Lectures: Week of October 16

GOVT2306, Instructor: Tom Hanna, Fall 2023, University of Houston

2023-10-18

Agenda

  • Announcements
  • Oct 9: Discussion and Participation Exercise

Announcements

  • The Online Deliberation Activity started yesterday and run through November 3.

      - If you have not yet signed up, I do not know if you can. You can try. 
  - The link is in the Canvas Module: Introduction and Syllabus Quiz. It is WAY down the page in the Modules because it is from week one. 
  - If you signed up and don't have the link, I do not have it.
  - If you know your session, the calendar is here: https://deliberation20.weebly.com/calendar.html

  • No in person class next week

      - Exam October 26
  - Class 23474 - Optional online wrap up of Unit 2 in Teams

  • Sign up for Exam 2 is open in CASA scheduler.

  • Exam 2 Extra Credit in the classroom the following week

      - Oct 31 (Class 14070): Best costume gets an extra 2 test points
  - Nov 2 (Class 23474): No costume contest, I am open to suggestions for a fun additional extra credit

Last week’s discussion survey results

  • There were no correct answers, no matter what Canvas may have told you. It defaulted to the first answer showing as “correct,” but you got credit for any answer.

Last week’s discussion survey results: Tuesday-Thursday Section

After reading the article on the gunshot detection system in use by the Houston Police Department, do you think there is a nondiscriminatory way that this technology can be used?

  • Yes: 57%
  • No: 10%
  • Unsure: 29%
  • No Answer: 4%

Last week’s discussion survey results: Tuesday-Thursday Section

Do you think any of these ways to use the technology would not discriminate based on race or ethnicity? (Choose any you think apply)

  • Deploying the system equally everywhere: 85%
  • deploying the system in high income neighborhoods: 12%
  • deplying the system in low income neighborhoods: 20%
  • deploying the system in high crime neighborhoods/areas: 33 - 40%
  • deploying the system in areas with high reports of gunfire: 58%
  • No answer: 7%

Last week’s discussion survey results: Tuesday-Thursday Section

Who do you think benefits most from this technology? (By income)

  • High income people: 47%
  • Low income people: 43%
  • No answer: 11%

Last week’s discussion survey results: Tuesday-Thursday Section

Who do you think benefits most from this technology? (By crime rate)

  • People living in high crime areas: 64%
  • People living in low crime areas: 22%
  • No answer: 14%

Last week’s discussion survey results: Tuesday-Thursday Section

Who do you think benefits most from this technology? (By ethnicity. Note that Houston is a majority minority city, so the use of the phrase “ethnic or racial minorities” is to indicate racial or ethnic groups that have been the target of past discrimination while “non-minorities” indicates racial or ethnic groups that have not been the target of past discrimination.)

  • racial or ethnic minorities: 49%
  • non-minorities: 34%
  • No answer: 17%

Last week’s discussion survey results: Tuesday-Thursday Section

Do you think the technology is either useful now or could potentially be useful with modifications or improvements?

  • Yes: 74%
  • No: 7%
  • No answer: 19%

Last week’s discussion survey results: Thursday Section

After reading the article on the gunshot detection system in use by the Houston Police Department, do you think there is a nondiscriminatory way that this technology can be used?

  • Yes: 67%
  • No: 13%
  • Unsure: 20%

Last week’s discussion survey results: Thursday Section

Do you think any of these ways to use the technology would not discriminate based on race or ethnicity? (Choose any you think apply)

  • Deploying the system equally everywhere: 88%
  • deploying the system in high income neighborhoods: 19%
  • deplying the system in low income neighborhoods: 18%
  • deploying the system in high crime neighborhoods/areas: 40 - 59%
  • deploying the system in areas with high reports of gunfire: 68%
  • No answer: 1%

Last week’s discussion survey results: Thursday Section

Who do you think benefits most from this technology? (By income)

  • High income people: 51%
  • Low income people: 48%
  • No answer: 1%

Last week’s discussion survey results: Thursday Section

Who do you think benefits most from this technology? (By crime rate)

  • People living in high crime areas: 78%
  • People living in low crime areas: 22%
  • No answer: 1%

Last week’s discussion survey results: Thursday Section

Who do you think benefits most from this technology? (By ethnicity. Note that Houston is a majority minority city, so the use of the phrase “ethnic or racial minorities” is to indicate racial or ethnic groups that have been the target of past discrimination while “non-minorities” indicates racial or ethnic groups that have not been the target of past discrimination.)

  • racial or ethnic minorities: 60%
  • non-minorities: 39%
  • No answer: 1%

Last week’s discussion survey results: Thursday Section

Do you think the technology is either useful now or could potentially be useful with modifications or improvements?

  • Yes: 89%
  • No: 11%
  • No answer: 1%

Texas November Election

Because this is a United States and TEXAS Constitution and POLITICS class, we will be discussing the upcoming election in Texas.

  • Early voting starts October 23
  • There are 14 amendments to the Texas Constitution on the ballot
  • There are other local issues and offices on the ballot
  • Houston Mayoral election

Houston Mayoral Election

Houston Mayoral Election

Simulation Exercise

  • 23474 (Thursday Hybrid section): This will be your online participation exercise for this week and next week. It will be due on October 29 at midnight.

  • 14070 (Tuesday-Thursday section): We will do this in class Tuesday

     - We will do the exercise together, discuss and vote.
 - We will vote by voice vote
 - You can follow along in Canvas or just on the screen
 - There will be an opportunity for participation points

Campaigns and Elections

of 2 WTP14 CH10 CHAPTER OUTLINE Campaigns and Elections Learning Objectives 1. Describe the major rules and types of elections in the United States 2. Explain strategies campaigns use to win elections 3. Identify the rules that govern campaign fundraising and spending 4. Identify the major factors that influence voters’ decisions 5. Analyze the strategies, issues, and outcomes of the 2020 elections

Who runs elections in the United States

  • State and local governments

  • Federal government sets some rules

      - Centered on 14th Amendment
  - Voting Rights Act
  - Help America Vote Act

  • Parties also play a role in primary elections, caucuses, and conventions

Types of electoral rules (voting systems)

  • Plurality system

      - First-past-the-post system
  - Winner-take-all system
  - Common in the United States
  - The winner take all aspect accounts for the dominance of two major parties
  - If there are a dozen closely matched candidates, the winner may only get 20% of the vote

  • Majority system: candidate must win 50% + 1 vote

  • Runoff election: if no candidate wins majority, top two candidates face off in a second election

  • Ranked choice voting / instant runoff voting

      - voters rank candidates in order of preference
  - Uncommon now but used in the past in some major cities
  - Now used in Maine and Alaska for federal elections

Types of Elections

  • Primary elections
  • General elections
  • Special elections

Types of Elections: Primaries

  • Usually set by state law along with party rules
  • Parties are private organizations
  • Parties have freedom of association
  • Party rules are not subject to judicial review

Types of Elections: Primary elections

  • Select the parties nominees for the general election
  • Closed primary
  • Open primary
  • Blanket primary
  • Jungle primary / Top two primary / Louisiana primary
  • Caucus

Types of Elections: General elections

  • Select officeholders
  • Most use plurality system
  • Some use majority system or runoff elections
  • Maine and Alaska use ranked choice voting

Types of Elections: Special elections and other elections

  • Fill vacancies
  • Recall elections
  • Ballot initiatives
  • Referendums

Party conventions

  • Held every four years

  • Delegates are elected in the state primaries and caucuses

      - Delegates are pledged to support a candidate
  - Delegates select the party’s nominee for president
  - Delegates also draft the party platform
  - Usually a formality
  - In the past, conventions were more important

  • Rules set by party National Committees

Democratic Convention Rules

  • Superdelegate

      - party leader or elected official who is automatically a delegate
  - not pledged to support a candidate
  - can vote for any candidate
  -  out of total delegates

  • 2020:

      - 771 superdelegates
  - 3,979 pledged delegates
  - 4,750 total delegates

  • Superdelegates helped Independent Bernie Sanders in 2016

Republican Convention Rules

  • Superdelegates are not used in the Republican Party
  • Former Democrat and Reform Party Member Donald Trump won the Republican nomination in 2016

Presidential General Election

Electoral College

    - Indirect election
    - Candidate names are on the ballot
    - We elected Electors pledged to those candidates
    - Electors meet in December to cast their votes
    - Congress counts the Electoral College votes in January

  • Indirect election of the chief executive is not unique to the United States

      - The Electoral College is unique to the United States
  - Most democracies are parliamentary systems where the chief executive is chosen by the legislature
  - The Electoral College is a compromise between direct election and election by the legislature
  - Preserves federalism and the power of the states
  - Preserves the Separation of Powers (Congress role is extremely limited)

Election campaigns

  • Campaigns are long and expensive

  • Campaigns are run by professional staff

  • Campaigns are media-driven

  • Expensive campaigns favor incumbents over challengers

      - incumbents: current officeholders
  - challengers: candidates running against incumbents

  • Incumbents have name recognition and a record to run on

  • Incumbents have access to campaign funds from PACs and other sources

Federal Election Campaign finncing

  • Campaign Finance Legal Framework

      - Goes back to 1867
  - Federal Election Campaign Act (1971)
  - Federal Election Commission (1974)
  - Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (2002)

  • Free speech issues

      - Citizens United v. FEC (2010)
  - McCutcheon v. FEC (2014)

  • Campaign finance entities

      - Campaign committees
  - Political Action Committees (PACs)
  - Super PACs
  - 501(c)(4) committees (IRS designation for a type of nonprofit social welfare organization)

State and local elections

  • State and local governments have their own campaign finance laws for state and local races
  • We will discuss Texas elections in Module 3 after the exam

Authorship, License, and Credit

https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2023/08/22/here-are-the-mayoral-candidates-for-the-2023-houston-election/

Creative Commons License

GOVT2306, Fall 2023, Instructor: Tom Hanna