2007年VOA标准英语-Political Parties, Others, Register Voters Ahea

By Jeffrey Young
Washington
13 September 2007
 

The process of voting and electing national and local officials begins with registering people as participants in elections. In this second segment of the "How America Elects" series, VOA's Jeffrey Young looks at the registration¹ process and explains why political parties consider it an essential part of their strategies.

New US citizen holding his citizenship2 certificate

In a ceremony in a Washington, D.C. federal courthouse, these people have just become U.S. citizens. Along with the citizenship certificate they receive a form to register them as voters. For political parties, these new citizens are an opportunity to expand their influence.

Simply put, democracy is the rule of the majority. And in democratic societies, that rule is exercised through voting. But you have to be registered to take part. In the last presidential election in 2004, 72 percent of eligible⁴ Americans were registered voters, whether as members of political parties or unaffiliated.  

In the United States, if you change where you live, you must re-register to remain eligible to vote.  States require people who move to also update their driver's license⁵.  And so a 1995 federal law enabling people to update both their driver's license and voter registration at the same time added millions of people to the voting rolls. At least two states, Arizona and Washington, have also set up registration on the Internet, where civil society groups have been promoting registration and voting for years.  

Republican official Fred Fleischman in the mid-Atlantic state of Maryland says registration is an essential part of gaining and holding political power.  "In the state of Maryland, [with the Republicans] being a minority party, it's very critical for us to register as many voters [as possible] so we have enough muscle, so we can compete on an even playing field with the other [Democratic] party.

In early 2007, control of both sides of Congress shifted from the Republicans to the Democrats⁶. That turn of events has energized⁷ both parties to scour⁸ for new voters ahead of the 2008 elections -- especially ones willing to switch sides.

Voting in the US

"I've always voted Republican, but I've been registered as a Democrat³ because my family was Democrat when I was a kid.  So now, I'm changing to Republican."

Changing population patterns have altered the balance between the two major parties in some states and counties. That has created opportunities for each side to try to invade the other party's traditional territory and register new party members. Maryland Democratic Party official Ina Taylor says finding these people and making sure they can and do vote is as important as mobilizing party regulars on Election Day. "It's crucial for us to get out to everybody and get them registered, and lined up ready to vote."

The political process begins with voter registration. But there are many more steps on the road to Election Day.  We'll look closely at those aspects, and how they affect the electoral process, in future segments of "How America Elects."

1 registration   

n.登记，注册，挂号

参考例句：

• Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
• What's your registration number?你挂的是几号？

2 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

3 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

4 eligible   

adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的

参考例句：

• He is an eligible young man.他是一个合格的年轻人。
• Helen married an eligible bachelor.海伦嫁给了一个中意的单身汉。

5 license   

n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许

参考例句：

• The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
• The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。

6 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 energized   

v.给予…精力，能量( energize的过去式和过去分词 )；使通电

参考例句：

• We are energized by love if we put our energy into loving. 如果我们付出能量去表现爱意，爱就会使我们充满活力。 来自辞典例句
• I am completely energized and feeling terrific. 我充满了活力，感觉非常好。 来自辞典例句

8 scour   

v.搜索；擦，洗，腹泻，冲刷

参考例句：

• Mother made me scour the family silver.母亲让我擦洗家里的银器。
• We scoured the telephone directory for clues.我们仔细查阅电话簿以寻找线索。