10.4: The Voting Process (Instructors notes)

1. Democracies cannot succeed unless its elections are free, honest, and accurately reported.

a. Entry at the end: Did Russia tamper in the American voting process? If so, how?

2. When do we vote?

i. First Tuesday following the first Monday in November (of each even-numbered year- as dictated by congress)

ii. Show video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9WvoGlQ7zH8

• 3. How do we vote?

  • Ballot: little ball

    • i. Italian – ballotta – little ball. Process of dripping black or white balls into a box to indicate a choice. 139 BC Romans used paper ballots

    • ii. Black ball is the ball of “no”

    • iii. Absentee voting – increase recently. Formalized in most states

  • 1. 56.5% in person

  • 2. 16.6% absentee

• b. Australian Ballot: Provided @ public expense, lists all names of candidates, given @ polls, 1 per voter, secret.

  • i. Bed-sheet ballot: ballots are too long. Includes clerks, coroners, surveyors. Critics say it affects voting

  • ii. Ballot fatigue: tired of filling it out.

• 4. How are votes counted?

• a. Voting Machine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsHBIh0U8_o

  • i. Edison invented in 1892

  • ii. Used in more populated areas

  • iii. Speeds up process, minimize fraud

• b. Electronic Voting Machines

  • i. 1960s

  • ii. Touch screen or optical scanners (scan tron)

• c. Manual counting

• 5. Either:

a. Read article on Russia

b. Rank design of different ballots

Old Voting Machines:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsHBIh0U8_o

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