The 1996 Election
In the 1996 Presidential Election, the 538 electors cast 379 (70.4%) votes for Bill Clinton and Al Gore, and 159 (29.6%) votes for Bob Dole and Jack Kemp. In Kansas, the electors (Timothy Golba, Michael Harris, Betty Hanicke, Marynell Reece, Marjorie Robards, and John Watkins) cast their votes for Bob Dole and Jack Kemp. Clinton/Gore received 45,590,703 popular votes, while Dole/Kemp captured 37,816,307 popular votes. Reform party candidate, Ross Perot, received nearly 8 million votes.

The 1992 Election
In 1992, the Clinton/Gore camp received 370 (68.8%) electoral votes, while the Bush/Quayle team received only 168 (31.2%) electoral votes. The 1992 Kansas electors (Shari Caywood, James Bolden, Bruce Mayfield, Carlos Mayans, Charles Rayl, and Adolph Howard) cast their six (6) votes cast for George Bush and Dan Quayle. The popular vote was a much closer race, with Clinton/Gore receiving 44,908,254 and Bush/Quayle receiving 39,102,343. Additionally, Ross Perot received nearly 20 million votes.

Presidential Election Constitutional Provisions
If you would like to read about the constitutional provisions on Electing a President, see . . .

• United States Constitution, Article II. Section 1.
• Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
• Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
• Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
• Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
• Twentieth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
• Twenty-Second Amendment to the United States Constitution.
• Twenty-Third Amendment to the United States Constitution.
• Twenty-Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
• Twenty-Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
• Twenty-Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

1. “The Presidency” is a videocassette designed for high school students that outlines the many roles of the United States President, raising questions suitable for classroom discussion on presidential power. Library number: 353.03/P926.
2. “The Election of a President” is a filmstrip, appropriate for middle school and high school students, that presents the story of how our system for electing the President has changed and how it works today. Library number: 324.9.EL25.
3. A set of four posters covering primaries and caucuses, the convention, the campaign, and the election is available and designed for fifth grade through twelfth grade. Each poster has teaching activities for duplication on the back. Library number: 324.6/EL25.
4. “The Electoral Map” indicates electoral vote results for the presidential elections of 1948 intermittently through 1988. It also allows students to create the electoral map for the 1992 election results. Middle school and high school students might be interested in viewing this poster. Library number: 324/EL25.
5. Presidential campaign highlights from 1932 to 1988 with photographs and a brief synopsis of particular campaigns is available for middle school and high school students. Library number: 324.973/P92.

Overview: Many people in the United States have very little knowledge concerning the complexity of campaigning for a political office, especially the complexity for campaigning for the office of President of the United States. Very little is known by the average American citizen about the complex organization needed to help a candidate win the election in a Presidential campaign.

Winning public office is a two-stage process. The first stage is to win the nomination of one of the two major American political parties. Once nominated, the candidate moves to the second step: winning the election to the office itself. Unless the candidate is fortunate enough to run unopposed, the election must be won through an electoral campaign, an organized effort to persuade voters to choose one candidate over others competing for the same office. A full-blown Presidential campaign proceeds through three broad stages: building a base, planning a strategy, and clinching the vote. In building a base, campaign workers must be recruited and sources of funds must be identified. In planning a strategy, a campaign theme must be adopted and can be party-centered, issue-centered, or personality-oriented. In clinching the vote, the candidate must meet the voting groups and counter the opponents arguments. Many factors help shape decisions at these three stages of the campaign, whether the candidate is campaigning to win the nomination or to win the office itself.

Purpose: The purpose of this political game is to give the students experience in working within the political process. The game will also give the students an understanding of the many dimensions of the political process and what is needed to manage a political campaign.

Objectives: Students will be able to:

Identify by name the two major political parties in the United States.
Identify the two major party chairmen.
Identify the symbols of the two political parties.
Identify the political "philosophies" of the two political parties.
Identify the "propaganda" techniques used by both of the parties in campaigning.
Identify the fund raising techniques of the two parties.
Identify and locate the local and state headquarters of the two parties.

The remainder of the group will act as the candidate's campaign committee. Each committee must select a political party name for itself. The name of the party must be one that is made-up by the campaign committee of each candidate. Try to select a party name that will enhance the chances of your candidate winning the election!

After your party caucus, the party names will be presented to the class as a whole, and the name selected as the best, will earn 20 points for the party. One person from each group will be appointed as the evaluator for the group. This person will evaluate the materials and assign points for each of the following campaign items:

a. 20 points: a bumper sticker
b. 20 points: a street sign
c. 20 points: a campaign slogan
d. 20 points: a name for your political party
e. 20 points: a "throwaway" flyer
f. 50 points: five give away items
g. 50 points: a fifteen second radio commercial (television)
h. 20 points: a newspaper ad
i. 50 points: a fund raising social activity
j. 30 points: a secret that will help your candidate win the election

Presidential speeches will be given by each candidate and will be limited to three minutes. This will be the candidates' times to sell their programs and themselves.

The election will take place by secret ballot in the class and a special committee will be selected by the teacher to count the ballots. May the best candidate win!

Tying It All Together: You may want to videotape this game and play it back the final day when the candidates have given their speeches and the vote is in. Many of the students often want to play the game again because they have come up with new ideas and feel that they can win the election if given another chance. The game has also turned many of the students toward becoming involved in "real" campaigns. Many students have joined political parties and have helped candidates at all levels in their campaigns. This game make government "fun" and makes the students realize that they can play a part in the political process!