The Cornerstone Of America 's Political System

When Congress passed the fifteenth amendment African Americans were given the right to vote, however state legislatures created laws to deter the undesirable vote from African Americans. The country sediment was to not have any undesirable or what they considered non American people voting. That is why when the Civil Rights Act of 1866 passes, it granted citizenship not rights to vote. Children of immigrants were also not considered qualified to vote. This society felt that the only eligible voters should be American men, because they considered themselves as superior and denied immigrants, blacks and women to vote to uphold social hierarchy. Each state varied in voter prerequisites and while there was not a specific guideline, there were restrictions to exclude certain members of

Elections are vital to maintaining a democracy, but the results do not necessarily guarantee citizens of the country, or even state for that matter, to be completely satisfied. Throughout history, the limits of people eligible to vote became less restricted as only white men who owned property could vote and in 1869 African American males could vote with the fifteenth amendment. However, it was not until the nineteenth amendment in 1920 did women be able to vote and the twenty-sixth amendment that the minimum age for voting became eighteen. Now, in twenty-first century, the United States faces a predicament whether it should be mandatory to vote, although the previous amendments did not force one to participate in voting. The question if voting should be mandatory is a

The American Constitution, as outlined in the Preamble, boldly defines its purpose as “We the People” (U.S. Constitution). Reasonableness suggests that the framers of the Constitution would provide appropriate legislation enhancing the citizenship’s right to actively participate in government via public elections given such a definitive statement expanding on the power of the people. However, American citizens do not possess a constitutionally protected right to vote. During the drafting period of the Constitution, only white male property owners could vote, however, voting rights have drastically changed throughout the history of the United States. Through amendments passed over the past two centuries, the Constitution has changed

Today, in order to be qualified to vote you must be a U.S. citizen, at least be 18 years of age, and a resident in your state or county. However, In the 1890’s, these were not the only qualifications that took place in order to vote. Unfortunately, White primaries, poll taxes, and restrictions on voter registrations came into the picture and made it difficult for minorities to be able to vote. It wasn’t until The Voting Rights Acts of 1965, and The Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1965 that minimized the amount of racial segregation in politics in the south.

With all adversities that was overcome the right to vote remains one of the few things that makes us all equal. No matter your color, wealth, gender, and religion. We all get one vote; which is one of the many beauties of our democracy. With this right comes a great deal of responsibilities that many citizens

During this period of American history, white women were not equal citizens and could not vote. They were expected to be dependent on men throughout their lives. It was not until the early nineteenth century that property requirements to vote were removed for white males and age became the determining factor. Susan B. Anthony declared to a New York state constitutional convention that if the right vote is determined by the age 21, then “you should let down the bars, and let us women and Negroes in.” Women, black men, and many white men did not own property, so it made more sense when these groups were excluded from voting. However, women and black men turn 21 along with their white male peers, so social reformers argued that an arbitrary age barrier should qualify black males and females to vote as well. In regards to voting

The Limitation that has been placed since the creation of the Republic on voting were cruel. The Impact of the Revolution which was in part over the issue of voting. Though limitation was grounded on religion test by 1790 all states had eliminated religious requirement for voting. Though the Constitution left the voting matter to the states to deal with. Certain Stated restricted voting to those who owned property, eldest sons over the age 21, poll taxes, or paid high annual taxes, African American, and women were denied the right to vote, ethical and literacy test was conducted, and African American were omitted. Though Black was given the right to vote, the voting ballot was forfeited and if an African American did vote they were beaten to death or beaten.

Since the United States of America established itself as its own self-governing country, one of the things that caused it to be salient and stand out from other countries is its relentless insistence on functioning as a democracy. Wars and protests have occurred so that every type of people, whether it was women or African Americans, may be granted the right to vote. Having a say in the American government is an honor and a privilege bestowed upon American citizens when they reach the age of eighteen. However, in recent years, statistics have shown that voter turnout and participation in recent elections has been rapidly and steadily declining, causing the United States to have the lowest voter participation in the world (“Is the System

In the early years of the United States, voting laws were very strict and only a select few people were able to vote. In 1776, only people who owned land were permitted to vote. Most people in this category were white males over the age of 21. This continued for many decades: in 1790 the Naturalization Law passed. It explicitly stated that only “free white” immigrants can become naturalized citizens. This gave only free white people the right to vote- very little progress was being made.

Living in a nation based on democracy, where a citizen’s voice is the equivalent of casting a vote in political elections, the majority of American citizens eligible to vote do not participate in elections. The rationale behind voter non-participation varies among individuals and demographic groups; however, they all share a connection regarding their feelings towards their treatment by the country's political system. Minority voters such as blacks and hispanics are a demographic group highly faced with disenfranchisement in regards to political elections due to oppression. North Carolina’s Voter ID laws are a prime example of how minority voters are being shut out.

The United States of America implemented one of the greatest rights in our society. A few amendments to the Constitution states that every American citizen who is of legal voting age has the right to vote no matter of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. It took many years, and many people have fought for us to have this privilege. And, to be more precise, it took one hundred years and five amendments to end voter discrimination. Despite all the sacrifices, many people choose not to vote thinking that one vote does not count, but that may have catastrophic consequences for people all over the world because U.S. is a major world power.

United States’ voting is looked at through two different functionary systems, closed and open. Close and open systems are a method of looking at how external factors influence that system; I use this method to distinguish between the theoretical level of voting and how the voting system works when put into the real world (Heylighten and Joselyn 1992; Walonick 1993). A closed-system analysis of voting provides a foundational understanding of how the voting process works. This method of analysis allows for a theoretical understanding of how the voting process should work; essentially, it is an explanation of the structures, laws, etc. that allow the voting processes to be carried out in America’s democratic society. Looking at the voting process through an open-system allows for an understanding with external influences. This part of the first section analyses how the voting process works in reality. It addresses questions like, why do people vote and why should or shouldn’t people vote? Further, the open-system approach looks at who ends up voting. Overall the two approaches to understanding the voting process, open and closed systems, establish a foundation of knowledge later linked to the influences of education on the voting

Voting has not always been as easy as it is today. It is interesting to examine how far America has progressed in its process of allowing different types of people to be able to vote. Voting was once aimed at a particular group of people, which were white males that owned their own property. Today, most people over the age of eighteen can vote, except for the mentally incompetent or people who have been convicted of major felonies in some states. The decline of voter participation has always been a debate in the public arena. According to McDonald and Popkin, it is “the most important, most familiar, most analyzed, and most conjectured trend in recent American political history (2001, 963)” The question is, how important is voter

Most democratic societies are fueled by the power of the people and when the opportunity to use that power is removed you should expect rash repercussions. History has displayed that time and time again. America being the long time democratic leader of the free world has seen many instances where groups within the population felt like their voting rights weren’t being respected. America as a nation has slightly overcame those struggles but currently there are still many obstacles between the average voter and actually casting a vote. Many problems include lack of time, lack of convenience, lack of knowledge, and more. To combat this we have explored the alternatives to the traditional voting in a booth method that is so popular

Voting is a vital portion of conducting everyday life. Americans have more freedom than many other people in countries around the globe; therefore, it is pertinent to express that freedom in many ways. Up until 1965 when the Voting Rights Act was signed into law, many people of color, gender, and all other classifications in the United States fell under one umbrella: not having the ability to vote. (massvote.org) As far as Americans having the ability to vote, 218,959,000 people have the eligibility to vote as of August 16th, 2015. Out of that significantly large number, 146,311,000 are actually registered to vote. (statisticbrain.com) This large gap in people with the eligibility to vote, and actual registered voters, is very alarming. As an American, it is the right and duty of a citizen to exercise all attainted rights by voting in all elections, even if the favored party seems to lose to no avail. (theodysseyonline.com)