Political Parties and Ideology

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Chapter 7 Elections
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Nominations the First Step

• Before the election can take place, candidates
  must be nominated
• Nomination the naming of candidates who will
  seek office
• After candidates are nominated, the general
  election is held

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Nominating and Electing a Candidate
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Self-Announcement

• The candidate simply makes an announcement of
  his/her intention to seek public office (could
  have a friend do it, too)

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Convention

• Public meeting of party activists to energize
  voters and choose a party candidate

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Convention

• Now only used by minor parties (like the
  Libertarian Party shown below)

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Caucus

• 1800s - originally a private meeting of party
  leaders no records kept or journalists allowed
• The appearance of corruption led to reforms

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Caucus

• Now - a public meeting of any party members who
  wish to participate and debate

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Primary

• A public election held within a political party
  to choose the partys nominee for office
• Open Primary any eligible voters may vote
• Closed Primary only registered party members
  may vote in their partys primary
• Most common method in states today

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The Direct Primary
Nonpartisan Primary Candidates are not identified
by party labels
Runoff Primary If a required majority is not met,
the two people with the most votes run again
Closed Primary Only declared party members can
vote.
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Primaries Across the United States
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Precincts and Polling Places

• Precincts
• A precinct is a voting district.
• Precincts are the smallest geographic units used
  to carry out elections.
• A precinct election board supervises the voting
  process in each precinct.

• Polling Places
• A polling place is where the voters who live in a
  precinct go to vote.
• It is located in or near each precinct. Polling
  places are supposed to be located conveniently
  for voters.

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Office-Group and Party-Column Ballots
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Voting Machines and Innovations
Electronic vote counting has been in use since
the 1960s. Punch-card ballots are often used to
cast votes. Vote-by-mail elections have come into
use in recent years. Online voting is a trend
that may be encountered in the near future.
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In Case You Care
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Election

• Make a primary ballot out of a half-sheet of
  paper
• On your ballot, write down your choice for
  president of Sesame Street
• And now, announcing your candidates

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Big Bird
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Elmo
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Cookie Monster
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Oscar the Grouch
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Bert Ernie
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Grover
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Choose Your Candidate