Chapter 6: Voting

Question 1

Forms of Individual, Voluntary Political Participation

Answer 1

voting, talking about politics, joining civic/political organizations, attending public meetings, communicating with representatives, contributing resources, campaigning, initiative and referendum, seeking public office

Question 2

Referendum

Answer 2

when voters either approve or disapprove a certain act of their legislatures

Question 3

Initiative

Answer 3

when residents propose changed/new laws and put them on the ballot, then pass or defeat them without legislature or executive intervention

Question 4

Participation

Answer 4

is NOT common and NOT continuous; participants are NOT representative of population

Question 5

VAP (Voting Age Population)

Answer 5

%VAP = ballots/adults>18y

Question 6

VEP (Voting Eligible Population)

Answer 6

%VEP = ballots/(adults>18y)-ineligibles

Question 7

Factors Associated with Turnout

Answer 7

Socioeconomic Status, Inter-party competition declining, political culture, legal requirements

Question 8

15th Amendment

Answer 8

“the right of citizens of the U.S. to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the U.S. or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude”

Question 9

Registration Barriers

Answer 9

poll tax, literacy test, understanding of Texas Constitution, good character reference from community

Question 10

“White-Only” Primaries

Answer 10

blacks could vote in general elections, but whites had already lacked in their own desired outcomes during primaries

Question 11

Smith v. Allwright (1944)

Answer 11

landmark case that declared white primaries unconstitutional; argued by Thurgood Marshall; seen as beginning of the modern civil rights movement

Question 12

Civil Rights Act, 1964

Answer 12

prohibited unequal standards for who can vote, but only in federal elections, supreme court extended to all elections (1965)

Question 13

Voting Rights Act 1965

Answer 13

suspended all voting barriers, section 5 of the law required states with history of discriminatory voting practices to seek federal “pre-clearance” of any proposed change to their voting laws; has been renewed regularly by congress, most recently in 2006

Question 14

Voting Rights Act of 1970

Answer 14

gave people 18 y/o the right to vote

Question 15

Shelby County v. Holder (2013)

Answer 15

supreme court declared Section 4 of the 1965 voting rights act unconstitutional; allowed Section 5 to stand but left it toothless; court found that Section 4 infringed State’s rights under the 10th Amendment and doctrine of equal treatment of States; Justice Ginsburg authored the dissenting opinion that argued there were 2 reasons to leave the law in place, unchanged: 1. “… facilitate completion of impressive gains thus far made” 2. “… would guard against back sliding”; dissent also pointed to separation of powers as sufficient reason for the court to let the law stand

Question 16

Voter Fraud

Answer 16

inflated voter rolls are common problems but are not proof of voter fraud; voting irregularities include fraud but also many other problems; voter ID laws are not the same

Question 17

Voter ID Laws in Texas

Answer 17

Texas NAACP v. Steen
- 2014: Federal district judge found TX law unconstitutional
-2015: 5th circuit court agreed it was “discriminatory in effect”

Question 18

Voter Registration Drive

Answer 18

the distribution and collection of voter registration applications by 2 or more persons for delivery to a county clerk and recorder; purpose is to solicit people to sign up as registered voters who aren’t already registered; each state has different rules