Free Response Practice

2.) Primary elections and the expansion of suffrage are both 20th Century developments that democratized American politics. Primary elections helped the voting populace control the presidential nominations. Prior to primaries, caucuses were held where political leaders controlled the nominations but post-caucus era, the voters chose nominees. The expansion of suffrage also aided the democratization of American politics by increasing participation of the entire population. Prior to the women's suffrage movement in the early 1900's and the Civil Rights movement of the 1960's, a select population actually voted, hardly representative of Americans as a whole.

There are many types of political participation other than voting, such as supporting a candidate and civil disobedience. When a person supports a candidate, they can encourage and convince others to vote for a particular candidate which increases voting. Civil disobedience is another form of participation made famous by names such as Ghandi and Martin Luther King Jr. Civil disobedience often draws a lot of media attention, and unlike protest (another form of participation) is typically nonviolent.