POLS 207 Lecture 9

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Organized Participation

• Political Parties
• Interest Groups next week

professor feels strongly about this stuff

They (esp. political parties) elicit visceral reactions.

Parties

1. Constituent Function: loyalty, values
2. Information Function: platform and morals (or lack thereof)
3. Government Function:

"One big happy society—never seen one."

Similarities across political parties. (I don't think they're similar)

Initiatives: (started by people) public takes initiative to put something on the ballot
Referenda: (started by government) voters decide; very representative; direct democracy

Why is turnout in the US low? We need to have a representative government and understand how to get people to VOTE!

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Tendency for constituents to elect a leader with following characteristics:

• Physically imposing
• Loudest
• preferrably male

"The bimbo effect" — stereotype that "beautiful women are stupid"

• controlling image: in order to gain desired outcome, I have to do …
• regularity of features; symmetry

Often we hear to ignore how people look, but this is seldom the case.

• adjust to how people look; gain strategic advantage.