Voting Rights
Be a US citizen
Be 18 by election day
Live at your address 30 days preceding the election
Not be in prison or on parole
Not be currently judged mentally incompetent by a court
In your own words, what is the Electoral College?
The Electoral College is a set of electors who are selected by both the Democratic and Republican Parties to elect the President.
What is required of each state to reapportion?
Done every 10 years, Done by the state legislatures, must be signed by the governor, Determines the size and shape of the district, Meant to be a way to ensure each vote counts
What are the two nationally recognized political parties in the United States?
Democrats and Republicans
What was decided in Baker v Carr?
"One man, one vote"
What is an absentee ballot and who qualifies?
An absentee ballot is a ballot completed and typically mailed in advance of an election by a voter who is unable to be present at the polls.
Qualifiers: People who are...
Away from county - College, Military
Illness or disability
In a Veterans Administration (VA) Hospital
In prison awaiting a trial
How many electors are there in the Electoral College?
538
What does each state require about how the state legislature district lines are drawn?
Contiguous and compact
How many types of registered political parties are in the United States?
200
What was decided in Wesberry v Sanders?
SCOTUS ordered House districts to be as near equal in population as possible (extension of Baker v. Carr to Congressional districts).
What are the Amendments to the Constitution related to voting?
15th, 17th, 19th, 23rd, 24th, and 26th Amendments
How many electoral votes are necessary to win the Presidency and how many states would it take to win?
270 votes, 11 states
What is gerrymandering?
Gerrymandering helps political parties gain seats in the US House of Representatives and State Legislatures
What are the functions of political parties?
Recruit candidates and nominate candidates
What was decided in Reynolds v Sims?
Court held that the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment includes a "one-person, one-vote" principle.
What is a ballot measure?
A ballot measure is a piece of proposed legislation to be approved or rejected by eligible voters.
How many electoral votes does NY have?
28
What are the four terms associated with gerrymandering?
Cracking, packing, hijacking, and kidnapping
What has led to the weakening of political parties?
Civil service, primary elections, dealignment, polling, the media, phone banks, direct mail, the Internet
How can you tell when news is fake?
Consider the source, check the author, read beyond that one source, check the date, check your biases, check to see if it is a parody, ask the experts!
List as many reasons as you can to describe why people don't vote:
Too Busy, Difficulty in registering ,Out of town – (difficulty of absentee voting), Not interested, Illness or emergency, Forgot, Transportation problem, Bad weather, Refused, or Didn’t like the candidates
Name one other country that uses the Electoral College system
Burundi, Estonia, Kazakhstan, Madagascar, Myanmar, Pakistan, Trinidad and Tobago and Vanuatu
What congressional district is Smithtown in and who is the representative?
District 1
Lee Zeldin
Identify and describe the two types of primaries
Open primary – allows any registered voter to cast their ballot in either party's primary
Closed primary – mandates that only voters registered with a party, vote in that party's primary
What was the class code for your class on the online video media literacy website?
GET-VIDEO-JUICE