Many cities in Brazil are holding the second round of municipal elections for mayor and vice-mayor, this Sunday. Councilors were already elected in the first round.
We have already learned vocabulary and phrases to talk about the United States presidential election. Now, let’s talk about our municipal elections.
Did you vote in the first round?
Are you going to vote in the second round?
Which party are you voting for?*
Who are you going to vote for?*
Who got the most votes?
Useful Vocabulary
campaign (n) in an election a campaign is a political and organized effort which seeks to win the vote of the electorate. Often called a ‘political campaign’ or an ‘election campaign.’
campaign (v) the things a candidate does to be elected (kissing babies, shaking hands, giving speeches, etc)
candidate (n) the person who is running in an election
debate (n) a formal discussion of the merits of something
debate (v) to argue for and against something
elect (v) the act of voting to select the winner of a political office
election (n) the formal decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold public office
electorate (n) the people who are eligible to vote in an election
government (n) the political body with the power to make and/or enforce laws for a country
local election (n) city or town elections
opposition (n) the major political party opposed to the party in office and prepared to replace it if elected
party (n) an organization formed to gain political power
political (adj) related to politics
politician (n) a person active in politics
politics (n) the process by which governments make decisions
run (v) to campaign to stand for a political position
*Be careful about asking this. For many people, voting is a personal matter.
The 2020 presidential elections in the US, in which President Donald Trump faces the Democrat candidate Joe Biden, are causing a lot of controversy. In the US many votes are cast digitally and there were plans to enlist the help of hackers to reduce the risk of cyber-attacks on election day.
Here is a lesson that teaches us the vocabulary to discuss this initiative.
In 2000 the presidential race between Al Gore and George W. Bush ended inrecounts and disputesovermissing votes. George Bush became the first modern president to win the election despite gaining fewer popular votes than his opponent. How many fewer votes than Gore did Bush win by in the 2000 American presidential election?
a) half a million votes
b) a million votes
c) two million votes
Listen to the programme to find out the answer.
Vocabulary
volunteer someone who works willingly without being paid, because they want to
hacker someone who breaks into computer systems without permission in order to find information or do something illegal
eligible qualified to do something by having the necessary requirements
high-profile attracting a lot of attention and interest from the public, newspapers and the media
(have) the keys to the castle (idiom) information or knowledge which gives the possessor access to power
cybersecurity measures that are taken to protect organisations and their computer information against crimes and attacks carried out through the internet
Transcript
Rob Hello. This is 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English. I’m Rob.
Sam And I’m Sam.
Rob When it comes to US presidential elections, some are more dramatic than others.
Sam But few elections have been as controversial as this November’s contest between current President Trump and his Democratic rival, Joe Biden.
Rob In America, where many votes are cast digitally, there is a risk of cyber-attacks on election day and with so much depending on the result, US election officials are worried.
Sam In this programme we’ll be hearing about plans to prevent election cyber-attacks which involve election officials working with a very unusual group of people: volunteer hackers. Volunteers are people who work willingly, without being paid…
Rob … and hackers are people who break into computer systems without permission in order to find information or do something illegal.
Sam But cyber-attacks from hackers are not the only threat to fair and democratic elections.
Rob In 2000 the presidential race between Al Gore and George W. Bush ended in recounts and disputes over missing votes. George Bush became the first modern president to win the election despite gaining fewer popular votes than his opponent – but how many fewer? That’s our quiz question – how many fewer votes did Bush win than Gore in the 2000 American presidential election? Was it: a) half a million votes?, b) a million votes?, or c) two million votes?
Sam I’ll say b) a million votes.
Rob OK, we’ll find out later. Now, the project Sam mentioned, where official administrators team up with expert volunteers to keep the election secure, is called The Election Cyber Surge.
Sam BBC World Service programme Digital Planetmet up with project organiser Maya Worman to discuss the importance of keeping the election free from interference.
Maya Worman Any attempt to manipulate or interfere with election infrastructures – the machines or the information sets that determine who is eligible to vote and where – undermines the right to vote. And it puts burdens on voters and it impacts public confidence; and high-profile elections, especially like the one coming up, heighten the types of risks that we’re talking about.
Rob You can only vote in an election if you are eligible – qualified by having the necessary requirements, for example being a US citizen who’s aged 18 or over.
Sam It’s up to each of the eight thousand local jurisdictions around the United States to keep their area free from cyber-attacks and misinformation – risks which have increased because the coming election is so high-profile – attracting a lot of attention and interest from newspapers and the public.
Rob The Cyber Surge project to put expert volunteers in touch with local officials aims to prevent these risks. It covers everything from making sure administrators are using the latest anti-virus software to more serious threats from troublemakers.
Sam Now that’s got me thinking actually, Rob. Suppose I’m a troublemaker who wants to influence the election result – so I sign up as a volunteer and gain access to all kinds of information. How do we know that the volunteers who sign up are trustworthy?
Rob That’s a good question, Sam, and one that BBC World Service programme, Digital Planet, put to Maya Worman.
Maya Worman The expectation is not that the volunteer will have the keys to the castle by any means, more that they will have an open dialogue with an election administrator who wants to know more to explore cybersecurity enhancements in general or specifically.
Sam Volunteers are carefully selected according to their experience and skills incybersecurity – measures that help organisations and countries keep their computer information safe against crimes and attacks carried out through the internet.
Rob Volunteers share their expert advice by talking with election officials. They won’t be given access to sensitive information so they won’t have the keys to the castle – an idiom meaning to possess information or knowledge which gives the possessor access to power.
Sam All of which means that the 2020 election result will, hopefully, be accepted by everyone.
Rob Unlike the situation twenty years ago.
Sam Ah, you mean our quiz question, Rob, about the 2000 US presidential election which George W. Bush won despite securing fewer votes than his opponent.
Rob I asked you how many fewer votes Bush won than Al Gore that year.
Sam And I said b) a million votes.
Rob But in fact, it was even closer – just a) half a million votes in Florida.
Sam In this programme we’ve been looking ahead to the US presidential elections and its cybersecurity – measures taken to protect countries and their computer information against online crimes and attacks.
Rob The Cyber Surge project aims to put officials in touch with volunteers – people who work for free, who also happen to be expert hackers – people who break into computer systems without permission.
Sam But the idea isn’t to commit election crime – rather to prevent it by making sure only those who are eligible – or qualified – to vote, do so.
Rob The project was set up because the November 2020 election has become so high-profile – attracting a lot of attention and interest from the public and the media.
Sam And of course the volunteers themselves are carefully chosen to be impartial experts who give advice without holding the keys to the castle – an idiom about possessing information which gives access to power.
Rob What’s certain is that the world will be watching this election, so if you’re eligible, remember to vote.
Sam And remember to join us again soon. Bye for now!
Rob Bye bye!
What do you think? Do you feel safe casting your vote digitally? Is the public accepting electionhacking as a new normal? And would election hacking be the end of democracy as we know it?
The 2020 United States presidential election was held on November 3, 2020. Voters selected presidential electors who, in turn, will vote on December 14, 2020, to either elect a new president and vice president or reelect Donald Trump and Mike Pence, respectively.
Let’s start by learning some useful vocabulary and phrases that you need to know to be able to talk about elections. Get your notebook, listen carefully, and write down the new words. Firstly, an introductory lesson.
Next, another lesson that teaches a few more words and a useful expression.
Here are the words and phrases from the lesson.
1) apolitical – not connected to a political party
2) two-party-system – when two parties dominate politics
3) independent – a voter who is not registered with a political party
4) moderate – someone who does not have extreme views
5) primary – when voters chose who will be the candidate for that party
6) cast (one’s) ballot – to vote
7) popular vote – the total number of votes a candidate receives
8) Electoral College – a group of people, electors, who cast votes for the election of president
9) winner-take-all – all the votes from one state will go to the candidate who wins
10) partisan – strongly supporting a person or party without considering the matter carefully
11) amend – to change or alter something
12) red state – state that strongly supports Republicans
13) blue state – state that strongly supports Democrats
14) purple state – state with a mix of Democrat and Republican support
15) swing state – state whose votes could go to either the Democrats or Republicans
16) battleground state – means the same as swing state
17) lean left – state that is more likely to vote for the Democrats
18) lean right – state that is more likely to vote for the Republicans
19) fundraise – to collect money for a particular purpose
20) campaign – an organized political group trying to achieve a particular aim
21) PAC / Super PAC – an organization that raises money privately to influence elections
22) civic duty – the responsibilities of citizens of a country
24) head to the polls – to go vote at a polling location
25) absentee ballot – when someone requests a ballot from election officials and votes by mail
26) mail-in-voting – when election ballots are sent to all registered voters in the state
27) rigged – to dishonestly arrange something to achieve a desired outcome
28) voter suppression – when people are not allowed to vote or discouraged from voting
29) concede – to admit, often unwillingly, that something is true
30) contest an election – when the validity of the results is challenged by the losing candidate
Okay! Now we have the essential vocabulary to join in a discussionabout the US election, which is an international event and always draws intense worldwide interest.
Trump won the 2016 election even though Hillary Clinton got 3 million more votes. Watch this video to understand how the US election process works and try to answer the questions below.
QUESTIONS
1. How is the next US president elected in the presidential election? a: by popular vote b. by the electoral college c. by each state
2. How many electoral votes do you need to become president? a. 270 or more b. none c. all 538
3. How many times in the last five US elections has the president won despite getting fewer overall popular votes? a. once b. twice c. five times
4. What does it mean ‘to rubber stamp’ the presidential candidate in the US presidential election? a. to put a stamp on your postal vote envelope b. to change your mind about who to vote for c. to officially endorse the presidential candidate by voting for them without questioning your decision
ANSWERS
1.b; 2.a; 3.b; 4.c
What do you think about this system? How would you compare it to our Brazilian system?
The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically disrupted every layer of the education sector, from early childhood through higher education.
In March of 2020, almost everyone thought schools shutting down would be a temporary situation and that students would be back in class like normal in no time. Last-minute plans were made with a rush to figure out virtual teaching and learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. Roughly half a year later, normal is nothing close to where we are.
Now, many people still don’t feel safe going back face-to-face, i.e., in-person yet. Government, schools, and universities are planning for a beginning like no other we have seen in the past. Although they are left uncertain on how to proceed, they are coming out with different plans which can be:
fullyvirtual;
hybrid, blended model or schedule;
in-person teaching with remote students;
teaching online and in-person simultaneously.
The threat of potential exposure to COVID-19 is scary. Some fear is acceptable because it makes you vigilant about taking precautions, but too much of it can do more harm than good.
I know there is some stress and worry for those who are teachers or parents who have a child that is going back to school in-person, whether full time, every other day or every other week. They all worry about the kids’ adjustment to new methods to prevent the further spread of the coronavirus.
So, to talk about that, possible combinations are:
in-person, face to face, classroom-based, *traditional / virtual, online, remote, distance / blended *LEARNING/TEACHING
in-person/ remote, virtual STUDENT
hybrid, blended MODEL or SCHEDULE (under)
remote, online, and hybrid INSTRUCTION
being taught remotely, online or in a hybrid remote/online FORMAT
Right now, there are still a lot of questions about how resuming this school year will look. Many fine details need to be worked on, like markings on the hallways, walls, and desks as reminders of the safety measures, or the rules everyone will have to follow.
One of the only places masks will be able to come off inside of the buildings is in the cafeterias when students eat.
With all the rules, you might expect students to have a hard time, but some say that they are willing to follow the rules because they want to be back. They miss their teachers, the environment, the staff, the cafeteria, and all that interaction.
I believe government, institutions, teachers, and parents should all do what it takes to keep kids safe and get them the education they need.
About four months ago, our governor, here in one of the southernmost states in Brazil, ordered a lockdown. The Coronavirus COVID-19nightmare was just reaching this part of the world.
The pandemic came, and apparently is at its peak now, or not… There’s a lot of controversyabout it.
We were placed on lockdown one more time about a week ago, but it was already lifted. So, Blumenau is not in lockdown anymore.
“When major decisions must be made amid high scientific uncertainty, as is the case with Covid-19, we can’tafford to silence or demonize professionals with different views. Even worse, we can’t allow questions of science, medicine, and public health to become captives of politics. Misinformation about Covid-19 is abundant and today, more than ever, we need vigorous academic debate.
Since Covid-19 first emerged at the end of 2019, thousands of scientists have been working to answer fundamental questions. How lethal is it? How many people have already had it? If so, are they now immune? What drugs can fight it? What can societies do to slow it? What happens when we relax our public health interventions? Can we develop a vaccine to stop it?
Scientists agree that it will take 18 months or longer to develop a vaccine. Even for cloth masks, we see arguments on both sides.
Some believe that nations which instituted social distancing but with fewer lockdownrestrictions, are pursuing the wisest course — at least for that country — while others favor the strictestlockdown measures possible. We think it is important to hear, consider, and debate these views without hostility.”
So, here we are! What do you think about all this? How do you feel about it?
This text contains excerpts from the article https://www.statnews.com/2020/04/27/hear-scientists-different-views-covid-19-dont-attack-them/, which were selected with the solely purpose of providing a basis for class discussion, through vocabulary learning and practice of an issue we’re all experiencing. A couple of more difficult words were replaced by more easier ones, to facilitate understanding.
