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Voter suppression refers to the use of governmental power, political campaign strategy, and private resources aimed at suppressing (i.e. reducing) the total vote of opposition candidacies instead of attempting to change likely voting behavior by changing the opinions of potential voters. An attack ad in election terms is an advertisement whose message is meant as an attack against another candidate or political party. ... A push poll is a political campaign technique in which an individual or organization attempts to influence or alter the view of respondents under the guise of conducting a poll. ... A smear campaign or smear tactics are deliberate attempts by an individual or group to malign another individual or groups reputation. ... Image File history File links Wiki_letter_w. ... Image File history File links Unbalanced_scales. ... Image File history File links Nuvola_apps_browser. ...

Voter suppression by governmental power

In the United States, voter suppression was used extensively in some Southern states until the Voting Rights Act (1965) made most disenfranchisement and voting qualifications illegal. Traditional voter suppression tactics included the institution of poll taxes and literacy tests, aimed at suppressing the votes of African Americans and working class white voters. Mailbox smashing was also used in some districts. The U.S. Southern states or the South, also known colloquially as Dixie, constitute a distinctive region covering a large portion of the United States, with its own unique heritage, historical perspective, customs, musical styles, and cuisine. ... The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (Public Law 89-10) outlawed the requirement that would-be voters in the United States take literacy tests to qualify to register to vote, and it provided for federal registration of voters -- instead of state or local voter registration which had often been denied... 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... Two mailboxes that were engaged in mailbox baseball. ...

Measures in place in seven U.S. states ban released felons from voting; some allege that this is a tactic aimed at suppressing voter turnout. Occasionally, as in Florida in the 2000 presidential election, some non-felons are banned due to record-keeping errors and are not warned of their disqualification before they have the right to contest it. A felony, in many common law legal systems, is the term for a very serious crime, whereas misdemeanors are considered to be less serious offenses. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Presidential electoral votes by state. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

In the U.S. presidential election of 2004, Ohio officials allegedly mis-allocated voting machines to reduce Democratic turnout. (With too few voting machines per registered voter, in areas heavily populated by African Americans who were Democratic, had to wait in line for hours. Republican districts received many more voting machines per capita.) [1] Presidential election results map. ...

Voter suppression by campaign organizations

In the 2002 New Hampshire Senate election phone jamming scandal, Republican officials attempted to reduce the number of Democratic voters by paying professional telemarketers in Idaho to make repeated hang-up calls to block Democrats' ride-to-the-polls phone lines on election day. [2] The 2002 New Hampshire Senate election phone jamming scandal involves the use of a telemarketing firm hired by that states Republican Party (NHGOP) for election tampering. ...

In 2006, five employees of the John Kerry campaign[3] were convicted[4] for slashing the tires of 25 vans rented by the GOP to drive voters and poll watchers to the polls on the day of the 2004 general election. 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is the junior United States Senator from Massachusetts. ... This article is about the modern United States Republican Party. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A general election is an election in which all members of a given political body are up for election. ...

Voter suppression by unknown activists

In the U.S. presidential election of 2004, some voters got phone calls with false information intended to keep them from voting--saying that their voting place had been changed or that voting would take place on Wednesday as well as on Tuesday.[5][6] Presidential election results map. ...

Voter suppression distinct from other campaign tactics

Unlike negative campaigning, which ordinarily seeks reduce the likelihood of someone voting for a candidate through disparaging arguments directed at a candidate, voter suppression prevents people from voting altogether. Thus if as in the U.S. presidential election of 1964 in the United States the Lyndon Johnson campaign depicted Barry Goldwater as a "right-wing extremist," such a depiction does not constitute voter suppression. Negative campaigning is trying to win an advantage by referring to negative aspects of an opponent or of a policy rather than emphasizing ones own positive attributes or preferred policies. ... Presidential electoral votes by state. ... Lyndon Baines Johnson (August 27, 1908–January 22, 1973), often referred to as LBJ, was an American politician. ... Bartholomew Morris Goldwater (January 1, 1909 – May 29, 1998) commonly known as Barry Goldwater, was a five-term United States Senator from Arizona (1953–1965, 1969–87) and the Republican Partys nominee for President in the 1964 election. ...

Negative campaigning, even if it goes as far as slander or libel, is not generally considered to be a form of voter suppression. Research has shown, however, that negative campaigning does indirectly make people less likely to vote. [7] In English and American law, and systems based on them, libel and slander are two forms of defamation (or defamation of character), which is the tort or delict of making a false statement of fact that injures someones reputation. ... In English and American law, and systems based on them, libel and slander are two forms of defamation (or defamation of character), which is the tort or delict of making a false statement of fact that injures someones reputation. ...

Some kinds of vote fraud--such as bribery or intimidation of electors, or manipulation of voting results by tampering with the voting devices, paraphernalia, or tabulating machines with the result of falsifying, undercounting, or otherwise misrepresenting the vote--may result in depriving qualified electors of their legitimate voice in an election. The term "voter suppression," however, is usually reserved for attempts to keep voters away from the polls, not for other kinds of vote manipulation. Electoral fraud is the deliberate interference with the process of an election. ...

See also

• Electoral fraud
• Caging list
• Political corruption
• Voter turnout

To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... World map of the Corruption Perceptions Index, which measures the degree to which corruption is perceived to exist among public officials and politicians In broad terms, political corruption is the misuse by government officials of their governmental powers for illegitimate, usually secret, private gain. ... Men turning out to vote in the Australian 1899 Federation referendum. ...

External links

• Vote Fraud, Intimidation & Suppression In The 2004 Presidential Election - American Center For Voting Rights, August 2, 2005, report.