Electoral Process and Direct
Democracy
Electoral College System – Formally elects the President, state-based, not popular vote
Primaries – Secret ballot elections selecting delegates for party president nominations
Caucuses – Informal meetings of party supporters at local level to decide delegates
National Nominating Conventions – Successful candidate is formally endorsed
Direct Democracy – Form of democracy where people directly decide policy initiatives
Voting Behaviour – Analysis of why people vote the way they do
Popular Vote – Total number/percentage of votes cast for a candidate across the USA
Split-Ticket Voting – Voter votes for candidates from different parties in the same election
Abstention – Not turning out to vote
, Incumbency – Politician already elected and standing for re-election
“Explain and Analyse three arguments that are used to
justify the Electoral College”
“Explain and Analyse three aspects / features of the
Electoral College”
Delivers the ‘Right Result’
- Winner of Electoral College is usually the winner of the Electoral College:
2020 = Biden won the Electoral Vote by 306-232 as well as winning the
popular vote by over 7 million votes
- Less significant as this has been undermined in both the 2000 and 2016
election – Trump won the Electoral College also by 306-232 despite losing
the popular vote to Clinton by over 1,300,000 votes
Winning margin is often exaggerated too, providing a ‘winners bonus’
similar to that in the UK – 1984: Reagan won 97% of the Electoral College
but less than 60% of the popular vote
Reflects the US Federal Structure
- Elections are conducted on a state-by-state basis rather than a national
system of elections (apart from the use of the Electoral College itself)
Maine = ranked-choice voting system since 2018
California = non-partisan blanket primary law
Blends democracy and federalism together
- Less significant – despite a bicameral legislature attempting to solve this
issue, smaller states are still overrepresented despite the proportional
number of Electoral Votes being distributed – as Wyoming has less voters
per Electoral Vote whereas larger states like California have more voters
per Electoral Vote
Electoral College requires candidates to campaign across
a wide range of states
- Trump visited 27 different states during his 2020 Campaign, ranging from
smaller states like Delaware to larger states like California
- Significant at face value as this reinforces how a nationwide popular vote
would lead candidates to simply focus on only large urban areas (Barry
Goldwater – “Go hunting where the ducks are”)
yet ultimately less significant as candidates often heavily focus on ‘swing
states’ regardless, such as North Carolina or Florida, whereas ‘safe’ states
such as Florida or California are reduced to ‘spectator seats’
Democracy
Electoral College System – Formally elects the President, state-based, not popular vote
Primaries – Secret ballot elections selecting delegates for party president nominations
Caucuses – Informal meetings of party supporters at local level to decide delegates
National Nominating Conventions – Successful candidate is formally endorsed
Direct Democracy – Form of democracy where people directly decide policy initiatives
Voting Behaviour – Analysis of why people vote the way they do
Popular Vote – Total number/percentage of votes cast for a candidate across the USA
Split-Ticket Voting – Voter votes for candidates from different parties in the same election
Abstention – Not turning out to vote
, Incumbency – Politician already elected and standing for re-election
“Explain and Analyse three arguments that are used to
justify the Electoral College”
“Explain and Analyse three aspects / features of the
Electoral College”
Delivers the ‘Right Result’
- Winner of Electoral College is usually the winner of the Electoral College:
2020 = Biden won the Electoral Vote by 306-232 as well as winning the
popular vote by over 7 million votes
- Less significant as this has been undermined in both the 2000 and 2016
election – Trump won the Electoral College also by 306-232 despite losing
the popular vote to Clinton by over 1,300,000 votes
Winning margin is often exaggerated too, providing a ‘winners bonus’
similar to that in the UK – 1984: Reagan won 97% of the Electoral College
but less than 60% of the popular vote
Reflects the US Federal Structure
- Elections are conducted on a state-by-state basis rather than a national
system of elections (apart from the use of the Electoral College itself)
Maine = ranked-choice voting system since 2018
California = non-partisan blanket primary law
Blends democracy and federalism together
- Less significant – despite a bicameral legislature attempting to solve this
issue, smaller states are still overrepresented despite the proportional
number of Electoral Votes being distributed – as Wyoming has less voters
per Electoral Vote whereas larger states like California have more voters
per Electoral Vote
Electoral College requires candidates to campaign across
a wide range of states
- Trump visited 27 different states during his 2020 Campaign, ranging from
smaller states like Delaware to larger states like California
- Significant at face value as this reinforces how a nationwide popular vote
would lead candidates to simply focus on only large urban areas (Barry
Goldwater – “Go hunting where the ducks are”)
yet ultimately less significant as candidates often heavily focus on ‘swing
states’ regardless, such as North Carolina or Florida, whereas ‘safe’ states
such as Florida or California are reduced to ‘spectator seats’
