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Political Parties

Political parties serve as one our links to government

They provide opportunities for citizens to participate in the political process
As a party member or a candidate running for office

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Functions of Political Parties

1.Recruiting and nominating candidates

2.Educating the electorate (voters) about campaign issues

Rallies
Advertisements
Party meetings

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Functions of Political Parties con…

3. Helping candidates win elections

Fundraising
Advertising
Rallies
Party headquarters

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Functions of Political Parties con…

4. Monitoring actions of officeholders

If officeholder is not acting within beliefs of the political party, the party will not help him or her

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Political Parties: Similarities and Differences

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Two-Party System

America has a political system controlled by 2 strong parties

Republicans
Democrats

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Two-Party System con…

Republican Party

Represented in red on presidential election maps
Republican National Committee
More CONSERVATIVE (right)

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E is for Elephant and REpublican

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Two-Party System con…

Democratic Party

Represented in blue on presidential election maps
Democratic National Committee
-MORE LIBERAL (left)

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Remember – D is for Donkey & Democrat

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Third Parties

Third parties also exist

1. Introduce new ideas or press for a particular issue

2. Often revolve around one particular person or personality

Theodore Roosevelt and the Bull Moose Party

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Third Parties con…

Examples

Green Party’s mission is to help the environment

Libertarian Party’s mission is to have absolute freedom and downsize the government.

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Third Parties con…

3. Third parties rarely win elections

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Similarities Between Parties

Organize to win elections
Influence public policies
Reflect both liberal (D) and conservative ( R )views
Define themselves in a way that wins majority support by appealing to the political center -Moderate/Middle

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Differences Between Parties

Stated in a party's platform and reflected in campaigning

Parties generally have different views on political issues such as:

Taxes
Abortion
Gun control

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Evaluating Candidates and Campaigns – SOL 5c

Campaigns: Are what candidates do (with the help of Political Parties) to win Elections

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Evaluating Candidates- SOL 5c

As citizens, we must evaluate candidates to choose who we will vote for
This includes looking at campaign speeches, literature and advertisements for accuracy
IS IT ACCURATE???????

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Strategies for Evaluating Campaign Advertisements

1. Separating fact from opinion

Candidates will attack each other to win your vote
If you doubt one of these attacks, research it

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Strategies for Evaluating Campaign Advertisements con…

Detecting bias

Ex – “I will only vote for a Democrat”

“I will NEVER support higher taxes”

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Strategies for Evaluating Campaign Advertisements con…

3. Evaluating sources

Is this newspaper or news station always reporting from a neutral viewpoint?

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Strategies for Evaluating Campaign Advertisements con…

4. Identifying propaganda

Used in political campaigns
Especially effective for uninformed citizens

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Advertising

Stanford 2012 Presidential Election Ads

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Sound Bites

Hurricane Sandy

Romney Truth

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The Internet

Ken Cuccinelli Issues Page

Terry McAuliffe Issues Page

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Meet and Greet

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Meet and Greet con…

Obama at South Carolina State University 2008

And 2018

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Debates

2012 Election Debate

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Propaganda – Virtue Approach

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Propaganda – Virtue Approach con…

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Propaganda – Negative Approach

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Propaganda – Negative Approach con…

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Propaganda – Plain-Folks Approach

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Propaganda – Testimonial Approach

Katy Perry

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Propaganda – Testimonial Approach con…

Will I Am

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Propaganda – Testimonial Approach con…

Donald Trump

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The Role of Mass Media in Elections

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Mass Media

Mass media has a very important role in elections

Examples are newspapers, news channels, radio and books

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Roles of Mass Media

1. Identifying candidates

Mass media is responsible for giving us information on candidates

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Roles of Mass Media con…

2. Emphasizing selected issues

Mass media will put an emphasis on issues that are a “hot” topic

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Roles of Mass Media con…

Writing editorials, creating political cartoons, publishing op-ed pieces

These are all ways to voice an opinion with the media

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Roles of Mass Media con…

4. Broadcasting different points of view

Sunday morning programs provide viewpoints from “both sides of the isle”

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Political Cartoons

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What to Look for in Political Cartoons

Characters, symbols and objects
Comparisons of characters etc…
Main ideas/captions
Bias
Your own emotions

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Political Cartoon Activity

Use the last slide as well as your worksheet to:

Figure out the meaning of each cartoon

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Costs of Campaigns

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Costs of Campaigns

Running for political office is expensive

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Rising Campaign Costs

Require candidates to conduct extensive fund-raising activities

Hold dinners, fund raising drives etc…

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Rising Campaign Costs con…

2. Limit opportunities to run for public office

If you can’t raise money, you can’t advertise!!!

Give an advantage to wealthy

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Rising Campaign Costs con…

Give issue-oriented special interest groups increased influence

Examples:

National Rifle Association
National Education Association

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Rising Campaign Costs con…

Encourage the development of political action committees (PAC’S)

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Political Action Committees

Donate large sums of money to their preferred candidate

Run television ads about their preferred candidate

3. Campaign for their preferred candidate

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Political Action Committees con…

Note: PACs do not nominate and recruit candidates…that is up to the political parties
Examples:

National Education Association

http://www.nea.org/

Vets for Freedom

http://www.vetsforfreedom.org/

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Campaign Finance Reform

High cost of getting elected changes campaigning for public office

Money can be more important than ideas
Those who can’t raise money must drop out

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Campaign Finance Reform con…

Rising campaign costs have led to efforts to reform (change) campaign finance laws

Campaign Finance Reform

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Campaign Finance Reform con…

Limits exist on the amount individuals may contribute to political candidates and campaigns

Individuals can give $2500 per election (primary and general) to a presidential candidate

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Mass Media and Lobby Groups

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Mass Media Role in Public Agenda

The media plays an important role in setting the public agenda.

The media informs policymakers and influences public policy.

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Mass Media’s Role in Public Agenda con…

Focus public attention on selected issues

Jobs, taxes, war etc…

Offer a forum in which opposing viewpoints are communicated

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Mass Media’s Role in Public Agenda con…

Hold government officials accountable to the public

Government officials use the media to communicate with the public

TV, newspapers, Internet

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Lobbyists

Lobbying

Seeking to influence legislators to introduce or vote for or against a bill

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Lobbyists con…

Individuals and interest groups influence public policy.

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Interest Groups Influence Public Policy

Identifying issues
Making political contributions
Lobbying government officials

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Individuals Influence Public Policy

Participating in politics

Voting, Campaigning, Seeking Office

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Individuals Influence Public Policy con…

2. Expressing opinions

Lobbying, demonstrating, writing letters

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Individuals Influence Public Policy con…

3. Joining interest groups

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Voting in Elections - SOL 5e

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Voting Legislation and Constitutional Amendments

15^th Amendment Gave African American men the right to vote.
17^th Amendment: Direct election of Senators
19^th Amendment: Gave women the right to vote
23^rd Amendment: Washington DC was now allow to vote for presidential electors

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Voting Legislation and Constitutional Amendments cont.

24^th Amendment: Outlawed Poll taxes
26^th Amendment: Lowered the voting age to 18
Voting Rights Act of 1965: Outlawed voting discrimination of African Americans (Literacy tests)

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Elections

Voting is a basic responsibility of citizenship

Only citizens who register can participate in primary and general elections

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Elections con…

Primary Elections – Virginia

Held in the Spring
Select who will run in General Election

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Elections con…

General Elections – Virginia

Held in the fall

First Tuesday after the first Monday in November

Vote for the person who will take office
Can vote for any political party

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Qualifications to Vote

1. Citizen of the United States

2. Resident of Virginia and precinct

Precinct: Local voting districts in a county or city

3. 18 years of age by day of general election

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How to Register in Virginia

1. In person at the registrar’s office

Located in downtown Danville

2. Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV)

in Danville

3. Online or Mail-in application

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How to Register in Virginia con…

Note: Registration is closed 22 days before elections.

http://www.sbe.virginia.gov/cms/documents/VoterRegistration/sbe_voter_app_DOJ-Printed.pdf

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�Factors in Predicting Which Citizens Will Vote�

The number of citizens who register and vote is related to how important election issues are to citizens

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�Factors in Predicting Which Citizens Will Vote con…�

Education

Those with higher education are more likely to vote than those without an education

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Factors in Predicting Which Citizens Will Vote con…

Population 35 and over most likely to vote

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Factors in Predicting Which Citizens Will Vote con…

Income

More likely to vote with a higher income

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Why Citizens Fail to Vote

Lack of interest
Failure to register
Belief that vote doesn’t count (No Impact)
No time / Too busy

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Voter Participation

The percentage of voters who participate in presidential elections is usually greater than the percentage of voters who participate in state and local elections

Remember….EVERY VOTE IS IMPORTANT!!!!!

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Student Participation

Participate in Political Campaigns
Participation I online or classroom simulations

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Voting Legislation and Constitutional Amendments

15^th Amendment Gave African American men the right to vote.

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Voting Legislation and Constitutional Amendments

17^th Amendment: Direct election of Senators

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Voting Legislation and Constitutional Amendments

19^th Amendment: Gave women the right to vote (Passed after WWI in 1920)

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Voting Legislation and Constitutional Amendments

23^rd Amendment: Washington DC was now allow to vote for presidential electors

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Voting Legislation and Constitutional Amendments cont.

24^th Amendment: Outlawed Poll taxes (Require a payment to vote) - USe to keep African Americans from voting.

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Voting Legislation and Constitutional Amendments cont.

26^th Amendment: Lowered the voting age to 18

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Voting Legislation and Constitutional Amendments cont.

Voting Rights Act of 1965: Outlawed voting discrimination of African Americans (Literacy tests)

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The Electoral College SOL 5f

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The Electoral College Process

The Electoral College process is used to select the president and vice president of the United States.

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