WHY WE VOTE the way we do-Using Primary Source Documents to Investigate the History of Voting Rights.

STATUS OF NINE APPROVED AMENDMENTS Nine constitutional amendments were approved for the November ballot. But six face lawsuits. Here are

the measures and where they stand: AMENDMENT 1 Repeal of Florida’s public campaign financing system. Has not been challenged.AMENDMENT 2 Additional homestead exemption for military personnel deployed outside of the United States. Has not been challenged.AMENDMENT 3 Lowers annual assessment rate for non-homestead property from 10 percent to 5 percent. Offers additional tax break to first

time homebuyers. First-time homebuyers would be eligible to have 25 percent - or up to $100,000 - of the value of their home shielded from taxes. The tax break would be gradually lowered over a five year period. A Leon County Circuit Judge ruled Friday that the amendment was misleading. Case has been appealed to higher court. The Supreme Court heard arguments for Amendments 3 on August 18.

AMENDMENT 4 Hometown Democracy amendment would subject changes to local comprehensive plans to referendums. Has not been challenged.

AMENDMENT 5 FairDistrictsFlorida.org redistricting amendment would require legislative districts to be compact and not drawn to favor any incumbent or member of a political party. The Florida Legislature has asked a court to throw the amendment off the ballot. A Leon County judge refused to dismiss the lawsuit, but that decision has been appealed to the Florida Supreme Court and they have not scheduled date to hear arguments as of yet.

AMENDMENT 6 FairDistrictsFlorida.org redistricting amendment would require Congressional districts to be compact and not drawn to favor any incumbent or member of a political party. U.S Reps. Corrine Brown and Mario Diaz-Balart sued to block the amendment and the lawsuit was joined by the Florida Legislature and now also includes Amendment 5 as well. A Leon County judge refused to dismiss the lawsuit, but that decision has been appealed to the Florida Supreme Court and they have not scheduled date to hear arguments as of yet.

AMENDMENT 7 Sets standards for Legislature to follow while drawing Congressional and legislative districts, including allowing the creation of 'communities of common interest.' A Leon County judge ruled that the amendment was misleading and threw the measure off the ballot. The Florida Supreme Court has agreed to take up the appeal of the ruling. The Supreme Court heard arguments for Amendments 7 on August 18.

AMENDMENT 8 Freezes class size restrictions at current levels, although it allows individual classes to go up slightly above current limits. The Florida Education Association filed a lawsuit recently asking that the amendment be removed from the ballot.

AMENDMENT 9 Seeks to nullify federal requirements for citizens to buy health insurance. The Republican-controlled Legislature offered the proposal in response to passage of President Barack Obama’s national health care overhaul. Four Florida voters filed suit against the amendment on grounds its ballot language is misleading. A circuit court judge heard it and the Supreme Court heard arguments Aug 18.

Florida Candidates

DBQ- Think about our forefathers and what they intended their new Republic to be.  How did our forefathers

envision voting rights in America and where do you feel these rights are today?

Florida's Sunshine State Benchmark-SS.5.C.2.3: Analyze how the

Constitution has expanded voting rights from our nation's early history to today.

SS.8.C.1.6: Evaluate how amendments to the Constitution have expanded voting rights from our nation's early history to present day.

SS.912.C.2.9: Identify the expansion of civil rights and liberties by examining the principles contained in primary documents.

SS.912.A.2.4 Distinguish the freedoms guaranteed to African Americans and other groups with the 13, 14, 15 Amendments to the Constitution.

SS.912.A.3.11 Analyze the impact of political machines in the United States cities in the late 19th and 20th centuries.

SS.912.A.3.13 Examine key events and peoples in Florida history as they relate to the United States history.

Vocabulary Words

Howard Christy's 1940 painting of the signing of the Constitution.

Worksheet- How to Analyze a Primary Source Document

Question- What is Democracy?

Click on picture to see video.

Question- What does “We the

People” mean?Voting AmendmentsAmendment 15 - Race No Bar to Vote. Ratified 2/3/1870. 1. The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be

denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

Amendment 19 - Women's Suffrage. Ratified 8/18/1920. The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be

denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

Amendment 26 - Voting Age Set to 18 Years. (Ratified 7/1/1971) 1. The right of citizens of the United States, who are eighteen years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age. 2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html#Am14

U.S. Constitutional Scavenger Hunt - This activity will help participants become familiar with the U.S. Constitution. Answer Key for the U.S. Constitutional Scavenger Hunt is provided!

Question- What are the reasons people vote?

Click here to hear Illinois Teaching American History Grant Teachers discuss some of the methods to encourage people to vote in the early republic

George Caleb Bingham’s The County Election, 1851–52

Question- Who was disenfranchised in our early Republic?

Political Cartoon Worksheet

Click here to learn about The Dred Scott Decision and its Bitter Legacy

Question- Why did women want to vote?

QUOTE- “Carrie Chapman Catt (1920) summed it up. ‘Since the 1848 Seneca Falls call for the vote, she counted: 480 campaigns in state legislatures; 56 statewide referenda to male voters; 47 attempts to add suffrage planks during revisions of state constitutions; 277 campaigns at state party conventions and 30 at national conventions; and 19 biannual campaigns in 19 different Congresses.’ Literally thousands of times, men cast their votes on whether or not women should vote. Literally millions of women and men gave their entire lives to the cause and went to their graves with freedom unwon. No peaceful political change ever has required so much from so many for so long. None but a mighty army could have won.”Doris Weatherford, A history of the American Suffragist Movement 1998

Click Here--The Trial of Susan B. Anthony 1873

Question-What does Florida’s voting history look like?

With 27 electoral votes, Florida has often helped decide the winner of presidential elections. This impact is shown in our voting history. Florida became a state in 1845 and its citizens helped Whig candidate Zachary Taylor win the presidential election of 1848. In 1864 Florida refused to participate in the presidential election when it seceded from the Union during the Civil War. Democrats were the majority until the mid 20th century when in 1952 Florida become mostly Republican. The state’s population has grown at rapid speed and it is possible that in 2012 Florida could gain two more electoral votes bringing the total to 29. Florida today has more registered Republicans than Democrats but it is still seen as a swing state. This could be seen in our 2000 election when Democratic candidate Al Gore received 266 electoral votes and Bush received 271 electoral votes. However, the popular vote was in Gores favor. In 2008, Florida swung again when Barack Obama won the state by a 51% to 48% margin. Florida will continue to influence voting history in America. Reference: http://www.270towin.com/states/Florida

Click Here—Voting Irregularities in Florida During the 2000 Presidential Election

Question- How has voting changed over time?

Some Voting History of Florida…. 1860 Florida’s voting population is 14,374 which is very important because more than 16,000

Floridians serve during the Civil War. 1865 The Constitutional Convention of 1865 meets and terminates the Ordinance of Secession

and decrees the end of slavery; however, the right to vote is restricted to "free" white male persons 21 years old or older.

1868 The Constitutional Convention of 1868 proposes a new Constitution that the voters approve in May. It grants equal suffrage to all races.

1876 Florida's electoral votes give the U.S. Presidency to Rutherford B. Hayes amongst charges of election fraud.

1937 The Poll Tax is abolished as a prerequisite to voting. 1963. Voters amend the Constitution to authorize sale of state bonds to construct buildings at

universities, colleges and vocational schools. Voters also approve issuance of bonds to purchase land for conservation purposes and the election of governor and the cabinet is shifted to off-year from Presidential election.

1966 The 36th governor of Florida is elected, Claude R. Kirk, Jr. is the first Republican governor since Reconstruction. GOP nominees are elected to Florida’s 12 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. Voters also approve that Congress meet on the Tuesday following the November general elections.

1968 Voters ratify three amendments that give the state practically a new Constitution. The first Republican ever elected by popular ballot is sent to the U.S. Senate.

1976 Former Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter wins Florida's Presidential Preference Primary, giving Carter's campaign a lead in his party's nomination for president. In the same primary, Florida Republicans favor Gerald Ford more than Ronald Reagan. Carter acquires 51.93%of Florida's general election vote.

32nd Biennial Edition 2009-2010 Florida Handbook

Question- What does Voting in the United States look like today?

DBQ- Think about our forefathers and what they intended their new Republic to be.  How did our forefathers envision voting rights in America and where do you feel these rights are today? Brainstorm what our

forefathers might say about voting today.

Brainstorm what our forefathers might say about voting today.

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