Congressional Elections
- Created by: DaisyR13
- Created on: 07-06-14 23:02
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- Congressional Elections
- When
- Senate
- Each state has 2 Senators who's terms are 6 years and elections are held every 2 years where 1/3 of the Senate is up for re election
- House of Representatives
- There are 435 members and each state in split into congressional districts where each one elects a member and their terms are 2 years long and elections are every 2 years
- Senate
- How elections coincide
- The day of the Presidential election the president is elected, the HoR are elected and 1/3 of the Senate are elected
- Mid term elections are half way through the president's term where the HoR are elected and 1/3 of the Senate are elected
- Requirements for congress
- Senate
- Must be 30 years old, live in USA for 9 years and live in the state they represent
- House of Representatives
- Must be 25 years old, live in USA for 7 years and live in the state they represent and in some states the district too
- Must be selected as a candidate for one of the main parties to have any real chance
- Must be 30 years old, live in USA for 9 years and live in the state they represent
- Must be selected as a candidate for one of the main parties to have any real chance
- Must be 25 years old, live in USA for 7 years and live in the state they represent and in some states the district too
- Senate
- Congressional primaries
- Can be a real contest if the candidates are all new but if they are incumbent then they normally expect to be selected again
- Between 1982 and 2012 only 8 incumbent Senators were beaten in primaries
- Can be a real contest if the candidates are all new but if they are incumbent then they normally expect to be selected again
- What factors might affect congressional elections
- Straight ticket voting
- There will be a variety of office up for election on any Election Day so some voters will just vote for the same party for all of these
- Split ticket voting
- When people vote for candidates of different parties for different offices in an election
- Quality of character may persuade voters to choose them regardless of party
- Voters may vote for someone because of their policies
- When people vote for candidates of different parties for different offices in an election
- The 'coattails effect'
- When the candidate at the top of the ballot paper for an important post can influence voters to choose other candidates from the same party but this is rare
- Voting for incumbents
- There are very high rates of re election by incumbents
- In 2012 91% of of those who ran for re election to Congress won
- In the Senate 80% are regularly re elected
- There are very high rates of re election by incumbents
- Straight ticket voting
- Why are incumbents re-elected?
- Money and resources
- Incumbents have more help from businesses and organisations so can raise money more easily
- The incumbent for the Senate Dianne Feinstein outspent Elizabeth Emken by $9.7 million to $900,000
- Incumbents have more help from businesses and organisations so can raise money more easily
- Name recognition
- Voters may choose a name and face they recognise and an incumbent will already have a public face
- However, nearly 1/2 of Americans cannot name their member of the HoR and only 27% remember both their Senators
- Voters may choose a name and face they recognise and an incumbent will already have a public face
- The incumbent record in office
- America will judge their local Representative or Senator on what they have done for them so they need to bring home the bacon
- In 2008 Senator for North Carolina Elizabeth Dole was voted out because she was accused of spending too much time supporting President Bush and not looking after the stater
- America will judge their local Representative or Senator on what they have done for them so they need to bring home the bacon
- Party loyalty
- 2/3 of Americans are still partisan so where one party has a dominance they will remain safe seats could be around 370 out of 435 seats
- Redistricting
- Congressional Districts are based on population and every 10 years the USA has a census
- This means the boundaries are redrawn by the party that controls the state itself
- Called gerrymandering and is a subtle form of cheating but is one reason why so many seats in the HoR are safe
- This means the boundaries are redrawn by the party that controls the state itself
- Congressional Districts are based on population and every 10 years the USA has a census
- Conclusion
- Most controversial is gerrymandering and so fewer and fewer elections for Congress are real contests because of safe seats
- The people who represent those seats don't have to worry about pleasing the voters
- Means they are much more partisan and extreme in their views so was one of the causes of the standstill in 2013
- The people who represent those seats don't have to worry about pleasing the voters
- Most controversial is gerrymandering and so fewer and fewer elections for Congress are real contests because of safe seats
- Money and resources
- When
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