In 2010, an unemployed United States Army veteran named Alvin Greene won the Democratic primary for the South Carolina Senate race. At the time of his victory, Greene had raised no money, had done no visible campaigning, had no Web site, and had not attended the state party's convention. There is no evidence of fraud. Two explanations for his victory involve his name: (1) Greene is a popular last name among African Americans, which encouraged African-American voters to support him at the ballot; and (2) Greene's name appeared above his opponent's name, Vic Rawl, which encouraged voters uninformed about either candidate to vote for Greene. How does Greene's victory illustrate rational ignorance?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Rational ignorance refers to the idea that voters have little incentive to become informed about political candidates or issues because their one vote is unlikely to have a significant impact. In the case of Greene's victory, it is likely that many voters did not bother to learn about either candidate because they did not see a significant difference between the two or did not believe their vote would make a difference. Therefore, despite lacking any visible campaigning, Greene was able to win the primary based on the rational ignorance of many voters.

In 2010, an Unemployed United States Army Veteran Named Alvin