The process through which major parties choose their nominees for the general election is known as ...

Ans. to #1

Answer: primary election

Ans. to #2

Answer:
A. Suppression of African American rights
1. Before Civil War, slaves had no voting rights
2. Voting rights extended to African American males for a short time
3. White conservatives used intimidation and government action to restrict voting access
4. Over 650,000 African Americans in Texas and only 25.000 qualified to vote
5. 1905 progressives adopted the white primary to prohibit African Americans from voting; in turn excluding them from the political process
6. This policy became law in 1923
7. Poll tax also controlled voter turnout for African Americans and the poor
B. Political circumstances that gave African Americans rights
1. African leaders cited the Fifteenth Amendment (cannot use race as a reason to prohibit voting) as evidence that the policy violated the U.S. Constitution
2. 1924 Nixon v. Herndon struck down Texas law that prohibited African Americans from voting in the democratic primary
a. Democratic Party reacted by granting voting rights for the primary in a party resolution to whites only
3. Grovey v. Townsend upheld party resolution due to the fact that the Democratic Party was a private organization
4. A more liberal court overturned prior decision in Smith v. Allwright
a. political parties are agencies of the state and must abide by federal law regarding voting
5. African American voter registration increased rapidly
a. some white local primaries still existed until federal courts struck those down as well
C. Political circumstances that gave minorities more rights
6. Poll tax banned in the Twenty-Fourth Amendment in 1964
a. Texas got around ban by instituting a dual ballot system
b. Received federal ballot but had to pay for state ballot
c. 1966 Texas v. United States struck down Texas law
7. Federal court intervention
a. federal courts struck down provisions that restricted voting such as registration, residence and property owning requirements
8. Voting Rights Act of 1965
a. protected minorities from discrimination in registration and voting process
b. redistricting plans had to be submitted and approved to stop racial gerrymandering
D. Suppression of women's voting rights
1. Nineteenth Amendment in 1920 granted women the right to vote
2. Texas first state to approve amendment and women voted in 1918

Ans. to #3

Answer:
A. Improvements in voter registration and turnout
1. Simple registration
a. fill out small form
b. voter can register a qualified spouse, parent or child
c. registration is permanent and is automatically renewed if voter has same address
d. do not need registration card to vote, just identification
e. motor voter law registers people to vote when applying for public services like driver's license
2. Change in policy that used voter registration lists for jury summons lists
a. since 1992, all adult citizens are qualified for jury summons not just registered voters
3. Easier participation
a. Election Day registration
b. expanded voting by mail
c. no excuse early voting policy in Texas
B. Registration policies that are susceptible to fraud
1. Motor voter law does not check to see if person is a legally qualified voter
a. Texas first state to require agencies to determine eligibility using their records
2. Voting by mail can result in campaign workers giving illegal assistance
a. nursing homes have had people fill out ballots for residents
b. fraud eliminated by 30-day registration window to check for fraud, more prison time for violations, voter ID bill
3. early voting not a fraud issue but has a social cost
a. takes away from the meaning of voting as a civic institution

Ans. to #4

Answer:
A. Voter turnout greatly impacts who is elected
1. lower turnout of minorities
a. usually do not have positive interactions with the government and distrust
b. become disenfranchised with election process and choose not to participate
2. family tradition of non-participation
a. historical barriers have made future generations hesitant to participate in the election process
3. language barriers
a. bilingual information about process is hard to obtain
4. disinterest of the young
a. do not participate in process due to the fact that feel unaffected by governmental policies
B. Texas election process hinders voter turnout
1. large number of elections leads to election burnout
a. multiple locations and elections means only dedicated voters participate
2. long ballot elections make voters feel unprepared to cast an educated vote for so many candidates
C. Texas traditional political structure and one-party system lead to low participation
1. voters do not believe their votes matter
2. Democratic domination still negatively affects participation
a. since voting is a learned trait, family nonparticipation travels down through generations
b. Republican Party dominates today so perpetuates feeling of voters not believing in their voice in election process

Ans. to #5

Answer:
A. Primary election process
1. allows voters to help choose the Democratic and Republican nominees that will run in the general election
2. Texas has open primaries where party affiliation is not determined until day of primary
3. cannot vote in both primaries
4. bounds voter to party affiliation during primaries
5. nominee must receive 50 percent of vote
B. Runoff election process
1. if there is no majority winner, two top vote getters are up for nomination
2. voters who do not cast a vote in primary can vote for either party in a run-off
3. time between primary and runoff helps underfunded candidates build support through media and more funding
C. Identifying supporters
1. Voters cannot cross party lines once they have voted in a party's primary a. Allows each political party to be sure of support if they have casted a vote
b. Those who do not vote in primaries are still unsure of affiliations
2. Runoffs allow more time for candidates to gain support
a. increase name recognition and overcome more well-funded and established campaigns

Ans. to #6

Answer: E

Ans. to #7

Answer:
A. Texas has virtually no limits on campaign funding
1. makes fundraising extremely important
B. More expensive to run in urban centers than rural centers
C. Statewide offices require extensive travel expenses
D. Amount of spending can be the difference in close races
E. Costs of campaigning in new ways
1. electronic media, mass mailings, Internet, television and radio
a. mass media costs have increased as candidates try to penetrate the voter market
b. lower cost television time is subject to cuts so candidates must pay more to secure television time
F. Costs increase as candidates try to reach more voters and target groups
G. Internet campaigning is a way for underfunded candidates to get their platform and message out to voters

Ans. to #8

Answer: D