Difference between revisions of "Turnout"
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| − | Turnout, or voter turnout, refers to the percentage of eligible voters who actually vote in an election. | + | '''Turnout''', or voter turnout, refers to the percentage of eligible voters who actually vote in an [[election]]. |
| − | + | [[Image:Turnout-2ps.jpg|thumb|300px|High rates of turnout in the [[Second Party System]] demonstrated strong voter interest; all adult male citizens could vote; compare this to 60% turnout in 21st century in the [[Fifth Party System]]]] | |
| − | '' | + | For presidential elections, voter turnout has been about 50-55% in the [[United States]] in the past few decades.<ref>http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0781453.html</ref> For non-presidential federal elections, voter turnout has been between 35% and 40%. For local school board elections, voter turnout can be less than 20%. |
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| + | In the presidential election of 2008, the overall turnout nationwide was 57.9%, which decreased to 52.5% in the presidential election in 2012.<ref name="Daily Younder">http://www.dailyyonder.com/rural-voter-turnout-drops-18-2012/2012/11/29/5514/</ref> Turnout is somewhat lower today than in prior periods of American history.<ref>https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/data/turnout.php</ref> | ||
| + | |||
| + | Typically the turnout in a [[primary]] is particularly low. The record turnout for the State of Alabama in a presidential election is only 42.6% of registered voters (which is only a subset of the total number of eligible voters). That record was set in 2008. The prior record for Alabama was only 29% (set in 1992). | ||
| + | |||
| + | == Urban versus rural == | ||
| + | |||
| + | In general, rural residents vote in higher turnout than city residents do.<ref name="Daily Younder"/> | ||
| + | |||
| + | Turnout declined in both urban and rural areas in 2012 compared with 2008. The turnout in rural counties declined from 67.2% in 2008 to 54.9% in 2012.<ref name="Daily Younder"/> The turnout in small cities fell from 61.1% in 2008 to 52.7% in 2012. | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==Further reading== | ||
| + | * Alexander Keyssar, ''The Right to Vote: The Contested History of Democracy in the United States'' (2001) [https://www.amazon.com/Right-Vote-Contested-History-Democracy/dp/0465029698/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1238563171&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search] | ||
| + | ==See also== | ||
| + | * [[American election campaigns, 19th century]] | ||
| + | * [[First Party System]] | ||
| + | * [[Second Party System]] | ||
| + | * [[Third Party System]] | ||
| + | * [[Fourth Party System]] | ||
| + | * [[Fifth Party System]] | ||
| + | * [[Gilded Age]] | ||
| + | * [[Jim Crow]] | ||
| + | |||
| + | |||
| + | ====References==== | ||
| + | <references/> | ||
| + | [[Category:Political Terms]] | ||
| + | [[Category:Election Terms]] | ||
| + | [[Category:United States History]] | ||
| + | [[Category:United States Political Parties]] | ||
Latest revision as of 23:26, April 9, 2019
Turnout, or voter turnout, refers to the percentage of eligible voters who actually vote in an election.
For presidential elections, voter turnout has been about 50-55% in the United States in the past few decades.[1] For non-presidential federal elections, voter turnout has been between 35% and 40%. For local school board elections, voter turnout can be less than 20%.
In the presidential election of 2008, the overall turnout nationwide was 57.9%, which decreased to 52.5% in the presidential election in 2012.[2] Turnout is somewhat lower today than in prior periods of American history.[3]
Typically the turnout in a primary is particularly low. The record turnout for the State of Alabama in a presidential election is only 42.6% of registered voters (which is only a subset of the total number of eligible voters). That record was set in 2008. The prior record for Alabama was only 29% (set in 1992).
Urban versus rural
In general, rural residents vote in higher turnout than city residents do.[2]
Turnout declined in both urban and rural areas in 2012 compared with 2008. The turnout in rural counties declined from 67.2% in 2008 to 54.9% in 2012.[2] The turnout in small cities fell from 61.1% in 2008 to 52.7% in 2012.
Further reading
- Alexander Keyssar, The Right to Vote: The Contested History of Democracy in the United States (2001) excerpt and text search
See also
- American election campaigns, 19th century
- First Party System
- Second Party System
- Third Party System
- Fourth Party System
- Fifth Party System
- Gilded Age
- Jim Crow