Democracy And Participation Flashcards
1
Q
What is the electoral college
A
A body of people who cast votes on behalf of their states to formally elect the president and vice president of the US
2
Q
What is the presidential nomination process to be the party’s nomination
A
- invisible primary, 18-24 months before.
- early state primaries and caucuses, 9 months before
- ‘super Tuesday’, 8 months before
- late state primaries and caucuses, 5-7 months before
- national party conventions, 4 months before
3
Q
What’s the presidential nomination process for nominations competing against each other
(Eg: Biden v trump)
A
- election campaign, including presidential debates, 1-3 months before
- election day, in November
- electoral college ballots cast 1 month after election day
- inauguration, in January, 2 months after election day
4
Q
What are primaries
A
- intraparty ballot to nominate candidate for a party
- secret ballot
- often conducted on wide state basis
- used by 46 states
5
Q
What are Caucasus
A
- intraparty town hall meeting to nominate candidates for party
- voting often takes place in public
- often conducted in small local areas within a state
- used by 4 statss
6
Q
What is an invisible primary
A
- period between which potential candidates compete with each other to be nominated for president
- candidates try to gain name recognition, and raise money
Eg: Bernie sanders in 2019, entered 19th feb, withdrew 8th April 2020
7
Q
What was the invisible primary like for the republicans in 2023
A
- 9 other candidates to trump, lost to Biden, impeached and criminal enquiries all factors
- main competition: Ron Desantis and Nikki Halley
8
Q
What are primaries and caucuses
A
- presidential primaries are state based elections held between feb and June of election year
- ordinary voters have chance to say who they want to be their candidate, can also choose delegates to go to national party conventions in the summer
- only 4 states do caucuses
9
Q
Why May people prefer primaries
A
- prevents party bosses choosing candidates, up until 1968, narrow clique chose candidates
Eg: 2016 trump won 14 million votes, winning him nomination - system allows people outside party establishment to win the nomination
10
Q
What are the arguments against primaries
A
- Republicans voters tend to be more conservative then average voter, vice versus with dems, Eg: May explain trump win over Ted Cruz and Obama over Hillary Clinton in 2008
- primaries take a long time, voters may become deenfranchised and it becomes expensive
- lack of participation, evident in 2024 turnout
- overrepresentation In some states, eg Iowa and New Hampshire, candidate who wins one usually a front runner.
- money dominates, Hillary Clinton spent 256 million, and still lost🤣🤣🤣
11
Q
What was the primaries turn out in the 2024 election
A
Dems 6%
Repubs 11%
12
Q
How much money did trump raise for the 2024 primaries
A
79.6 million
13
Q
What are national party conventions
A
- dems and repubs formally nominate their presidential candidate and affirm their party platform for the coming election
14
Q
Why was the Trump V Biden debate on 27th June important
A
- primaries done, too close to call in polls who was ahead
- Bidens disastrous performance led to him withdrawing a month later
Post televised polls: July 4th Biden 39.7, trump 42.1%
15
Q
What is the primary function of conventions
A
- officially nominate candidate
- secure publicity and media attention
- present a united party image, Niki Halley, trumps competition for nomination supported him
16
Q
How does the electoral college work
A
- each state has 3 ECVs
- before election day, each party select people who cast the ECVs in each state
- off the 538 ECVs, 270 is needed to win the electoral college, trump won 312 to best Harris
17
Q
Why does the US use a 2 party system
A
- use of winner takes it all
-nature of the USA, federal nature and guarantee of a states right to run its own elections - .party ideology: both parties are broad, difficult for a third party to carve out distinct policy areas
- electoral rules: serve to exclude third parties who struggle to achieve popularity needed in polls
18
Q
What are the 3 ways you can contribute money to a party/independdent
A
PACs - 5000 dollars per campaign, can donate directly to a campaign
527s - unlimited, cannot call for the election or defeat of a candidate
Super PACs - unlimited, can call for the election or defeat of a candidate but cannot coordinate with those campaigns
19
Q
What is soft money
A
Money donated to a party rather than a candidate and used for ‘party building activities, rather then endorsement for a candidate directly
20
Q
What is hard money
A
Donations directly to an electoral campaign and subject to strict limits
21
Q
What reasons suggest the presidential election process is effective
A
- lengthy process, ensures candidates are resilient and can withstand demands of being president
- Electoral college gives a clear winner able to govern effectively despite split of US political opinion
- It can still work even if a president doesn’t win the popular vote eg: trump, Bush
- televised debat and national party conventions shows president has good public speaking skills
22
Q
What suggests the presidential election process is not effective
A
- electoral college is out of step with popular sovereignty, needs reform
- primaries calendar disenfranchises some states, over represents others, uneven form of federalism
- amount of money required to become president makes process inherently elitist
- lengthy process creates political apathy, which can lower turnout, undermine legitimacy of an election
23
Q
What is the ideology of the democrats
A
- liberal, believe in progressive rights, some form of gov intervention in social and economic policy
24
Q
What’s general principles of democrats
A
- liberty, equality for all, strong enough to defend national while seeking peace, gov intervention to ensure equality for all
25
What are some general policy beliefs of the democrats
- women’s right to choose abortion
- same-sex marriage
- social welfare (healthcare)
- reform of immigration
- gun control
26
What is the ideology of the republicans
- conservative, believe in individual rights and limited role for gov in economy and social policy, larger role in homeland security
27
What are general ideological principles of the Republican Party
- American exceptioonalism (freedom)
- rights of an individual
- originality interpretation of constitution
- seperation of powers, limited government, federalism
28
What are some key policy beliefs of the republicans
- opposed to same-sex marriage and funding for abortion
- stricter immigration policy
- pro-business policy, pro guns
- smaller gov allowing greater rights of individual states
- pro death penalty
29
What are the democrats stance on economic issues
- cut taxes for working families, fight poverty
- make wealthy and big corporations pay there fair share
30
What are the republicans stance on the economy
- Keep US dollar as world reserve currency
- end inflation make American affordable again
- large tax cuts for workers, no tax on tips
31
What are the democrats stance on social welfare issues
- tackle climate crisis
- protects communities, tackling scourge of gun violenvce
- secure border and fix broken immigration policy
32
What are the republicans stance on social welfare issues
- stop illegal immigration, lock up violent offenders
- fight and protect social security and Medicare including no changes to retirement age
33
What importance do constituents have to parties in congress
- members of congress must be mindful of views of constituents if they want to be re-elected
34
What importance do congressional caucuses have to parties in congress
- groups of congress share specific common interest and come together when voting on an issue
Eg: congressional black caucus, women’s caucus
35
What importance do interest groups have to parties in congress
- interest groups are important in funding both parties and individual candidates
36
What are factions in a party
Groups within a political party that share an ideological agreement which might be different from other groups within the Sam’s party
37
What is a Liberal/progressive Democrat
- those more on the left of the party, more comfortable with government intervention
Eg: Bernie sanders, Elizabeth Warren
38
What is a conservative democrat
- on the very right of the party, but very uncommon to have this.
- socially and morally conservative but share agreement on fiscal and economic policy
Eg: Joe Manchin
39
What is a moderate democrat
- sit in the centre of the party, likely to hold liberal values but also willing to compromise on some of the specifics.
Eg: Feinstein (senator from cali) opposes death penalty and supports healthcare however doesn’t support government takeover of healthcare
40
What is a moderate Republican
- tend to favour more conservative fiscal policy, look for lower taxes and more business friendly policies.
Eg: Susan Collins (Maine) introduced a bill to codify in the law the right to an abortion
41
What are fiscal conservatives
- keen focus on size and cost of the government, want to cut it down to reduce taxes and allow greater economic freedom for businesses
42
What are social conservatives
- keen focus on social and moral policy issues. Take a conservative view on social matters, support death penalty, pro-life, social welfare.
Eg: 2022z, republicans as well as Joe manchin voted to block codification of abortion rights in America
