The 21 Century Elections

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Political Science

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Dec 6, 2023

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docx

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THE 21 CENTURY ELLECTIONS 1 The 21 Century Elections Jaime Palomo University of the Cumberlands November 26, 2023 Professor Spurlock National Government: POLS-233-B20
THE 21 CENTURY ELLECTIONS 2 The 21 Century Elections The presidential elections of 2000, 2004, and 2008 marked critical moments in American political history, each of these elections were characterized by unique challenges, controversies, and shifts in public opinions and different points of views. In this essay I will attempt to provide a wide range of different analysis of these elections, examining constitutional issues, political effects, the role of the media, the impact of third parties, and the influence of special interest/advocacy groups. Media When it comes to any election, the role of the media plays a significant part and can help both political parties sway the American people in their favor. Most Americans during the early 2000’s got their information from newspapers, radio, and television, since television is the most available to all people regardless of social or economic status. However, during the turn of the century there was a new outlet that became available. The rise of the Internet and online media transformed the landscape for political communication. However, this cannot always be good, as media often will only broadcast news that benefits who they can favor. An example of these would be how Fox news broadcast the right wing in a positive light, while the same thing can be said about CNN and the democratic party. During the elections of the early 2000’s media played a crucial role in framing narratives surrounding the Florida recount in 2000. While during the 2004 election, most of the media coverage of the Iraq War and other campaigns in the war against terrorism helped George Bush win his re-election. During the election of 2008, Barack Obama “Yes We Can” became a rally cry, show casing the power the of the internet to mobilize support to get Obama elected ( social media and the 2008 U.S. Presidential Election , 2009).
THE 21 CENTURY ELLECTIONS 3 Using the power of social media platform like Facebook and Twitter played a pivotal role to help energize the younger generation into voting. Constitutional Issues In the 2000 United States presidential election was one of the most controversial in American history. The two candidates were George Bush, who represented the Republican ticket and Al Gore, who was the democratic candidate. There were several controversial issues dealing with this election die to the issues with the voting process in Florida, and legal changes that were made after the election. There were allegations of voter fraud, voter suppression, and issues with voting machines. The illegal changes that arose after the election where those dealing with the recount process that was used in Florida. The Supreme court in Florida ordered a recount, however, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that the recount was un-constitutional and that the original vote should stand (The 2000 US election results, the constitutional crisis deepens, 2000 ). This raised questions about the role of judiciaries in the electoral process. Another issue that came into question was the electoral college process. This was because Al Gore won the popular vote, George Bush won the electoral college vote. Some believed that this highlighted the flaws of the electoral college process and some called for electoral reform. In the 2004 election the Iraq war was a large factor in the election for president and the constitutional issue of power of the president regarding his use of intelligence to justify military action. Political Effects Some major political effect that occurred in the early 2000’s that effected our election process was the September 11 terrorist attacks. This led to the invasion of Afghanistan, which turned out to be the longest war in in United States history. In 2002, congress passed the Iraq
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