AP U.S. Government and Politics · Lesson 1

Voting rights, voting behavior and turnout

Know Know it

The Constitution first left voting rules to the states. Amendments later barred states from denying the vote for certain reasons: the Fifteenth (1870) on account of race, the Nineteenth (1920) on account of sex, the Twenty-fourth (1964) by banning poll taxes in federal elections, and the Twenty-sixth (1971) by setting the voting age at 18. States still run elections and set many rules, such as registration deadlines and voter ID.

After 1870 many Southern states kept Black citizens from voting with literacy tests, poll taxes and threats. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 suspended literacy tests in the places it covered, sent federal examiners to register voters, and required covered places to get federal approval, called preclearance, before changing voting rules. Black registration in the South rose sharply. In Shelby County v. Holder (2013), the Court struck down the formula that decided which places were covered, so preclearance no longer applies unless Congress passes a new formula.

Four models explain how people vote. Rational choice voters pick the candidate whose policies serve their own interests. Retrospective voters judge the record of those in office. Prospective voters judge what candidates promise to do next. Party-line voters back one party's candidates for every office.

Turnout is the share of eligible people who vote. It is higher in presidential elections than in midterms, and higher among older, more educated, higher-income and strongly partisan citizens. People with high political efficacy, the belief that their voice matters, vote more. Rules matter too: early deadlines and strict ID rules can lower turnout, while early voting, mail voting and easier registration can raise it. The National Voter Registration Act of 1993, the motor voter law, lets people register when they get a driver's license. Some countries, such as Australia, require citizens to vote, which keeps turnout high.

Trap Check what turnout is counted out of

Turnout among registered voters is higher than turnout among all eligible citizens, because many eligible citizens are not registered. Before you compare two turnout numbers, check that both use the same base.

Worked example Easy

Which amendment bars any government in the United States from denying the vote, on account of age, to citizens who are 18 or older?

  1. The Fifteenth Amendment
  2. The Nineteenth Amendment
  3. The Twenty-seventh Amendment
  4. The Twenty-sixth AmendmentAnswer

How to solve it

  1. Match each amendment to what it does: race, sex, congressional pay, age.
  2. Age is the barrier in the question, and the age amendment is the Twenty-sixth.

Why each choice is right or wrong

  • A. Incorrect. The Fifteenth Amendment bars denying the vote because of race, not because of age.
  • B. Incorrect. The Nineteenth Amendment bars denying the vote because of sex, so it does not set an age.
  • C. Incorrect. The Twenty-seventh Amendment deals with pay raises for members of Congress and says nothing about voting age.
  • D. Correct. The Twenty-sixth Amendment, ratified in 1971, bars denying the vote to citizens 18 or older because of age.

Explain Explain it

Task verbs: identify, explain

To explain a vote or a turnout pattern, name the model or factor, then point to the detail that shows it. For example: the voter is voting retrospectively, because she cites the past four years of rising prices rather than the candidates' plans.

Worked example Medium

A voter says, "Prices went up and our plant closed over the last four years, so I am voting against the president." Which model of voting is this voter using?

  1. Prospective voting
  2. Retrospective votingAnswer
  3. Party-line voting
  4. Ticket splitting between parties

How to solve it

  1. Find the time the voter points to: the last four years.
  2. Judging the past record of officeholders is retrospective voting.

Why each choice is right or wrong

  • A. Incorrect. Prospective voting looks ahead to promises, but this voter talks only about what already happened.
  • B. Correct. The voter judges the president on the record of the last four years, which is retrospective voting.
  • C. Incorrect. Party-line voting follows a party label for every office, and the voter never mentions a party.
  • D. Incorrect. Ticket splitting between parties means backing different parties for different offices, which the quote does not show.

Explain Your turn

In a hypothetical survey of one state, 70 percent of eligible citizens with a college degree voted, but only 40 percent of eligible citizens without a high school diploma did. Say which group voted at the higher rate, and explain one reason education is linked to turnout.

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Compare with a model answer

A full answer does this

  • Says which group voted at the higher rate
  • Explains an accurate reason education is linked to turnout

Model answer

Citizens with a college degree voted at the higher rate, 70 percent against 40 percent. More schooling tends to teach people how government works and how to register, and it builds political efficacy, the belief that one's vote matters, so educated citizens are more likely to vote.

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