Electoral Dysfunction: A Survival Manual for American Voters

by Victoria Bassetti, Mo Rocca (Foreword by), Heather Smith (Afterword)

Overview

Imagine a country where the right to vote is not guaranteed by the Constitution, where the candidate with the most votes loses, and where paperwork requirements and bureaucratic bungling disenfranchise millions. You're living in it. If the consequences weren't so serious, it would be funny.


An eye-opening, fact-filled companion to the forthcoming PBS documentary starring political satirist and commentator Mo Rocca, Electoral Dysfunction illuminates a broad array of issues, including the Founding Fathers' decision to omit the right to vote from the Constitution—and the legal system's patchwork response to this omission; the battle over voter ID, voter impersonation, and voter fraud; the foul-ups that plague Election Day, from ballot design to contested recounts; the role of partisan officials in running elections; and the anti-democratic origins and impact of the Electoral College. The book concludes with a prescription for a healthy voting system by Heather Smith, president of Rock the Vote.


Published in the run-up to the 2012 election, Electoral Dysfunction is for readers across the political spectrum who want their votes to count.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781595588128
Publisher:	New Press, The
Publication date:	09/18/2012
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Victoria Bassetti has worked with legislative and judicial bodies of the U.S. government, including serving as chief counsel/staff director to a subcommittee of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. She has been active in numerous political campaigns and participates regularly in Election Day voter-protection efforts.
Electoral Dysfunction
is directed by Bennett Singer, Leslie D. Farrell, and David Deschamps, whose credits include multiple Emmy, Peabody, and duPont-Columbia awards.

Table of Contents

Foreword Mo Rocca ix

Introduction xv

Chapter 1 In Search of the Right to Vote

Do Americans Really Have the Right to Vote? 1

Chapter 2 The Epic Battle for the Vote

Who Gets to Vote in America and the Quest for Universal Suffrage 17

Chapter 3 To Vote or Not to Vote

Who Votes and Why 49

Chapter 4 The Mystic Agency of the Electoral College

The Bewildering Way America Elects Its Presidents 75

Chapter 5 A Ramshackle House

The Convoluted and Misunderstood Election System 101

Chapter 6 The Games We Play

The Partisan Fight over Voting 143

Afterword Heather Smith 183

Appendix A Constitutional Provisions Relating to Voting 193

Appendix B Timeline of Major Events in American Voting 199

Appendix C Illustrations 205

Appendix D Additional Resources 221

Acknowledgments 225

Select Bibliography 227

Index 249

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"Crisply written, irreverent yet engaged. . . . A lively, witty survey of the numerous ailments that afflict the American electoral system." —-Alexander Keyssar

Editorial Reviews

Since 1789, the franchise in America, once limited to white propertied men, has steadily expanded. Still, as noted in this companion volume to the PBS documentary, the U.S. has the “lowest voter turnout of the world’s established democracies.” Bassetti, former chief counsel of a Senate Judiciary Committee subcommittee, looks at the expansion of the franchise and why voters bother to cast their ballots (and often don’t) in the first place, before exploring the many shortcomings of our system, such as the poorly designed ballots in 2000 that cost 1.5 million votes (and quite possibly Al Gore the presidency). Basseti sometimes strains too hard to be nonpartisan. For example, she writes: “Both political parties... manipulate the system for maximum partisan advantage.” (The truth comes out only a few pages later: “Registration rolls are purged more aggressively by Republicans than Democrats, with profound impact on people’s ability to vote”). The book also could have used a set of recommendations to make the system more functional. Still, this is a well-written, enlightening look at how, when it comes to access to the ballot box and other voter rights, the world’s second oldest democracy still has a long way to go. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

A delightfully provocative history and review of voting in America. Conceived as a companion to the PBS series of the same name, this handbook about elections and voting will undoubtedly appeal to both first-time voters and those who participate regularly. Bassetti, a political professional who has worked with various judicial and legislative bodies, provides a history of the struggle to secure and broaden the franchise and an analysis of who votes and why. She outlines the working of the Electoral College, the multilevel patchwork of election administration and the role of political parties. Federal election law, she explains, is at the top of a pyramid encompassing more than 13,000 electoral districts, each of which can be subject to different legal and procedural regimes. The author's initial provocation is that the right to vote was not originally enshrined in the Constitution. Excluded as one of the compromises that ensured adoption, the right to vote entered via the amendment process. Elections, she writes, have been driven since the beginning of the republic by disputes between those who want to broaden enfranchisement and increase turnout, and those who want to suppress the vote. She argues that it is through such political conflicts, as well as the emergence of much broader movements for emancipation, women's suffrage and civil rights, that progress has been made. Bassetti also historically and comparatively discusses election turnouts and the demographic characteristics of those who vote. Vote buying and fraud are presented in a historical context, which emphasizes that restrictive administrative and legal measures have a far greater effect on the vote than individual criminality at the polls. Four appendices provide documentation and access to additional resources. A well-organized, important tool that will remain useful beyond the present electoral cycle.

Kirkus Reviews

"Crisply written, irreverent yet engaged. . . . A lively, witty survey of the numerous ailments that afflict the American electoral system." ---Alexander Keyssar

From the Publisher

Marguerite Gavin's brisk pace and clear tone, with just a touch of a grin at the funny places, makes listening to this darkly humorous analysis of our electoral process as entertaining as it is informative. Although hearing Mo Rocca read his introduction would have added to the fun, narrator Lloyd James's forthright delivery is smooth and effectively complements Gavin's style. Deftly altering emphasis and inflection, Gavin easily transitions from the surprising and instructive historical content to the droll accounts of how base politicians have tried to manipulate this touchstone of our democracy. Her subtle changes in pace and tone are just enough to indicate the switch of authors in the closing chapter. Listeners fortunate enough to pick up this intriguing look at politics are in for a treat. M.O.B. © AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine

JANUARY 2013 - AudioFile