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Elections
Strength
The major strength of federal elections is their unfaltering commitment to fundamental beliefs and values of American society. The latest presidential elections that have been extremely competitive have proven that the candidates always enjoy the freedom of expression, assembly, and association, which aligns with the key rights documented in the Constitution. This democratic approach allowed candidates from all states to register for participation. Many of them were independents or representatives of small parties and minority groups. This implies that elections promote equality and diversity, giving voters a maximum variety of choices (“United States,” 2016). Even though unrestricted freedoms made the elections rather harsh as the candidates were allowed to use any expressions they found suitable, they could be open and direct in proposing policy alternatives and communicating their political views to the audience.
Weakness
All discussions about the voting system usually address the problem of fraud – one of the most long-lasting issues of controversy concerning elections. However, in recent years, potential fraud has become the most acute as it is believed to undermine American democracy. Since 2000, there has been a tendency to decrease voter turnout across the country due to various obstacles that prevented citizens from participating. To deal with the problem, various methods of attracting voters were used. These efforts to artificially increase turnout rates made voter integrity highly doubtful. Some of the attempted reforms (such as mail-in voting and uncontrollable use of absentee ballots) made the voting system vulnerable to fraud. As a result, the outcomes of elections are now often subject to criticism, and the winners are accused of unfair play. This attitude is shared by the general public and undermines the government (Smiley, n.d).
The positive impact of the strength
The positive impact of the freedoms that the elections promote can be enhanced by diverse and uncensored media coverage. The availability of numerous sources would allow the audience to compare various opinions and interpretations of the same events during the campaign and make an informed choice. Any of the participating sides cannot dominate the media landscape – on the contrary, it should be comprehensive to reflect the diversity of election campaigns. Moreover, it would be reasonable to reinforce the protection of media independence to ensure that no candidate can abuse its influence on the public through some controlled sources. The media should cover the events extensively to compensate for the lack of objectivism. Voters must be sure that no dominant view will be imposed upon them (“United States,” 2016).
The negative impact of the weakness
The most logical and reasonable way to deal with fraud is to tighten voter identification requirements to ensure that no absentee ballots were used to conduct personal business. Currently, only about half of the states have some voter identification regulations. This means that the other half still runs high risks of fraud. A law must be introduced to make voters provide identification to get their ballot when they come to participate in elections. Some may say that this measure will hurt the turnout of minority groups. Nevertheless, it will exclude the possibility that illegal immigrants who have no acceptable identification will participate in voting (Smiley, n.d).
Thesis Statement
Mass media is one of the decisive factors in presidential elections affecting the outcome through three major areas: exit polls, presidential debates, and spots.
Reference List
Smiley, T. (n.d). Interview: John Fund discusses problems in the US election system. Tavis Smiley (NPR).
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