Parties & Elections
Turnout in" rel="nofollow">in the 2016 presidential election is at the core of the discussions about the surprisin" rel="nofollow">ing election results- Please read this PBS article (also pasted
below) and respond to it in" rel="nofollow">in a blog piece answerin" rel="nofollow">ing the questions below:
[El The article notes that turnout in" rel="nofollow">in the presidential election was approximately 58% of eligible voters, how does this number compare to turnout rates in" rel="nofollow">in
recent elections? How does it compare to turnout rates before 1896?
[El The national party conventions were held earlier than usual durin" rel="nofollow">ing this presidential election (in" rel="nofollow">in the summer in" rel="nofollow">instead of early fall)- What is the role of
conventions in" rel="nofollow">in the national election? Do you thin" rel="nofollow">ink the conventions had an impact on turnout in" rel="nofollow">in the presidential election? Why or why not?
[El The article discusses the potential negative effects of voter id laws on turnout, and also notes votin" rel="nofollow">ing laws might not had any known effect on participation-
Usin" rel="nofollow">ing any one of the articles one of your classmates posted on the second extra credit discussion post, discuss what impact if any you thin" rel="nofollow">ink voter id laws had
on turnout this past year.
[El Did the US. have restrictive voter laws in" rel="nofollow">in the past? How do these compare to current voter id laws?
[El The article discusses changes in" rel="nofollow">in the composition of the electorate this past year. Do you thin" rel="nofollow">ink this reflects mass polarization? Is the electorate polarized?
Instructions: For the purposes of this assignment, a blog piece is no different than a newspaper article- The difference is that it may in" rel="nofollow">include your opin" rel="nofollow">inion, you
take a specific position on an issue or issues