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Statement: American voters are apathetic about participating in the political process. What’s in the news? Go to the following website to read about voter outreach programs designed to increase voter turnout during elections - http://www.usavotenet.com/news.htm. What do the experts say? “What causes voter apathy? Some indications come from national opinion surveys that show that most people in the United States feel ambivalent about government. Studies show that many people do not vote in elections because of excessive polling by the media, negative advertising by candidates, and the feeling that issues seem less important than those in previous elections. Along with voter apathy, the emergence of the gender gap--the difference between a candidate’s number of votes from women and men--is a dominant feature of U.S. politics in the past two decades. Most analysts agree that the gap is rooted in how women and men view economic and social issues such as welfare reform, abortion, child care, and education, and also what they believe the nation’s priorities should be.” What do you think? Note down your answers to the following questions and discuss them in class.
Where do you stand? Now you’ve had a chance hear other people’s views, take the Online Poll.
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