Write A 12-15 Page APA Format Paper Answering The Following ✓ Solved

Write a 12-15 page APA format paper answering the following

Write a 12-15 page APA format paper answering the following Texas government questions. Use Texas-specific examples and references. Each question must be answered separately with the question written before each response and each response at least 250 words. 1. What factors influence public opinion in Texas? 2. What factors contribute to the success of some interest groups in Texas over others? 3. Why does Texas lack party competition (not simply because Republicans hold majorities)? 4. Why is it necessary to be a U.S. citizen to vote? 5. Why were constitutional amendments necessary to expand voting rights (explain beyond naming amendments)? 6. Why would a poll tax be unconstitutional (not citing the 24th Amendment)?

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1. What factors influence public opinion in Texas?

Public opinion in Texas is shaped by a combination of demographic trends, economic interests, regional culture, media ecosystems, and institutional influences. Demographically, Texas contains a rapidly growing Hispanic population, sizable urban populations in Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, Austin, and San Antonio, and large rural and suburban communities. These groups differ on policy priorities: urban voters often prioritize public transportation, health care access, and environmental issues, while rural Texans emphasize property rights, agriculture, and limited government (Jillson, 2018). Economic structure also matters: energy sectors (oil and gas) strongly shape attitudes toward regulation and taxation in energy-producing regions, while high-tech and higher-education centers (e.g., Austin) cultivate more progressive views on innovation policy and social issues (Jones, 2017).

Culture and regional identity remain salient. The legacy of frontier individualism, a historical suspicion of centralized authority, and strong home-rule traditions influence views on government scope and social policy (Jillson, 2018). Religion and church networks are influential in many Texas counties, affecting attitudes on social issues such as abortion and LGBTQ rights (Pew Research Center, 2019). Media ecosystems—local newspapers, radio, and growing digital outlets such as the Texas Tribune—shape informational environments and framing, with partisan media reinforcing polarization in some communities (Texas Tribune, 2020).

Institutional factors, including electoral laws, redistricting, and the structure of local governments, also shape expressed opinions by affecting who participates. For example, Texas’s use of single-member districts and frequent redistricting can influence which voices are heard in public debates (Jones, 2017). Finally, salient events—natural disasters (hurricanes), immigration surges along the border, or major court rulings—can temporarily shift public priorities, producing short-term opinion swings that may become entrenched if reinforced by political actors or policy outcomes (Pew Research Center, 2019).

2. What factors contribute to the success of some interest groups in Texas over others?

Interest group success in Texas depends on resources, organizational capacity, alignments with powerful economic sectors, access to policymakers, and the ability to mobilize voters. Resource-rich groups—such as energy industry associations, major hospital systems, and large business coalitions—can finance sustained lobbying, hire experienced staff, and fund political campaigns or independent expenditures, granting them disproportionate influence (Texas Tribune, 2020). Organizational capacity—professional lobbyists, strong policy research teams, and coalitions with local chapters—permits continuous engagement with legislators and administrative agencies (Jillson, 2018).

Alignment with dominant state economic interests is crucial. The oil and gas industry, agriculture, and real estate have long been central to Texas’s economy; groups representing these sectors often succeed because their policy preferences align with the priorities of influential policymakers and because they can credibly claim job and revenue impacts (Jones, 2017). Access and networking matter: Texas’s pluralist lobbying environment rewards groups that cultivate personal relationships with legislators and staff, participate in committee hearings, and contribute to political campaigns (Texas Tribune, 2020).

Grassroots mobilization and public legitimacy can also determine success. Interest groups that can mobilize voters—via churches, unions, business networks, or community organizations—gain leverage during elections and in public debates. Conversely, groups representing marginalized populations often lack resources and face barriers to visibility, reducing effectiveness despite moral or legal strength (League of Women Voters of Texas, 2016). Finally, the legal and institutional context—lobbying disclosure laws and campaign finance rules—shapes which strategies are feasible and which groups can maintain sustained influence (Jillson, 2018).

3. Why does Texas lack party competition (not simply because Republicans hold majorities)?

Texas’s limited party competition stems from historical realignment, institutional incentives, geographic sorting, and elite behavior rather than solely current seat distributions. The state’s shift from Democratic dominance to Republican control evolved over decades as national realignment reacted to civil rights, cultural politics, and economic transformations; this created durable party identities and organizational infrastructures favoring Republicans (Jones, 2017). Institutional rules—single-member districts, winner-take-all elections, and biennial legislative sessions—benefit incumbency and reduce competitive churn, creating structural barriers to new-party growth (Jillson, 2018).

Geographic and demographic polarization have produced “safe” districts: urban areas concentrate Democratic voters while rural and many suburban regions are reliably Republican. This spatial sorting means many districts are noncompetitive by design, reducing incentives for party investment and moderating outreach (Pew Research Center, 2019). Elite behavior and party organization also play roles: party leaders, major donors, and political consultants direct resources to winnable races, reinforcing existing majorities and discouraging competitive challenges (Texas Tribune, 2020).

Finally, campaign finance dynamics and media ecosystems favor incumbents and well-funded parties. When one party has disproportionate access to corporate and organizational money—as Republicans often do in Texas energy and business sectors—it can maintain advantage across cycles. These combined historical, geographic, institutional, and resource dynamics explain persistent weak competition beyond mere seat counts (Jones, 2017).

4. Why is it necessary to be a U.S. Citizen to vote?

Requiring U.S. citizenship for voting rests on legal, constitutional, and democratic principles about political membership and sovereignty. Voting confers decision-making power over public policy and officials who exercise sovereign powers; nation-states typically restrict such political rights to those who have formal membership—citizenship—which reflects reciprocal rights and obligations, including allegiance and legal duties (U.S. Const., art. I; Jillson, 2018). In the United States, the franchise historically has been tied to citizenship to ensure that those choosing public authorities have a stake in the polity’s legal and political framework (Brennan Center, 2018).

From a practical perspective, citizenship requirements help secure electoral integrity: citizenship can be verified through federal and state administrative procedures, reducing risks of ineligible voting and foreign influence. States, including Texas, implement voter registration and identification systems designed around citizenship verification (Texas Secretary of State, 2022). Finally, legal precedent and federal statutes have long treated voting as a privilege of citizens; altering that premise raises complex constitutional and policy questions about rights attribution, representation, and the duties that accompany full political membership (Brennan Center, 2018).

5. Why were constitutional amendments necessary to expand voting rights?

Constitutional amendments were necessary because expanding the franchise required altering the constitutional allocation of voting qualifications and protections that had been embedded in the Constitution and state practices. The Reconstruction Amendments (14th and 15th) and later amendments addressed foundational issues—citizenship status, equal protection, and the prohibition of race-based disenfranchisement—that statutory changes alone could not guarantee against state-level resistance or discriminatory interpretation (U.S. Const. amend. XIV; Voting Rights Act, 1965). Amendments create irreversible national standards that limit state authority to restrict voting on bases such as race or sex.

Amendments also served to settle national controversies and coordinate uniform protections across states. For example, the 15th Amendment targeted racial exclusions that states used to block Black suffrage following the Civil War; later measures and federal legislation were necessary because states adapted by using literacy tests, poll taxes, and white primaries. Constitutional amendments provided an authoritative basis for subsequent federal legislation and court rulings that enforced broader franchise rights and equality (Voting Rights Act, 1965; Jillson, 2018).

6. Why would a poll tax be unconstitutional?

A poll tax would be unconstitutional because it violates fundamental equal protection and due process principles by imposing a monetary barrier that disproportionately disenfranchises poor and marginalized citizens, undermining the principle that the right to vote must be equally accessible (U.S. Const. amend. XIV). A poll tax functions as a wealth-based restriction on political participation, creating disproportionate burdens on low-income individuals and thereby denying equal political voice. Under Equal Protection Clause jurisprudence, laws that create discriminatory burdens on a protected right—such as voting—can be struck down if they lack sufficiently compelling justification and are not narrowly tailored (Brennan Center, 2018).

Additionally, poll taxes historically targeted racial minorities and were part of systematic disenfranchisement; courts recognize that such measures are incompatible with the constitutional commitment to equal protection and democratic participation (League of Women Voters of Texas, 2016). Even absent the specific textual bar of the 24th Amendment, constitutional principles of equal protection and the fundamental nature of the franchise provide grounds to deem poll taxes unconstitutional due to their discriminatory and exclusionary effects (Brennan Center, 2018).

References

  • Brennan Center for Justice. (2018). Voting laws and constitutional protections. Brennan Center. https://www.brennancenter.org
  • Jillson, C. (2018). Texas politics: Governing the Lone Star State (6th ed.). CQ Press.
  • Jones, M. P. (2017). Parties and politics in contemporary Texas. Oxford University Press.
  • League of Women Voters of Texas. (2016). History of voting rights in Texas. https://www.lwvtexas.org
  • Pew Research Center. (2019). Public opinion and demographic change in Texas. https://www.pewresearch.org
  • Texas Secretary of State. (2022). Voting requirements and registration. https://www.sos.state.tx.us
  • Texas Tribune. (2020). Interest groups and lobbying in Texas politics. https://www.texastribune.org
  • U.S. Constitution, amend. XIV (1868).
  • Voting Rights Act of 1965, 42 U.S.C. §1973.
  • American Civil Liberties Union of Texas. (2015). Barriers to voting: Citizenship and access. https://www.aclutx.org

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