Master the electoral process from primary elections to the Electoral College!
Enter your name to begin your journey through Texas elections and campaigns:
Understand the importance of elections and campaigns in Texas democracy.
Learn about primary, runoff, general, and special elections in Texas.
Compare open, closed, and semi-open primary election systems.
Explore what it takes to run for office and become a party nominee.
Discover how campaigns operate from primaries through conventions.
Learn about television, internet, and debate strategies in modern campaigns.
Understand how presidents are elected through the Electoral College system.
Explore fundraising, PACs, and campaign finance regulations.
Elections offer American voters the opportunity to participate in their government with little investment of time or personal effort. Yet voters should make decisions carefully. The electoral system allows them the chance to pick party nominees as well as office-holders, although not every citizen will participate in every step.
+30 points! 🏛️ Democracy in action!
Elections are the cornerstone of representative democracy. They provide citizens with the power to choose their leaders and hold them accountable. Without elections, there would be no peaceful transfer of power, no mechanism for citizens to express their preferences, and no way to ensure that government reflects the will of the people. As you can imagine, Texas has had some interesting elections and campaigns in the past and will continue to have them in the future.
+30 points! 📋 Election administration revealed!
The Texas Secretary of State serves as Chief Election Officer for Texas, assisting county election officials and ensuring the uniform application and interpretation of election laws throughout Texas. This office is responsible for making sure that elections run smoothly across all 254 Texas counties and that election laws are applied consistently statewide.
Texas uses four types of elections: Primary Elections, Runoff Elections, General Elections, and Special Elections. Each serves a different purpose in the democratic process.
+30 points! 🔄 Runoff elections explained!
A runoff election is held when no candidate gets 50 percent plus one vote in the primary election. Primary elections often have multiple candidates vying to represent a party in the general election, and it's not uncommon that a single candidate fails to win a majority. In such a case, there is a runoff election between the top two vote-getters. This ensures that the party's nominee has strong support from party voters.
+30 points! 📅 Midterm elections revealed!
Texas holds its statewide elections (Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and so on) in "nonpresidential" or "midterm" years—the general elections when we are not electing a President. Major state officials, such as the attorney general, governor, lieutenant governor, and comptroller of public accounts, are elected in these nonpresidential election years. This means Texas governors are elected in years like 2022 and 2026, not 2024 or 2028.
States are responsible for running elections. Each state may opt to use a variety of primary election systems. Among the fifty states, there are several different types of primary elections.
+30 points! 🎭 Strategic voting revealed!
Raiding consists of voters of one party crossing over and voting in the primary of another party, effectively allowing a party to help choose its opposition's candidate. The theory is that opposing party members vote for the weakest candidate of the opposite party in order to give their own party the advantage in the general election. This is one criticism of open primary systems.
+30 points! 🌴 Alternative systems explained!
A blanket primary is a primary in which the ballot is not restricted to candidates from one party. In a nonpartisan blanket primary (nicknamed the "jungle primary"), the ballot is not restricted to candidates from one party, and the top two candidates advance to the general election regardless of party affiliation. Louisiana has famously operated under this system. California has used a nonpartisan blanket primary since 2012, and Washington state since 2008. This can result in two candidates from the same party running against each other in the general election!
Texas' primaries are difficult to classify – they are somewhere between open and semi-open. Voters in Texas don't register under a party label and may choose to vote in either party's primary (but not both). Voters who cast ballots in one of the major party primary elections may only vote in the runoff election for the same party in which they cast their primary ballot. Voters who did not cast a ballot in primary elections are free to choose either party's runoff ballot, but may only vote in one party's runoff election.
Running for office in Texas can be as easy as collecting one hundred signatures on a city election form or paying a registration fee of several thousand dollars to run for governor of a state. However, a potential candidate still needs to meet state-specific requirements covering length of residency, voting status, and age.
+30 points! 🤔 The decision to run revealed!
Potential candidates must consider competitors, family obligations, and the likelihood of drawing financial backing. Their spouse, children, work history, health, financial history, and business dealings also become part of the media's focus, along with many other personal details about the past. Candidates for office are slightly more diverse than the representatives serving in legislative and executive bodies, but the realities of elections drive many eligible and desirable candidates away from running.
+30 points! 📅 Primary scheduling strategies!
Frontloading occurs when states schedule the majority of primaries and caucuses at the beginning of the primary season. States have been frontloading since the 1976 presidential election. In 2008, California, New York, and several other states disregarded national party guidelines and scheduled their primaries in early February. In response, Florida and Michigan moved their primaries to January. Political parties can punish states by reducing their delegate counts – in 2008, both parties reduced delegates from Michigan and Florida as punishment for holding early primaries.
+30 points! 🏆 Alternative nomination systems!
A top-two primary, sometimes called a jungle primary, pits all candidates against each other, regardless of party affiliation. The two candidates with the most votes become the final candidates for the general election. This means two candidates from the same party could run against each other in the general election! In 2016, thirty-four candidates filed to run to replace Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA). In the end, two Democratic women of color emerged to compete head-to-head, with Kamala Harris eventually winning the seat.
Although candidates have the same goal for primary and general elections, which is to win, these elections are very different from each other and require a very different set of strategies. Primary elections are more difficult for the voter because there are more candidates vying to become their party's nominee, and party identification is not a useful cue because each party has many candidates rather than just one.
+30 points! 👤 The power of recognition!
Name recognition is extremely important. Voters are unlikely to cast a vote for an unknown. Some candidates, like Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush, have held or are related to someone who held national office, but most candidates will be governors, senators, or local politicians who are less well-known nationally. In 2016, both eventual nominees had massive name recognition – Clinton from being First Lady, Senator, and Secretary of State; Trump from being a real estate tycoon and reality TV star. While well-known candidates have longer records that can be attacked, they also have an easier time raising campaign funds.
+30 points! 🎪 Party conventions explained!
Once it is clear who the parties' nominees will be, campaigns enter a quiet period to raise funds. Party conventions are typically held between June and September. Conventions normally last four to five days, with days devoted to platform discussion and nights reserved for speeches. Members of the candidate's family speak during the first few days, with the vice-presidential nominee speaking on the next-to-last night and the presidential candidate on the final night. The party with the incumbent president holds the later convention.
+35 points! 📈 Post-convention effects!
Conventions are covered by most news networks and cable programs, helping the party nominee get positive attention while surrounded by loyal delegates, family members, friends, and colleagues. For presidential candidates, this positivity often leads to a bump in popularity – a small increase in favorability. If a candidate does not get the bump, the campaign manager has to evaluate whether the candidate is connecting well with voters. In 2004, John Kerry spent the Democratic convention talking about Iraq and domestic spending, yet Gallup recorded no convention bump afterward.
Campaigns have always been expensive and have sometimes been negative and nasty. The 1828 "Coffin Handbill" that John Quincy Adams ran listed the names and circumstances of executions Andrew Jackson had ordered. This was in addition to gossip and verbal attacks against Jackson's wife, who had accidentally committed bigamy.
+30 points! 📺 The TV revolution!
Once television became a fixture in homes, campaign advertising moved to the airwaves. Television allowed candidates to connect with voters through video, appealing directly and emotionally. While Adlai Stevenson and Dwight D. Eisenhower were the first to use television in their 1952 and 1956 campaigns, John Kennedy's campaign was the first to use images to show voters that the candidate was the choice for everyone. In reaction to negative ads, the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 required candidates to include a recorded statement within the ad stating they approved the message.
+30 points! 💻 Digital campaigning!
The Internet has given candidates a new platform and a new way to target voters. In the 2000 election, campaigns created websites to distribute information and used search engine results to target voters with ads. In 2004, Democratic candidate Howard Dean used the Internet to reach potential donors – his campaign posted footage of the candidate eating a turkey sandwich, which brought over $200,000 in donations and showed his commitment to being a down-to-earth candidate. Candidates also use social media like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube to interact with supporters and reach younger voters.
+30 points! 🎤 The power of debates!
In 1960, the first televised presidential debate showed that answering questions well is not the only way to impress voters. Senator Kennedy and Vice President Nixon prepared differently – Kennedy worked on delivery, accent, tone, facial displays, and body movements. Nixon was ill and appeared sweaty and gaunt, choosing not to wear makeup. Interestingly, while people who watched the debate thought Kennedy won, those listening on radio saw it as more of a draw. This demonstrated that visual presentation matters as much as content in televised debates.
Once the voters have cast ballots in November and all the election season madness comes to a close, races for governors and local representatives may be over, but the constitutional process of electing a president has only begun.
+35 points! ⭐ The Lone Star's electoral power!
Texas carries the second largest share of electors after California. Currently, Texas has 38 electoral votes and has seen the number of electors increase steadily for decades. Texas is considered a "red state" in that it tends to vote for the Republican candidate. In terms of the role of Texas in presidential elections, the state adds considerable weight to any candidate who can secure the state's electors. The electors travel to their state capitol and cast their votes in mid-December, often by signing a certificate recording their vote.
+35 points! 🎭 Electoral surprises!
Occasionally there are examples of faithless electors – electors who vote differently from their state's voters. In 2000, one DC elector cast a blank ballot to contest the District's unequal representation. In the 2016 election, there were seven faithless electors: four in Washington, two in Texas, and one in Hawaii. The Republican and Democratic parties choose faithful party members who have worked hard for their candidates, which decreases the chance they will vote differently from the state's voters. Electors cannot be elected officials nor can they work for the federal government.
During a presidential election year, members of Congress often experience the coattail effect, which gives members of a popular presidential candidate's party an increase in popularity and raises their odds of retaining office. During a midterm election year, however, the president's party often is blamed for the president's actions or inaction. Representatives and senators from the sitting president's party are more likely to lose their seats during a midterm election year. The 2010 election returned control of the House to Republicans after two years of a Democratic presidency.
Political campaigns are efforts of the candidates to win support of the voters. The goal of the campaign is to attain sufficient support to win the primary election in March and the general election in November. Campaigns involve attempts to reach potential voters through print and electronic media, mail, door-to-door campaigning, speeches, and telephone solicitation. The cost is enormous, and money is critical for candidate success in Texas.
+30 points! 📜 A century of reform!
The history of campaign finance monitoring has its roots in a federal law written in 1867, which prohibited government employees from asking Naval Yard employees for donations. After Theodore Roosevelt witnessed excessive campaign spending, the Tillman Act (1907) prohibited corporations from contributing to federal candidates. In 1971, the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) outlined how candidates would report contributions and expenditures. A 1974 amendment created the Federal Election Commission (FEC), which operates independently and enforces election laws.
+30 points! 💰 Unlimited spending unleashed!
In 2010, the Supreme Court's ruling on Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission led to the removal of spending limits on corporations funding independent political broadcasts. This allowed corporations to place unlimited money into Super PACs, or Independent Expenditure-Only Committees. These organizations cannot contribute directly to a candidate, nor can they strategize with a candidate's campaign. However, they can raise and spend as much money as they please to support or attack a candidate. In 2012, "Restore Our Future" raised $153 million supporting conservative candidates, while "Priorities USA Action" raised $79 million supporting liberal candidates.
Several limits on campaign contributions remain in place: Individuals may contribute up to $2,700 per candidate per election (adjusted for inflation). Individuals may also give $5,000 to political action committees and $33,400 to a national party committee. PACs that contribute to more than one candidate are permitted to contribute $5,000 per candidate per election. These limits are intended to create a more equal playing field so that candidates must raise funds from a broad pool of contributors.
Chapter 9: Elections and Campaigns in Texas
| Section | Topic | Status | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Introduction to Elections | ❌ | 0/140 |
| 2 | Types of Elections | ❌ | 0/155 |
| 3 | Primary Systems | ❌ | 0/155 |
| 4 | Becoming a Candidate | ❌ | 0/160 |
| 5 | Campaigning Strategies | ❌ | 0/165 |
| 6 | Campaign Techniques | ❌ | 0/155 |
| 7 | The Electoral College | ❌ | 0/160 |
| 8 | Campaign Finance | ❌ | 0/150 |
This report documents the student's completion of Chapter 9: Elections and Campaigns in Texas. The percentage score reflects both content exploration and knowledge check performance. Students should aim for 80% or higher to demonstrate mastery.