Posted on 08/30/2014 5:59:52 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Even after the unrest in Ferguson has subsided, we're left with questions about the tension that built up and exploded in the small St. Louis suburb. Among those questions: How did a city where two-thirds of the residents are black elect an almost entirely white city government? The answer is simple: Ferguson holds its city elections entirely separate from state and national elections, and that can make all the difference.
People rarely think about the timing of elections. But Missouri's election rules set the stage for the discontent that has tormented Ferguson recently. The state requires its cities to hold elections in April, when there are no state or national offices on the ballot to draw voters to the polls. As a result, turnout is low. In Ferguson, turnout in the most recent election was an abysmal 12 percent, and best estimates indicate that white residents participate at much higher rates in the city's elections than black residents. White residents were three times more likely to vote than black residents in the April 2013 municipal election, according to a Washington Post analysis of Catalist data. Suddenly, it is much less surprising that Ferguson has a white mayor, five out of six council members are white, and its 53-member police force has only three black officers.
The pronounced effects of off-cycle election timing extend far beyond Ferguson. Researchers Zoltan Hajnal and Jessica Trounstine have shown that cities with low turnout tend to elect fewer minority city council members.
My own research has found that off-cycle election timing increases the political influence of various groups that are highly motivated and well-equipped to mobilize their supporters, such as teachers unions in school board elections and police officers and firefighters in city elections. For example, in school districts that hold off-cycle elections, teachers are paid significantly higher salaries than in school districts that hold on-cycle elections. Exactly who wins and who loses from off-cycle election timing differs from place to place, but when elections are off-cycle, small groups can have a big impact — and be rewarded handsomely with favorable public policies.
Moreover, the election timing rules of Missouri are not unusual. As of 2012, 21 states required all of their municipal elections to be held off-cycle, and almost all of the remaining states had at least some cities with off-cycle elections. A mere five states required that municipal elections be held on the same day as national elections. Off-cycle timing and low turnout in municipal elections are the norm in the United States — not the exception.
If Ferguson's elections were simply rescheduled to coincide with national elections, turnout in the city's races would more closely mirror the significantly higher turnout of national races. In California, turnout is a whopping 36 percentage points higher in cities that hold elections on the same day as presidential elections than in cities that hold off-cycle elections. In Minnesota, turnout is 22 percentage points higher in on-cycle school board elections than in off-cycle school board elections. Timing is the most important factor in explaining why turnout is low in some cities and high in others.
While rescheduling local elections would attract a broader, more representative slice of the eligible electorate, and drive policies that more closely reflect the preferences of citizens, there are some downsides. Off-cycle local elections became a standard during the early 20th century, when progressive reformers argued that local issues and policymaking are sufficiently different from state and national ones that the elections should be held separately. Combining local, state and national elections also creates significant administrative hurdles and exhaustingly long November ballots in even-numbered years. But the benefits of higher turnout and stronger local democracy far outweigh the costs of dealing with those hassles.
The solution may be simple, but the politics of changing local election timing is anything but. The groups that benefit from low turnout lobby hard to keep off-cycle elections in place — and thus to protect their advantage. And legislators charged with setting election schedules listen to those groups, because those on the other side — those who would benefit from a switch to on-cycle elections — are typically unorganized and inactive.
With the spotlight on Ferguson, people are calling for explanations. Ferguson's warped political structure can be largely explained by a simple electoral rule that locks in low turnout — not just in Ferguson, but in literally thousands of American municipalities and school districts. It is time for that to change.
Sarah Anzia is assistant professor of public policy at the University of California at Berkeley and the author of "Timing and Turnout: How Off-Cycle Elections Favor Organized Groups."
Okay, is she claiming that black people can't read, aren't motivated or something else? And isn't that racist? And she never mentioned the "Tea Party" by name, but I kept reading it between the lines.
So basically, she’s saying that less motivated voters don’t turn out for off-year elections, and that’s somehow racist?
Oooookey dokey!
People who don’t vote get the government they deserve, professor. It’s as simple as that. And it’s nobody’s fault but your own if you choose not to turn out for the local elections.
They could set up a table right outside polling places and hand out the checks as they leave.
Oh shut up you stupid, stupid woman.
” a simple electoral rule that locks in low turnout “.....
she should be locked in....
so she’s bitching b/c the massive amount of liberal groups that exist, are not organized for ferguson elections?
my county has always had off-cycle electioms for county/city offices and we got sheriff david clarke, the only black sheriff in wisconsin, re-elected after the democrats outspent him 10-1, at least. the g-d libtard county exc spent 400,000 grand of his own money to defeat clarke.
anzia is a lying moron that denies reality.
so should we force people who don’t know anything to vote? or can only democrats run black candidates and repubs run white one so that the uniformed democrat base can pick entirely by color?
do we force people who are not interested in voting, to vote? maybe sarah should bitch her side isn’t doing enough to get the voters out.
the election dates are well-known and publicized. i think even the newscasts mention voting days... /s
cuz that’s’where her logic takes you.
Interesting she doesn’t mention Party affliation!
In Memphis, a majority black city, a white Jewish guy is its representative in Congress...what would this woman make of that!!!
“so should we force people who don’t know anything to vote? “
the professor may see that as an option....
“can only democrats run black candidates and repubs run white one so that the uniformed democrat base can pick entirely by color?”
.....in SARAHWORLD.....evidently
They are 70% of the population.
Ferguson blacks can have any government they want.
“How did a city where two-thirds of the residents are black elect an almost entirely white city government?”
Easy. It’s democrats right? They just pick who’s going to
be on the ballot and that’s what you get stuck with. Just
like the republican party where we get stuck with a
Romney or a McCain who just happen to be the only candidates
in the field who couldn’t beat the Obama.
Quite often, people who do vote get the government they deserve also.
Of course, when the dead vote . . .
If we had forced the 4 million Republicans that didn’t vote in the last election to vote, Romney would be President.
Just think, if they would only turn out (their choice entirely) they could have government like Detroit.
Ahh - maybe the fact that voter turnout in the last election was...wait for it,
*** 6% ***
made a difference?
We can figure out when to vote for what and whom.
If some folks in Ferguson are too lazy or dumb, that's their problem.
Imagine how much worse things would be if they got the people they would vote for elected.
Ferguson’s mayor is GOP.
well if we’re going to start saying we need to do that, we may as’well just do what the demtards do and fill in ballots ourselves and “discover” the boxes later in the evening.
How much are the citizens of California paying this woman for her services??? I think she should donate ALL of it to the poor, stupid black people in Ferguson MO to help them figure out that they have to vote in order to get elected representatives of their own choosing.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.