Hi, everyone! This thread will serve as a review
for exam #2 (I'll go over this review in class on Monday as
well). Exam #2 takes place in class on Wednesday, October 29. It will be of similar format to exam #1. You simply
need to bring pen and photo ID.
To prepare for the exam, you should read through blog assignments 3 and 4 (on single member plurality and on term limits for legislators). You should be familiar with my post, the articles I link to, and the comments of your colleagues. In terms of material covered in class, you should be familiar with all of the material on third parties (from the second set of lecture notes), as well as all of the material on voter turnout, legislatures, and governors (from the third set of lecture notes). Both sets of lecture notes were distributed in class and are also on the blog. Specifically, from class, you should be familiar with:
To prepare for the exam, you should read through blog assignments 3 and 4 (on single member plurality and on term limits for legislators). You should be familiar with my post, the articles I link to, and the comments of your colleagues. In terms of material covered in class, you should be familiar with all of the material on third parties (from the second set of lecture notes), as well as all of the material on voter turnout, legislatures, and governors (from the third set of lecture notes). Both sets of lecture notes were distributed in class and are also on the blog. Specifically, from class, you should be familiar with:
The difficulties facing third
parties (with perhaps extra emphasis on single member plurality).
Why third parties sometimes overcome these difficulties.
Why voter turnout is higher in some states than it is in others.
The reasons people run for the legislature.
The different types of representation people expect from legislators.
The professionalization of the legislature.
Legislative norms and cue voting.
Committees in the legislature.
Gerrymandering and multimember districts.
The increased power of governors.
The line item veto, including its variations, and arguments for and against it.
Why governors have a harder time getting reelected than do other officials.
I will have my usual office hours on Monday and Wednesday in case you want to ask questions. You can also email them to me at the email address on the syllabus. Finally, you can use the comments section on this thread for questions. You'll then be able to ask your questions on the blog and read my answers to questions from other students in the class (this really has worked for people!). Emailed and blog questions must be submitted by 9 pm on Tuesday. Good luck!
Update: As of 10:25 pm, October 28, comments are closed. Read through comments for valuable information. I still have office hours on Wednesday.--NB
Why third parties sometimes overcome these difficulties.
Why voter turnout is higher in some states than it is in others.
The reasons people run for the legislature.
The different types of representation people expect from legislators.
The professionalization of the legislature.
Legislative norms and cue voting.
Committees in the legislature.
Gerrymandering and multimember districts.
The increased power of governors.
The line item veto, including its variations, and arguments for and against it.
Why governors have a harder time getting reelected than do other officials.
I will have my usual office hours on Monday and Wednesday in case you want to ask questions. You can also email them to me at the email address on the syllabus. Finally, you can use the comments section on this thread for questions. You'll then be able to ask your questions on the blog and read my answers to questions from other students in the class (this really has worked for people!). Emailed and blog questions must be submitted by 9 pm on Tuesday. Good luck!
Update: As of 10:25 pm, October 28, comments are closed. Read through comments for valuable information. I still have office hours on Wednesday.--NB
I was wondering what we need to know about the Professionalization of the Legislature and Committees in the legislature? I can't seem to find that information in my notes.
ReplyDeleteI listed about 5 measures of increased professionalization in class today (they're also all in the lecture notes--including more pay, longer terms, more staff, etc.). Not sure what you want to know about committees, but again, I'd start with the lecture notes. Let me know if you have further specific questions.
DeleteWhy third parties sometimes overcome these difficulties:
ReplyDeleteIs this because of proportional representation, or is it more that sometimes they get lucky and even if they get 30% of the votes if thats enough to get in then they are elected?
We don't have proportional representation (which would help third parties). Candidates are sometimes able to overcome the obstacles because they're already well-known, are rich (and can thus buy name recognition), and/or the major party candidates are terrible.
DeleteWill we have to know the people and their stories that go along with the different types of representations? Ex: Daniel Flood, John Miller and George Hanson
ReplyDeleteThe stories are designed to help you remember the ideas.
DeleteCan you give a few examples of line item veto pros?
ReplyDeleteLegislators act more responsibly (don't pass wasteful pork barrel spending to help themselves get reelected, because they know governor will veto it), and governor (representing all the people) vetoes wasteful pork barrel spending, because s/he only supports items that benefit the state as a whole.
DeleteWhat are some examples of how third party candidates sometime overcome obstacles with single member plurality, legislative lines, etc,.
ReplyDeletePlease see answer to Danielle Knebel's similar question above.
DeleteCould you elaborate on the "Vanna White" veto power a little more, please?
ReplyDeleteWisconsin's governor had (no longer has) power to veto individual words, letters, spaces, punctuation marks, etc. Could change "no tax on cattle" to "no tax on ale" by vetoing the c and the two t's. Was ruled constitutional, but state eventually got rid of it.
DeleteAnd the argument for and against the veto powers?
ReplyDeleteArguments for are above in answer to question from Whitney Kesner. Arguments against (which I covered at some length in review session) are that it will actually make legislators less responsible (knowing that governor will check their excesses), and that it doesn't reduce wasteful pork barrel spending, but rather just gives you pork barrel that the governor likes (or the governor can use it as a bargaining chip to gain more power over other legislation)
DeleteWhat should we know for Committees in the legislature? (#8 on the study guide)
ReplyDeleteStart by looking at the outline. You should know the importance of committees vs. floor debate, number of committees, etc.
DeleteWhy would anyone want to be in the legislature?
ReplyDeleteThat was an exercise we did in class, where you folks decided that primary reasons were power, prestige, stepping stone to higher office
Deletecan you go over the different types of representations?
ReplyDeleteHard to do justice here. See lecture notes as well. There are 4 types of representation. If a legislator excels at one, s/he will likely be reelected. They are policy (voting in the legislature like the voter would vote--but most voters don't know enough about this), pork barrel (bringing money to the district), casework (helping constituents with problems with the bureaucracy--like driver's license, Medicaid), and symbolic (making constituents feel like their feelings, not just their policy views, are represented in the capital).
DeleteCould you review legislative norms and cue voting?
ReplyDeleteNorms are informal rules that help the legislature function. They include apprenticeship/seniority, courtesy, reciprocity, and specialization. See lecture notes on this. Cue voting is something legislators do because they need shortcuts to vote on hundreds of bills that are long and complicated, often in the final days of the legislative session. They try to find someone who thinks like they do but actually knows about the bill in question. They usually look to someone from their party and their part of the state (since many bills are about region rather than ideology). The norms of specialization and reciprocity sometimes come into play (like two Delegates from Mon County who are Democrats might trade off; one specializes in education, one in the budget, and they ask each other how to vote on bills in their area of specialization).
DeleteCould you explain multimember districts again, I have my notes on them but they are a bit confusing, the last thing that I have talks about the voting rights act and the example you gave us about students being a minority, I'm just not sure how it all ties together, Thanks!
ReplyDeleteMultimember districts elect several people to the legislature from one place (often a county) rather than dividing the place into single member districts. For instance, Mon County has 5 seats in the House of Delegates. Instead of dividing the county into 5 separate districts, each of which elects a delegate, all five are elected county-wide. This dilutes the power of students (a geographically concentrated minority group--but not one protected by the Voting Rights Act). After the passage of the Voting Rights Act, most states had to get rid of multimember districts because they reduced the voting power of geographically concentrated racial or ethnic minority groups (like African Americans in the South). West Virginia was allowed to keep its multimember districts because even single-member districts wouldn't have districts that are majority (for example) African American.
DeleteCan you explain the different types of representation people expect from legislature
ReplyDeleteSee answer to Jordan Gunnoe's question above
DeleteFor the question, types of representation people expect from legislators, one type is casework representation. In my notes I have written down that this "involves taking care of constituents needs with the burrocracy," could you explain what this means in a more general way. thank you!
ReplyDeleteSee answer to Jordan Gunnoe's question above
Deleteanother question- for the professionalization of the legislature I have as reasons, more lawyers, paid more, longer sessions, more staff, and better facilities. Do we have to elaborate on those ideas much because they are pretty straight forward reasons. thanks!
ReplyDeleteYou should be fine, as long as you answer the question that's asked.
DeleteWhat is the west coast effect?
ReplyDeleteVoter turnout in presidential years can be lower in West Coast states because the result is sometimes clear before the polls close. It could work the opposite way if the presidential election is very close.
Delete