Elections + campaigns vocab Flashcards
Politcal participation
the different ways in which people take action to shape laws + policies of gov
Linkage Institution
channels that connect people with gov, including elections, political parties, interest groups, and media
Social Movement
large groups of citizens organizing for political change
Political action committee
an organization that raises money to elect + defeat candidates + and can donate money directly to a candidates campaign, subject to limits
Franchise (suffrage)
the right to vote in political elections
Twenty-Sixth Amendment
allows eighteen year olds and older to vote
Twenty-Fourth Amendment
prohibits Congress + states from imposing poll taxes as condition for voting in federal elections
Poll tax
tax a person is required to pay before he/she is allowed to vote.
Voter Turnout
the number of eligible voters who participate in an election as a percentage of the total number of eligible voters
Demographic Characteristics
measurable characteristics of a population, such as economic status, education, age, race or ethnicity, gender, partisan attachment.
Socioeconomic Status (SES)
a measure of a person’s wealth, income, occupation, and educational attachment.
Political Efficacy
a person’s belief that he/she can make effective political change
Political Mobilization
efforts by political parties to encourage their members to vote.
Registration Requirements
the set of rules that govern who can vote and how, when, where they vote
Absentee Ballots
voting completed + submitted by a voter before the day of an election
