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CHAPTER FOURTEEN Explore Recounting 2000: What happened in Florida?
This U.S.
News and World Report on-line special: Election
2000: The Postelection Events Day by Day
provides a blow-by-blow explanation of the daily events. To figure out how the
election would have been resolved following the Florida vote in 2000, a
consortium of newspapers, along with the National Opinion Research Center,
began the Florida Ballot
Project. This web site provides information on
the different ballots referred to throughout the Florida recount as well as in
the "Electoral Reform in the Aftermath of 2000" feature on pages
598–599 in your text. A hard-won right
The picture and caption on page 590
highlight the hard-won victory of African-American voters for the right to
vote. Why didn't blacks have the right to vote before? On the Introduction to Federal
Voting Rights Laws web page, the U.S.
Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division Voting Rights Section discusses
the history and effects of the Voting Rights Act. Voter turnout from around the world
How does the United States compare to other
nations on voter turnout? According to the text, it does not compare favorably.
The International Institute for
Democracy and Electoral Assistance provides
data on voter turnout around the world—merely click on a continent and a
particular country and you will have information provided for that country over
time. Election reform
After the 2000 election and difficulties in
Florida over counting votes, the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) passed in 2002. The Federal Election Commission provides
the text of this law, as well as other information concerning HAVA. Election 2004: How did we make up our minds?
One of the most exhaustive studies of the
American voter in the 2004 election was undertaken by the National Annenberg
Election Study (NAES) 2004. The site provides
reports on interviews with about 100,000 Americans, as well as links to the
2000 NAES study. It is an excellent source (when properly cited) for term
papers on elections. Are you the new Carville or Matalin?
If you think you could run and win a
presidential campaign, do it! This Power Politics 3 Presidential Campaign
Simulator provides an opportunity to test your
skills. Is it image or substance or both? The presidential debates
The Commission on Presidential Debates sponsors and hosts the presidential debates every
presidential election year since 1988. The site provides debate transcripts and
other historical facts on presidential debates. Where did they stand on the position, valence, and wedge issues?
The 2004 Republican Party Platform
and the 2004 Democratic Party
Platform provide the parties' positions on
numerous issues. The platforms lay out broad themes and discuss particular
issues. Do you think they fully explain position issues, valence issues, and
wedge issues? 527 Groups in 2004
527 Groups had a huge impact on the 2004
election. Whether by attacking candidates, avoiding campaign finance reform
regulations, or just making the news, many of them raised considerable amounts
of money to bankroll their activities. According to the Center
for Responsive Politics, these were the biggest
fundraisers and spenders. KEEPING THE REPUBLIC It is through elections that citizen’s voices are most potent, and as demonstrated so clearly in 2000, every vote really does count.
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