Influencing GOV decision making

• what are the topics for this essay?

  • pressure groups
  • voting
  • protesting
  • standing as candidate
• pressure groups - pro evidence

  pressure groups help the government to recognise the activists as they have rallied large numbers.

  evidence of this is that the NAACP (a civil rights group, who protect black Americans) giving average people the chance to politically participate. they claim to have 2,200 branches across America, showing support across the country.
• pressure groups - negative evidence

  Instead of popularity increasing success, money can take precedence.

  Evidence of this is that the one of the highest funded pressure groups, the National Rifle association (NRA) were able to overrule the vast majority of the Americans options on gun control, resulting in congress failing to tighten gun laws. The NRA have also been shown to spend millions of dollars on successful lobbing of politicians in order to gain their support.
• voting - positive evidence

  many people in america are using their voting rights.

  evidence of this is that Maine has a 75.51% overall turnout in the 2020 election - the highest ever turnout in the 21st century.
• voting - negative evidence

  it is increasingly difficult to vote, thanks to the ratio of polling stations to people in certain states.

  evidence of this is that in McLennan County, Texas closed 44% of their polling places from 2012-2018 despite the fact that its population grew by more then 15,000 during that time period. More then 2/3 of that growth came from black and Latina residents.
• protesting - negative evidence

  even when particular protests are recognised by the government, major action is rarely taken. 

  An example of this is that 2 million children across the US protested against gun ownership in response to school shootings however, despite Joe Biden signing gun safety legislation, it failed to ban any weapons, proving that even when the government acts on protests, they often fail to meet their full requests. 
• protesting positive evidence

  . the awareness caused by protests often forces the government to pass meaningful legislation in response.

  For example, the Black Lives Matter protests from 2020-22 over the killing of the George Floyd by the police caused the government to pass proposals to combat police misconduct and racial injustice.
• standing as candidate negative

  .although citizens have the right to stand as a candidate, studies have shown that white men dominate Congress. 

  An example of this is that statistics have shown white men make up only 30% of the American population, however they make up 62% of Congress.
• standing as candidate positive

  . anyone can apply to stand as a candidate, regardless of your ethnicity or gender. 

  An example of this is that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was able to “break the mould” for women and Hispanics in politics. She is also the youngest ever woman to serve in the United States Congress, and represents the opportunities for all people to change government decision making.