The Electoral Process

Abstract

American voting is essentially state voting. Despite the quadrennial emphasis on our presidential election, the United States has no national election law and the electoral processes of America vary from state to state as state law may dictate. Alone among the major democratic powers, America votes with only the smallest measure of national supervision of the various state voting systems. Thus, it is possible for a potential elector to be required to pay a poll tax in Virginia, but not in Maryland. He may have to be literate in English in New York, but not in New Jersey. He may be required to interpret the Constitution in Mississippi, but not in Minnesota. He may vote on a machine in San Francisco, and on a paper ballot across the Bay in Oakland. In Idaho, he may register as a voter up to just a few days before election; in some other states he must be registered many weeks or even months before the heat of the campaign has stirred his political emotions. Indeed, in some states he need not be registered at all, but may obtain his ballot simply by appearing at his precinct and asking for it. But this great series of variants in our American state election laws should not serve to conceal the essential unity of our electoral process. Though differences there may be, the basic methodology remains the same from state to state-a secret ballot, a single election day, free overt campaigning, and the like. Not only is our current practice much the same in all parts of the Union, but the historical development of our franchise has been fairly uniform. The present electorate of the United States-well over ioo,ooo,ooo-has evolved from a relatively small group of propertied people in the pre-Revolutionary colonies. While in colonial days many members of minority religious groups were excluded from the ballot, the most important pre-Revolutionary limitation on voting related to property qualification and taxes. Before the Revolution half the colonies had a property qualification for voting and the rest allowed evidence of property or tax payments as proof of eligibility to vote. As the West opened and new states were admitted, there was a withering away of property and economic qualifications for the franchise. With a few exceptions, America enjoyed universal adult white male franchise a century ago on the eve of the Civil War. With the passage of the postwar amendments on civil rights, voting was legally extended to the former slave population, though in many ways the position of the Negro as a voter was, and is even today, handicapped in some parts of the country.