American Government Reflections

Chapter 19: The Electoral Process

Nominating Candidates
As noted in previous chapters, nominating candidates for election is the first step in any
electoral process. Candidates for an election can be nominated in five ways: a selfannouncement, caucus, convention, petition, or primary election. The first, a self-announcement,
is simply when a candidate declares that he/she is running for office publicly. These candidates
are unlikely to win the election because I believe that they cannot hold a broad base support and
are not supported by an established political party. Second, a candidate can be nominated by a
caucus. These meetings were, originally, not open to the public and lead to abuses of the system
because they were dominated by party leaders. Today they are open to all members of a party
though few states still use them. Next, conventions chose delegates to chose the candidates for
election, but, similar to the caucuses, they were liable to political corruption and now have to be
heavily regulated to prevent abuses. I believe that the caucus and convention should be open to
all members and not just elected people or party leaders to prevent the abuse of the system. If
these were more open, then they would represent the people more accurately. Then, there are
petitions where candidates circulate their name and ask others to vote for them. Finally, there are
primary elections which is the way that most candidates are nominated in today's society. I think
that this is the best way to nominate a candidate as the people vote for the nominee and not the
party leaders. This decreases the party's leaders ability to abuse the system and gives a more
people a way to actively participate in the government. Also, there are several types of primary
elections for different situations and purposes which include closed, open, runoff, and
nonpartisan primaries. Voter turnout is usually higher for primaries than other ways of
nominating candidates and I think this helps ensure that the public is focused on selecting the
best candidate for office.
Campaigns and Campaign Financing
Campaigns are a crucial part of the election process as they bring visibility to the candidate
and ensure that the candidate's ideas reach more people. Over the years, campaigning has
changed with the media being a key tool in the campaign. Media tools such as television
advertisements helped to bring awareness to a candidate and convey a message to the people
quickly and help to convey a sense of personality. This short time frame means that they are less
likely to lose their audience and can capture viewer interest easier. I am in favor of television
advertisements as they are shorter than speeches and there is a higher chance that I will pay more
attention for a short video than to a long speech. However, I recognize that speeches are still
needed to convey the candidates plans for the country in more detail and to help debate current
issues. Also, the media helps expose more people to the candidates and I think that the media is
an important source of information for most voters. Then, a candidate can also campaign by
attending events, making speeches, and traveling from city to city to meet the people. This,
however, cannot reach as many people as the media. Candidates also began to advocate for
themselves and many polls are used to determine a public's stance on issues. I think that this can
help the candidate tailor their campaign and make it more favorable to the public's views and
their own. Additionally, campaign finances has risen over the years. Candidates are able to
accept financial support for the campaign through party assistance, political action committees,
private donors, public funding, and personal financing. However there are limitations to how
much each group can donate, how it is spent, and where the money is contributed from. I believe

that more regulation is needed for the financing of campaigns and believe that the government
should limit the amount that a candidate can spend on their campaign to help make the
campaigning process more fair.
Elections and Voting
After the campaigns come the actual elections. There are two types of elections, general and
special elections. These are held after a certain number of years has passed and registered voters
go to specific locations to place their vote. Today, a secret ballot or the system of mailing a ballot
is used which allows voters to vote in private. I think this lessens the amount of abuse of the
system that can occur as people do not feel pressured into voting a certain way. This helps ensure
that the people are voting for what they believe will help promote the public good. Voters may
also request an absentee ballot if they are unable to go to the polls. This allows everyone a
chance to vote and influence the country's government.
Then, voting requirements limit the people who are eligible to vote and keep minors who are
inexperienced from voting. Thankfully, today, all people 18 or older, who are U.S. citizens,
registered voters, and legal residents of a state may vote in elections. Minority groups and
women are allowed to vote. I cannot believe that women did not obtain the right to vote until the
1900s since they make up at least half of the population in the U.S. I believe that this was a
violation of the rights that the Constitution granted the people. Finally, voting behavior is
influenced by party identification, a candidate's record and image, a person's personal views, and
their personal background. This can affect how the voter votes and how well they think a
potential candidate will promote the public good.