Abstract
In this article, the writer examines the originators of the affirmative action ballot measure and evaluates their authority, credibility, and probable motives.

From the Paper
"The states of Arizona Colorado Missouri Nebraska and Oklahoma had proposed ballot initiatives that would allow voters to decide whether affirmative action would be eliminated in government-funded projects and public schools. The originator of the movement is Ward Connerly an African-American American Indian who heads up the American Civil Rights Coalition a non profit organization working to end racial and gender preferences. Royce Connerly who suffered discrimination as a youth ..."

Tags:affirmative action, ballot measures, Connerly, Missouri, California, Proposition 209

Abstract
This paper uses the case of Florida to illustrate how ballot initiatives, while originally intended as a means to enhance the process of direct democracy, have instead become a process whereby those who can afford to spend more money have a greater chance of getting a ballot initiative through the process successfully or of derailing the process if they oppose the initiative. The paper also briefly examines other states that have experienced the same type of corruption of the ballot initiatives and concludes that, while the ballot initiative was originally conceived as a form of direct democracy, the process has become so corrupted that it now works counter to the interests of the people.

From the Paper
"Ballot initiatives have constituted a sort of shorthand for American democracy, in some quarters, since the late 1960s. It was then that Florida's new Constitution provided for the citizens of the state to be able to amend or revise the state's constitution by ballot initiative, which was also called direct democracy. Many observers make a distinction between a democracy and a republic, noting that a republic is government of the people exercised through their elected representatives, while democracy may be carried out through elected representatives or directly. Still, direct democracy sounds redundant and, arguably, the way ballot initiatives have been co-opted by large corporate entities and wealthy individuals with their own agendas, these days the term direct democracy is also inaccurate."

Tags:referendum, process, election, representative, government, signatures, petitioners

Abstract
This paper examines the impact of citizen initiatives and ballot referendums in political elections in the United States. It argues that culture, political environment and the competitive dynamic of ballot proposals impact the results of citizen initiatives. It also evaluates the outcome of the Nevada initiatives from a few relevant theoretical perspectives to make broader generalizations about why question 5 was successful in the 2006 election. (The author provides brief explanations of questions 4 and 5.)

From the Paper
"Nevada was historically Democratic until the early 1960s when the state began to divide politically, narrowly voting for John Kennedy in 1960 and Richard Nixon in 1968. Nevada state politics have been volatile over the past two decades, with sharp individualist newcomers leaning the state Republican in the 1980s due to heavy business interests. Since supporting Ronald Reagan with more than 60% of the popular vote in the 1980 and 1984 presidential elections, Nevada voters have favored Republicans with a libertarian but often culturally conservative streak (Barone and Cohen 2003). Though it also supported George Bush with 59% of the popular vote in the 1988 presidential election, Nevada gave its electoral votes to Bill Clinton twice in the 1990s. There are 361,465 registered Democrats and 368, 673 registered Republicans in the state, showing that neither party has a sizeable advantage in Nevada (Barone and Cohen 2003). The most influential political actors in the state are Senior Senator Harry Reid (D), Junior Senator John Ensign (R) and Governor Kenny Guinn (R). Before the 2006 elections Reid was the democratic whip in the senate, though he has never won an election by more than 51%. Most state-wide elections in Nevada are heated because of the high citizen turnover rate, making it unlikely that any of the key political actors will take stands on a public initiative (Barone 2003). It is in their interests to remain neutral rather than take sides on such a controversial issue."

Tags:democracy, vote, senator

Abstract
This paper describes the work and viewpoint of the woman suffragist, Amelia Bloomer, focusing on her famous speech, "Woman's Right to the Ballot." First, the paper discusses who Bloomer was and how she presented her opinions in a rational and organized fashion. Then, the paper shows how Bloomer exemplified the new middle class woman who strove to be heard and represented through the right to vote. Additionally, the paper notes how Bloomer needed to think like a man to get her message across. Bloomer addressed men in her speech, appealing to their sense of logic as a way to convey her message. Next the paper points out that Bloomer was not afraid of letting men know where they have gone wrong. The paper concludes by stating that Amelia Bloomer was a role model for women in her day because she was speaking out for a basic right that women should have been afforded but were not.

From the Paper
"Bloomer was a forward thinker blessed with a husband that supported her activities. She was given a certain amount of freedom that most women did not enjoy and she used to her best advantage. She was Linda Steiner asserts that while Bloomer was writing for The Lily, a women's suffrage publication, she "articulated and dramatized a new kind of middle-class woman, a 'sensible woman . . . active, healthy, sensibly dressed women, in place of the waxen-faced, wasp-like beflowered and befurbelowed caricatures of women'" (Steiner). Bloomer expressed the notion that women could be active in matters outside the home wile still being a wife and mother. The Lily illustrates how Bloomer and others used "language not only to motivate and recruit women but to reinforce gender roles and beliefs as well" (Baker). Bloomer did take the position that women should be allowed to vote, she also believed that women should demonstrate that they are worthy of that right. Steiner points out that while Bloomer praised the women that supported prohibition..."

Tags:women's suffrage, women's rights

Abstract
This paper looks at the social and racial context contained in Malcolm X's speech known as "The Ballot or the Bullet". The writer looks at Malcolm X, his background, and influence on the civil rights movement in the 1960s in America. The speech explores issues of race, black power, government, and the potential for social change.

From the Paper
"Of course, Malcolm X proposes a concrete plan for his fellowmen to promote social changes in the black American society. He believes in the power and influence of the United Nations in acting as intermediary for the black American society and the US government to negotiate about their proposed changes in the American society, since, according to Malcolm X, "[w]hen you take your case to Washington D.C., you're asking it to the criminal who's responsible? They're all in cahoots together." Apart from seeking the help of the UN, he also proposes that his fellowmen empower themselves in the country and against the forces that oppress them (the government) by becoming self-reliant economically and being assertive enough to illicit fear among these oppressive powers."

Tags:society, black, white, american, african, race

Abstract
Examines the 2000 California ballot measure. Presents argument for and against the "get-tough" initiative which passed. Changes in the juvenile justice system resulting from Prop 21. Legal definition of juvenile. Philosophy of juvenile courts. Issues of public safety, youth gangs, growing violence of juvenile crimes, treatment of juveniles. Contends the inititative is flawed.

From the Paper
"Juvenile crime has become one of America's most prominent issues, even as the overall crime rate has declined to the lowest point in decades. Several celebrated cases have helped create an image of teenagers run amok and younger and younger kids committing major felonies. Once apprehended, these children enter a juvenile justice system that many claim utilizes an outdated approach. In some cases, murderers have gone free at age 25 simply because that is the incarceration limit for the juvenile justice system.


In response, an advocacy group placed a get-tough measure (called Proposition 21) on the California ballot. This initiative, which passed overwhelmingly (62 percent to 38 percent), calls for dramatic changes in the juvenile justice system. This paper will examine Proposition 21, highlighting the..."

Abstract
Three views on integration are provided by the Supreme Court (Brown v. Board of Education), Malcolm X "Ballots or bullets" and Martin Luther King "Non-Violence" In light of events over the past 40-50 years since these events it would seem that integration has made progress and that the Supreme Court's view of equality is the one which has been mostly accomplished.

From the Paper
Three Views on Integration: Brown v Board of Education, Martin Luther King and Malcolm X The decades of the 1950s and 1960s were a watershed in the history of race relations and Civil Rights activism in the United States. Looking back from the 21^st Century we can see three distinct strands of thought, each of which we can now study in light of the changes in our society over the past 40 or 50 years. During the 1950's and 60's a series of court decisions and new laws were enacted to outlaw racial discrimination. These began most famously with the 1954 Supreme Court decision in Brown v. The Board of Education of

Tags:equality, integration, segregation

Abstract
This paper examines Ralph Ellison's "Battle Royal", Leslie Marmon "Silko's Ceremony", Martin Luther King's "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" and Malcolm X's "The Ballot or the Bullet." It shows how they all offer vivid and important accounts of racism in the United States of America, all present different aspects of the problem and offer different ways of coping with them. More than anything, these texts testify to the continuing problem of racism in America and the multiplicity of forms in which racism can manifest itself.

From the Paper
"Indeed, the manifestations of racism are so heavy within the "Battle Royal" section of Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man that it is difficult to pinpoint one single instance of racism, which outshines the others. Indeed, the chapter effectively presages all the manners of racism that will eventually manifest later in the book. The unnamed protagonist who has won a school prize is sent to the white men's club to deliver a speech, but is forced to compete in the Battle Royal instead, a request with which he too willingly complies. He is forced to box a large group of other men blindfolded, to pick coins off an electric carpet (which turn out to be fake coins), and eventually to read his speech with his mouth so full of blood that he can barely speak and is forced to swallow his own blood. The racism throughout the chapter is grotesque and at point absurd, but Ellison uses this absurdity to use the Battle Royal scene as an effective allegory for the rest of the book."

Tags:malcolm, x, ballot, bullet, luther, king, birmingham, jail, silko, ceremony, marmon, battle, royal, ellison

Abstract
This paper discusses the involvement of the U.S. Supreme Court in the Senate elections in New Jersey. The legal concerns of the Republican party were brought to the U.S. Supreme Court following the ruling of the New Jersey Supreme Court, allowing a deviance from the legislature. The paper examines the New Jersey State laws, which clearly define the timing and conditions for the withdrawal of a candidate and replacement of that candidate on the ballot.

From the Paper
"The Republicans still had some hope that the United States Supreme Court would overrule the New Jersey Supreme Court. The US Supreme Court had involved itself in the Florida voting problems in the 2000 Presidential Election. However that was a Federal election and involved the executive branch. The New Jersey situation affected state law, not federal law so the US courts would not get involved. The state courts would have had to misinterpret the state responsibilities written into the US Constitution."

Tags:supreme, court, legislation, ballot, candidate, senator, robert, toricelli, douglas, forrester

Abstract
This paper provides a brief insight to the main events of the 2000 U.S. presidential elections. It analyzes how George W. Bush won the original vote in Florida and then won a recount of the same vote and how the Gore team opposed Bush's win, trying to hold on as long as they could. They claimed that the "butterfly" ballot used in several counties, including the Democratic Palm Beach County, was unconstitutional. It compares these events to the elections of 1876 between Samuel J. Tilden and Rutherford B. Hayes, a Republican governor like Bush and how like the 2000 election, the outcome of the 1876 election depended largely upon contested votes, recounts and even legal posturing in Florida .

From the Paper
"The legal ballot used in Palm Beach County was actually designed by an elected Democrat official. Prior to the election, it was reviewed and approved by both Democrats and Republicans, publicized, and mailed to all registered voters in a sample ballot. New ballots were also provided for voters who complained of making mistakes. At the request of the Gore's team, hand-counts of individual ballots were conducted in many Democratic counties, including Palm Beach. However, during the first hand-count in Palm Beach, the standard was changed for judging whether or not a ballot was valid."

Tags:2000, election, Palm, Beach, County, ballot, Samuel, J., Tilden, Rutherford, B.