Chapter 12 Terms Flashcards
Electorate
The citizens eligible to vote.
Mandate
A command, indicated by an electorates votes, for the elected officials to carry out a party platform or policy agenda.
Primary election
Election in which voters decide which of the candidates within a party will represent the party in the general election.
Closed primary
A primary election in which only a party’s registered voters are eligible to cast a ballot.
Open primary
A primary election in which party members, independents, and sometimes members of the other party are allowed to participate.
Crossover voting
Participation in the primary election with which the voter is not affiliated with.
Runoff primary
A second primary election between the two candidates receiving the greatest number of votes in the first primary.
General election
Election in which voters decide which candidates will actually fill elective public officers.
Initiative
An election that allows citizens to propose legislation or state constitutional amendments by submitting them to the electorate for popular vote.
Referendum
An election whereby the state legislature submits proposed legislation or state constitutional amendments to the voters for approval.
Recall
An election in which voters can remove an incumbent from office prior to the next scheduled election.
Front-loading
The tendency of states to choose an early date on the nomination calendar.
Electoral College
Representatives of each state who cast the final ballots that actually elect a president.
Elector
Member of the Electoral College
Reapportionment
The reallocation of the number of seats in the House of Representatives after each decennial census.
Incumbency
Already holding an office
Mid-term election
An election that takes place in the middle of a presidential term.
Conventional political participation
Activism that attempts to influence the political process through commonly accepted forms of persuasion such as voting or letter writing.
Unconventional political participation
Activism that attempts to influence the political process through unusual or extreme measures, such as protests, boycotts, and picketing.
Ticket splitting
Voting for candidates of different parties for various offices in the same election.
Retrospective judgement
A voters evaluation of a candidate based on past performance o a particular issue.
Prospective judgement
A voters evaluation of a candidate based in what he or she pledges to do about an issue if elected
Turnout
The proportion of the voting age public that casts a ballot.
