relatively small leadership group. public interest groups-Some interest groups are formed with a single issue in mind, a corporation, Civil rights groups, Interest groups may also represent professional groups

Differences between Democrat and Republicans

Democrat vs Republican. The main difference between the two parties is, indeed, their political orientation. The Democratic Party is left-leaning, liberal and usually associated with progressiveness and equality

Explain the differences between Democrats and Republicans in the areas of economic versus social/moral regulation. Use specific planks from each party platform in your explanation.

Each party has different opinions on the subjects of healthcare, immigration, education, taxes, LGBTQ+ rights, and gun control. The Democratic Party is left-leaning, liberal and usually associated with progressiveness and equality. Democrats believe the Affordable Care Act should continue through avenues such as obamacare, they support assisted suicide, and do not completely agree with the Republican policies on AIDS control. They also believe in reforming immigration in order to specifically target criminals. As well as deducting taxes from college tuition, expanding public schools, and increasing the amount of tax on the 1%. Democrats also want to implement more rights for LGBTQ+ couples and families, as well as increasing the amount of creating more strict gun laws. The Republican Party, in Texas today, is split between religious social conservatives and economic conservatives. Republicans believe there should be a change in the medicare system, as well as a repeal of obamacare, and oppose assisted suicide. They also believe in strengthening our border security through a wall and tracking foreign travelers. The republican party wishes to implement the Every Student Succeeds Act to expand school choices for students, with no federal college loans, and limit the federal government in education. With the Line in the Sand act, republicans believe there should be no tax increases and tax breaks for the elderly. Republicans also believe marriage should be between man and woman and do not condone added rights for the LGBTQ+ community. They also uphold the right to bear arms and oppose any change in gun laws.

Explain the differences between Democrats and Republicans in the areas of economic versus social/moral regulation. Use specific planks from each party platform in your explanation.

Each party has different opinions on the subjects of healthcare, immigration, education, taxes, LGBTQ+ rights, and gun control. The Democratic Party is left-leaning, liberal and usually associated with progressiveness and equality. Democrats believe the Affordable Care Act should continue through avenues such as obamacare, they support assisted suicide, and do not completely agree with the Republican policies on AIDS control. They also believe in reforming immigration in order to specifically target criminals. As well as deducting taxes from college tuition, expanding public schools, and increasing the amount of tax on the 1%. Democrats also want to implement more rights for LGBTQ+ couples and families, as well as increasing the amount of creating more strict gun laws. The Republican Party, in Texas today, is split between religious social conservatives and economic conservatives. Republicans believe there should be a change in the medicare system, as well as a repeal of obamacare, and oppose assisted suicide. They also believe in strengthening our border security through a wall and tracking foreign travelers. The republican party wishes to implement the Every Student Succeeds Act to expand school choices for students, with no federal college loans, and limit the federal government in education. With the Line in the Sand act, republicans believe there should be no tax increases and tax breaks for the elderly. Republicans also believe marriage should be between man and woman and do not condone added rights for the LGBTQ+ community. They also uphold the right to bear arms and oppose any change in gun laws.

Explain how redistricting in Texas leads to polarization. What are safe seats? What role do the primary elections play in the problem?

Partisan polarization is the process by which political parties become more distant from each other in terms of ideology. For example when Democrats becoming more liberal and Republicans becoming more conservative. As a result, compromise between politicians becomes more difficult. Redistricting is a very political move to secure power for your party's representatives. Texas Legislature is responsible for redrawing district lines every ten years based on the results of the US Census. Each district is formed to represent an equal number of people as every other district, based on "one person, one vote" ruling of US Supreme Court. Gerrymandering is the drawing of legislative district lines for political advantage. In 2003, Republicans took control of the entire Texas Legislature. Three Special Sessions were needed. In order to stop this redistricting, Democrats in the Texas House fled to Oklahoma to deny the Texas House a quorum. Eventually, they came back and redistricting was passed. The TX Senate tried the same trick, when Gov Perry called three Special sessions of the Legislature to finish up the redistricting plan. Eventually, they came back, and the new plan was passed along strict party-line votes. So in 2005, the Texas delegation in the US House of Representatives changed to 21 Republicans and 11 Democrats.

What do political parties do?

Political parties help candidates win elections and assist voters in making their electoral choices. Perhaps the most important function of parties in Texas is that they provide a label under which candidates can run and with which voters can identify

Types of Elections

Primary elections- Primary elections are the first elections held in an electoral cycle. determine the party's nominees for the general election. General-The general election is held the first Tuesday following the first Monday in November of even-numbered years. The Democratic Party's nominee runs against the nominee of the Republican Party. Special-special elections are used to fill vacancies in office, to give approval to borrow money, or to ratify or reject amendments to the Texas Constitution.

Reapportionment

Process that takes place every 10 years to determine how many congressional seats each state will receive, depending on population shifts

Texas history of party dominance

With the defeat of the Republican governor Edmund J. Davis in 1873, Texas entered a period of Democratic dominance that would last for over a century. In 1952 and 1956, however, the Democratic governor Allan Shivers (conservative democrat) led a movement often known as the Shivercrat movement, which presaged a dramatic change in party alignments. Supported the Republican nominee Dwight Eisenhower. agriculture commissioner, John White, ran on the ballot as Democrats and Republicans. It was an act of party disloyalty led to much tension in the Democratic Party between liberal and conservative Democrats as well as between party loyalists and the Shivercrats. The Shivercrat movement sent a strong message that many conservative Democrats were philosophically opposed to the national Democratic Party and although they were unwilling to embrace the Republican Party fully, they found the Republican Party more compatible with their views. A pattern in voting known as presidential Republicanism was strengthening, whereby conservative Texas voters would vote Democratic for state offices but vote Republican for presidential candidates. he fortunes of Republican presidential candidates fluctuated between 1944 and 2016. Still, in state elections from 1874 to 1994 the Democratic Party was overwhelmingly the dominant party. 1. The defeat of Republican E. J. Davis in 1873 began a period of Democratic Party dominance that would continue until the 1990s. 2. Other parties, such as the Populists and People's Party, had some impact. 3. The Democratic Party split between conservative and liberal ideologues in the 1950s and 1960s. 4. Republicans began to make inroads in the late 1950s and 1960s in presidential and U.S. Senate elections. 5. The election of Governors Bill Clements in 1978 and George W. Bush in 1994 signaled the beginning of a two-party state. 6. By 2006, Republican candidates were widely supported at the polls. After that year's elections, both U.S. senators, 19 of Texas's members of the U.S. House of Representatives, and the majority of both the Texas Senate and House of Representatives were Republicans. 7. In the 2010 elections, Republicans lost control of the Texas House of Representatives.

Voting Requirements

You must be a citizen of the United States. You must reside in the county where you are registering. You must NOT be a convicted felon who is currently incarcerated, on parole, or probation.* You must NOT have been declared mentally incompetent in a court of law.