Academic English

What kinds of campaign promises do political candidates make to persuade people to vote for them?

1. Every citizen should be required to vote in national elections.
2. Campaign advertisements influence people more than debates.
3. Politicians make too many promises they can’t keep.
4. Social media has too much power over election results.
5. Voting should be allowed online to increase participation.
6. People should learn about all candidates before they vote.
7. Political campaigns spend too much money.
8. It’s better to vote for a candidate you believe in than one who is likely to win.
9. Negative campaign ads are effective but harmful.
10. Young people should be more involved in political campaigns or hoaxes.

“pull strings” = influence people to get what you want, manipulate
“Company officials tried to pull a few strings within the local government in order to win the construction contract.”

“under the table” = money paid secretly
“A number of monetary gifts were paid under the table to win political influence.”

Listen to the recording and answer the questions. (See transcript)

Here are some words and expressions that appear in the recording:

• crossroad(s) (noun): a time in your life when important decisions must be made
  – The company has now reached a crossroad where it must make changes to guarantee its future.
• ensure (verb): guarantee or make sure something will happen
  – The government needs to make changes in the welfare system now to ensure that it will be around for generations to come.
• retain (verb): keep something
  – The president decided to retain some of his staff after the elections.
• renovate (verb): repair or rebuild something to make it look new again
  – The city has decided to renovate the downtown library to save money instead of building a new one.
• rechannel (verb): redirect something like money for another purpose
  – The mayor wants to rechannel additional tax revenue away from park construction to pay for rising education expenses.
• revenue (noun): money that an organization receives, usually from the sales of goods and services
  – If the company doesn’t generate enough revenue during the holiday season, it will be in serious financial trouble.
• incumbent (noun): the current elected political official in office
  – Many incumbents were voted out of office due to their political records.
• neglect (verb): not take care of or pay attention to something
  – Many residents feel that local government leaders neglected the needs of the poor in our city.
• revitalization (noun): the process of bringing back something to strength or prosperity
  – The city has attempted to develop plans for the revitalization of the downtown area.
• outlying (adjective): far from the center or middle of a city
  – A new transportation plan needs to be considered to meet the needs of those living in outlying areas of the city.
• light rail (noun, also used as an adjective): an electric train designed for passengers only
  – The country has a wonderful light rail system throughout the capital.
• stance (noun): opinion or position
  – Before I vote, I always make an effort to understand the candidates’ stance on various issues.
• cite (verb): mention or state
  – The political challenger cited his opponent’s poor voting record on a number of government matters.
• address (verb): take care or deal with particular issues
  – The president needs to address the needs of homeless children around the country.

The election of government leaders is a process that varies from country to country around the world. Choose a country in which you are interested and research how local and national elections are carried out. Then, compare this system to the one in your own country. Identify at least two aspects of the system that you like and don’t like.