uscitizenpod.com

Election 2012from A to Z

AmendmentThere are four amendments to the Constitution

about who can vote.

15th Amendment: All male US citizens can vote.

19th Amendment: All female citizens can vote.

24th Amendment:No Poll Tax

26th Amendment: 18 year old citizens can vote.

BallotA ballot is a piece of paper used to vote in an election.

CandidateA candidate is a person who is trying to be

elected to a political office.

Democratic PartyThe Democratic Party is a major US political party.

• Democrats believe that the government has a responsibility to help people.

• The Democratic Party 2012 candidates for President and Vice-President are Barack Obama and Joe Biden.

ElectionsWe choose our leaders by voting in elections.

Our next election for President is November 6, 2012.

The Democratic candidate is Barack Obama.

The Republican candidate is Mitt Romney.

Fact & FactoidA fact is a piece of information that is true.

A factoid is a made-up piece of information thought to be true.

• People use positive facts and factoids to make their candidate look good.

• People use negative facts and factoids to make the opposing candidate look bad.

GovernmentThe government is the group of people who control and

make decisions for a country, state, city, etc.

Executive Branch enforces the law.

Legislative Branch makes the law.

Judicial Branch explains the law.

Federal President

Vice-President

US Senator

US Representatives

Federal Judges

State Governor

Lieutenant Governor

State Senator

State Assembly member

State Judges

Local Mayor &

Vice-Mayor

City Council Member

Trial Judges

House of RepresentativesThere are two parts of the U.S. Congress: the Senate and the House.

• House of Representatives is the lower house of the U.S. Congress.

• There are 435 members in the House of Representatives.

• We elect members of the House of Representatives every two years.

• Honda currently represents San Jose/Milpitas in the House of Representatives.

IncumbentAn incumbent is the current person in a political office.

• Barack Obama is an incumbent President who is running for re-election.

• Dianne Feinstein is an incumbent Senator who is running for re-election.

• Mike Honda is an incumbent US Representative who is running for re-election.

Justices & the Judicial BranchJustices, Judges and the Judicial Branch explain the law.

• Superior Courts are the local courts of the Judiciary Branch.

• Justices hear civil and criminal cases, as well as family, probate, and juvenile cases.

• Justices of the California Superior Courts are elected to six-year terms.JOHN NHO TRONG NGUYEN

Superior Court Judge Westminster, CA

Know your Voting RightsThe right to vote is the most important right granted to citizens.

1. You have the right to vote if you are a registered voter.

2. You have the right to vote by a provisional ballot if your name is not listed on the roll.

3. You have the right to vote if you are present at the polling place before 8pm.

4. You have the right to vote by a secret ballot free from fear.

5. You have the right to vote in another language according to the county’s population.

Source: sos.ca.gov/elections/voter_bill_of_rights.pdf

LawPropositions and Measures are laws

voted on by the people.• A "Proposition" (or

“Prop”) can be new law or an old law that the people must approve or reject.

• A “Measure” is a local law voted on by the people in a city or county.– An example is a

increase in a parcel tax to help fund a local school district.

MediaThe Media is the radio stations, television stations,

newspapers, internet websites, and other social media which information is communicated to the public.

NumbersPractice these numbers about the US Government & Elections.

There is/are:

• 1 Nation.• 2 Senators from each State.• 3 Branches of Government. • 4 Voting Amendments.• 5 US Territories.

• 50 Stars for 50 States.• 100 Senators.• 435 Representatives.• 538 votes in the Electoral

College.– 270 electoral votes are

needed to win a Presidential elections

Opposites• Democrat <>

Republican

• Negative <> Positive

• Obama <> Romney

• Pass <> Fail

• Question <> Answer

• Red State <> Blue State

• Truth <> Lie

• United <> Divided

• Win <> Lose

• Yes <> No

United We Stand,

Divided We Fall!

President & Vice-PresidentThe candidates for President and Vice-President

run together on a single party ticket.

The Democratic 2012 ticket:

Barack Obama

and Joe Biden.

The Republican 2012 ticket:

Mitt Romney

and Paul Ryan.

QuestionsDuring the presidential debates, undecided voters asked Obama and Romney questions about important issues.

• What would be your position on those things, which are important to the middle class?

• What do you plan on doing with immigrants without their green cards that are currently living here as productive members of society?

• What plans do you have to put back and keep jobs here in the US?

Republican PartyThe Republican Party

is a major US political party.

Republicans believe that people should help themselves. See gop.com.

The Republican Party 2012 candidates for President and Vice-President are

Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan.

Senate & Senator The Senate is the upper house of the U.S. Congress.

• There are 100 U.S. Senators. • The two senators from California are Barbara

Boxer and Dianne Feinstein.• Dianne Feinstein is an incumbent Senator who is

running for re-election against Elizabeth Emken.

Third PartiesIn U.S. politics, a third party is a political party other

than the Democrats or Republicans.Third Party Candidates for President

• Jill Stein gp.org

• Gary Johnson lp.org

• Rosanne Barr peaceandfreedom.org

• Tom Hoefling selfgovernment.us

US Electoral CollegeThe US Electoral College officially elects

the President & Vice President.The US Electoral

College consists of 538 electors.

270 electoral votes are required to be president.

This VOANews map shows how states are likely to vote on Nov 6, 2012. Source: voanews.com/section/usa_votes_2012/2209.html

Vote A vote is a choice. To vote is to choose a leader or law.

The most important right granted to a US Citizen is the right to vote.

You can vote in person on Election Day, Tuesday, November 6, 7 am to 8 pm.

What if I am told I cannot vote or if my right to vote is challenged? – Do not leave without voting! – Just say: “I believe I am registered to

vote in this county and I would like to vote using a provisional ballot.”

You do NOT need photo identification to vote in California.

We the PeopleThe idea of self-government is in the first three

words of the US Constitution: We the People.

• The US Constitution says that the power of the government comes from We the People.

• We the People vote for our leaders.

XX marks the spot, but there are other ways to mark a ballot.

How does your county marks the ballot?

Yes / NoPropositions are laws voted on by the people.

A “prop” passes & becomes law when it receives more than 50% YES votes.

• A YES vote means that you support the way the proposition would change things.

• A NO vote means that you want to keep things the way they are.

You do not have to vote on every contest on the ballot. See easyvoterguide.org

citiZensVoting in a federal election is one responsibility and right

only for United States citizens. USCIS 100:49/50

Last year, Mai Trang became a US citizen.

On June 5, Mai Trang voted for the first time and came back to class to show off her ballot receipts. She said that she wanted to vote for the measure that would give more money to the local school district.

GOOD JOB, MAI TRANG! 

You can watch Mai Trang's video about her citizenship interview here: http://youtu.be/qtpjlATfl_4

For more informationaclu.org/know-your-voting-rights-state-state-voter-information

EasyVoterGuide.org

League of Women Voters LWV.org

SCCVote.org

sos.ca.gov/elections/

US Election Assistance Commission eac.gov

VOANews.com USA Votes

Vote411.org (Build your own Ballot!)

USCitizenPod.com

Thanks to all the Election 2012 volunteers, especially Lori Saltis and Chris Zhao.

Special thanks to Mai Trang & all the new US Citizens who are voting for the first time: keep up the great work!