How Does The US Voting System Work? Important Terms to Know
By Georgia Morgan
OVERVIEW OF US GOVERNMENT
- Legislative branch: Responsible for the creation of laws
- Includes Congress: House of Representatives and the Senate
- Includes Congress: House of Representatives and the Senate
- House of Representatives: lower house of congress
- Representative number based off population
- Every state is entitled to at least one representative
- Determined by the census: conducted every 10 years
- Example: California has 53 representatives (most populous state therefore has the most)
- Representative number based off population
- Senate: upper house of congress
- Two senators per state
- Two senators per state
- Congressional district: an area within a state from which a member of the House of Representatives is elected
- There are 435 Congressional districts
- There are 435 Congressional districts
- Executive branch: the branch of government that enforces the laws put in place by the legislative branch and stated by the Constitution
- Includes the President, the Vice President and the Cabinet
- Includes the President, the Vice President and the Cabinet
- Judicial branch: the branch of government responsible for interpreting laws according to the Constitution
- Includes the Supreme Court and 9 Justices
- Includes the Supreme Court and 9 Justices
- Electoral College: each state has a group of people called electors who cast the actual votes for president
- 538 people are chosen by the voters to elect the President of the United States
- Should follow the popular vote but have ultimate decision
- A candidate must receive 270 electoral votes to win the presidency
- 538 people are chosen by the voters to elect the President of the United States
- Gerrymandering: manipulate the boundaries of (an electoral constituency) so as to favor one party or class
- Parties manipulate the legislative district lines in order to have an advantage in the polls to win over the House of Representatives for one party or the other
- This allows a party to have an advantage in Congress and ultimately forward their agenda
- Parties manipulate the legislative district lines in order to have an advantage in the polls to win over the House of Representatives for one party or the other
VOTING TERMS
- Referendum: a direct and universal vote in which an entire eligible population is invited to vote on a particular proposal and can have nationwide or local forms
- Congress or law making institution formulates a law and asks the population if they approve of it
- Example: propositions
- Proposition: a statement or assertion that expresses a judgment or opinion
- Can be proposed by process of a referendum
- Are voted on during major elections
- Can be local, state wide, or national
- Initiative: a proposed law that voters can place on the ballot in some states
- If the initiative is passed, it will become a law or constitutional amendment
- Voters can initiate legislation
- Typically in the form of a petition where all citizens can vote on a piece of legislature or proposition
- If enough people sign the petition and it calls attention to the issue it can go through congress and become a piece of legislature
- Coalition: a group of stakeholders that are working together to achieve a common goal
- Example: political parties, organizations, unions, alliance of any kind
- Is usually temporary to get people together to fulfill a goal
- Electorate: all persons having the right to vote
- Independent voter: A person who chooses to register to vote with no party affiliation
- Not registered with any third party although third parties are often called independent parties
- Different from the American Independent Party which is a right winged party
- G.O.P.: the nickname used for the Republican Party and stands for the Grand Old Party
- Republican Party: (moderate right)
- Supports lower taxes
- Free market capitalism (prices for goods and services are self- regulated by the open market and by consumers)
- Restrictions on immigration
- Increased military spending
- Gun rights
- Restrictions on abortion
- Deregulation (reduction or elimination of government power in particular industries)
- Restrictions on labor unions
- Democratic Party: (moderate left)
- Egalitarianism (philosophy that people should be treated equally)
- Social equality
- Protecting the environment
- Strengthening the social safety net through liberalism
- Support voting rights and minority rights including LGBT rights, multiculturalism, and religious secularism
- Green Party: (far left)
- Specifically environmentalism
- Nonviolence
- Social justice
- Gender equality
- LGBTQ rights
- Anti-war
- Anti-racism
- Ecosocialism (society in harmony with nature)
- Libertarian Party: (moderate right)
- Promotes civil liberties
- Non-interventionism (avoid interfering in forign affairs but still retain diplomacy and international trade)
- Laissez-faire capitalism (free market capitalism)
- Limiting the size and scope of government
- American Independent Party: (far right)
- Protect the right to life and strengthen families
- Secure the border and enforce immigration laws
- Balance state budget
- Suport a nation under God
- Peace and Freedom Party: (far left)
- Anti-war
- Implementation of socialist policies
- Racial and gender equality
- Supports open borders and end to deportation of immigrants
- Liberal: a social philosophy that promotes individual rights, civil liberties, democracy, and free enterprise
- Moral philosophy based on liberty, consent of the governed and equality before the law
- Conservitive: a social philosophy favoring free enterprise, private ownership, and socially traditional ideas
- Opposition to rapid changes, and supports keeping traditions in society
ELECTION TERMS
- Majority: when a candidate or proposition receives 50% or more of the votes
- Plurality: also called relative majority, describes the circumstance when a candidate or proposition polls more votes than any other but does not receive more than half of all votes cast
- Example: If there are three candidates and one polls 45% another 30% and another 25% of the votes. The first one received a plurality but still not a majority
- Exit poll: an informal poll taken as people leave the voting booth
- Used to predict the winners before the polls close
- Not official counts
- Swing voters: voters who have not committed to a particular political party
- Whoever they vote for can determine elections-- why they’re called swing voters
- Incumbent: a person who already holds an office who is running for reelection
- Primary election: a process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election
- Caucus: meetings where political party leaders and supporters choose candidates through discussion and consensus
- Open to all registered voters in the specific parties
- Alternative to primaries: both are ways of selecting delegates to represent their party
- Super Tuesday: The day when the most states and territories hold presidential primary elections or caucuses
- The candidates who win on Super Tuesday are more likely to win their party’s nomination
- Midterm election: a general election that does not occur during a presidential election year.
- In a midterm…
- Some member of the US Senate
- Members of the House of Representatives
- Many state and local positions are elected
- Two years after major election in November
- In a midterm…
- General Election: an election where most members of a political body are chosen
- The first Tuesday after the first Monday in November
- Recall: An election for voters to choose whether to remove an elected official from office before the end of the official's term
- A recall election can generally take place if enough voters sign a petition asking for one
- Rules on the number of voters needed and the officials who can be recalled are different from state to state
Podcast episode can be found here.
Georgia Morgan is a senior at Point Loma High School and a member of the My School Votes Organization and club at her school. She works within the organization to help close the age gap in elections by helping students register to vote through the When We All Vote Organization.
Sources:
Bennett, C. (2020, February 4). Key Elections Terms for Civics Classes. https://www.thoughtco.com/key-election-terms-for-high-school-4049394
USA.Gov, Definitions of Common Voting and Election Terms. (2020). https://www.usa.gov/voting-and-election-definitions
Easy Voter Guide, (2010, November). Fast Facts- How to Choose a Political Party. (2010) http://www.easyvoterguide.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/FastFacts-PoliticalParties-v2.pdf
Georgia Morgan is a senior at Point Loma High School and a member of the My School Votes Organization and club at her school. She works within the organization to help close the age gap in elections by helping students register to vote through the When We All Vote Organization.
Sources:
Bennett, C. (2020, February 4). Key Elections Terms for Civics Classes. https://www.thoughtco.com/key-election-terms-for-high-school-4049394
USA.Gov, Definitions of Common Voting and Election Terms. (2020). https://www.usa.gov/voting-and-election-definitions
Easy Voter Guide, (2010, November). Fast Facts- How to Choose a Political Party. (2010) http://www.easyvoterguide.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/FastFacts-PoliticalParties-v2.pdf