Read the passage.
A Right and a Responsibility
What does it mean to vote? If you are of age, voting is exercising
your right to determine how and who will make laws and enforce
those laws on your behalf. When you vote, you determine who has
a say-so in the use of tax dollars you contribute to the general
welfare of the citizens of your town, county, state, and nation.
Voting is not only a right, it is also a responsibility. Voting is a
powerful tool that people can use to the benefit or detriment of
others
The Constitution of the United States did not originally define who
had the right to vote. That determination was left up to the states,
and in the majority of states at that time, only white male property
owners had the right to vote. Women, people of color, and white
males who did not own property had no say-so in the election of
government officials. Not all voting rules were the same throughout
the states, however, so this made for an interesting electorate. For
example, in New Jersey, a white woman could vote if she owned
How does the author use rhetoric to advance her purpose in
Paragraph 2?
The author directly addresses the reader by citing a
document that is widely known.
The author uses an allusion by recalling the struggles
of the founding fathers of the United States.
The author creates a vivid image by using sensory
details to describe the people who formerly could not
vote
The author gains credibility by demonstrating that her
stance on voter participation is grounded in research.