Exam Review-Lessons Flashcards
what is the US Congress made up of?
the HoR and the SENATE
what is the House of Representatives
435 CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTS, PEOPLE VOTE for who they want based on what district they LIVE in.
congress is FOR THE PEOPLE (represents districts), deals with things like TAXES, passing FEDERAL LAWS (2 year terms)
what is the Senate
made up of 2 senators from EACH STATE (represents states), pass BILLS (before they become laws), deals with TREATIES, etc. and ‘checks on’ house. fewer people and longer terms (6 years-elected by people)
how effective are campaigns?
CAN change public opinion, but NOT EASILY. politicians can only AFFECT INFO, not OPINIONS-look to CHANGE WHAT COMES TO MIND (ex. trump=felon, harris=abortion rights)
what is voter turnout?
how MANY people ACTUALLY VOTE
what are the general reasons people don’t vote?
PROBABILITY of actually CHANGING RESULTS of an election is extremely LOW, may have NO INTEREST in the RESULTS of the election, a SINGLE persons choice to vote is ONLY EFFECTIVE if OTHERS vote too, HIGH COST of voting (without necessary getting anything in return), overall NOT WORTH IT!!!
what is the rational voter model?
PxB>C
only BENEFICIAL to vote if PxB is MORE than C
P: PROBABILITY of have a PIVOTAL VOTE (based on how CLOSE an election is and how much pose a single vote has in your state)
B: BENEFITS received from having your PREFERRED CANDIDATE WIN (based on partisanship-what party you identify with, ideologies, candidate policies)-high this election!!
C: COST of voting-takes RESOURCES (ex. time, money, info, voting laws, etc.)
does the RVM typically support voting or not?
P is so SMALL (unless in swing state or vote is worth more-still small) and C is SUBSTANTIAL, meaning B needs to be VERY BIG to make it WORTH VOTING
MATHEMATICALLY it is BENEFICIAL for people to NOT VOTE
what are ways to reduce the cost of voting and get people to ?
ASK people to vote (feel obligated to-social pressure), provide FREE INFO (think about it beforehand, reduces cost, increases benefits-find candidate you like?), provide CUES (encourage you to vote: celebrity endorsements, how incumbent is performing in office, stte of the world-economic rn)
what is the rational voter method (evolved)?
PxB+D>C
D: INDIRECT and SOCIAL BENEFITS of voting (ex. doing your civiv duty-feels good contributing, social pressure)
how is doing your civic duty play into the benefits (“D” in RVM)?
there is a PSYCHOLOGICAL REWARD we get for doing our civic duty:
- INTRINSIC: do it because we FEEL GOOD (doing the right thing)
- EXTRINSIC: do it because there is a SOCIAL REWARD for being OBSERVED PARTICIPATING (ex. getting an ‘I voted’ sticker)-the socially acceptable thing
how social pressure encourage voting?
if you are AROUND people TALKING about voting, it puts PRESSURE on you to vote (ex. them asking what your political thoughts are, who you are voting for-want to have an opinion+gets you thinking).
SOCIAL NORMS: AWARENESS of norms (EXPECTATION that people will vote-civic duty) , INTERNALIZATION of norms (how STRONGLY a person FEELS they have a duty to vote), ENFORCEMENT of norms (judgement, disdain, violence, etc.)
what did Gerber, Green, and Larimer say/ study about social pressure?
EFFECTS of social pressure on VOTING. looked at if people were more likely to vote if they knew that OTHER PEOPLE (in house/ neighbourhood) WOULD KNOW if they voted or not. found that it did increase turnout
what does the GOTV campaign do?
GET OUT TO VOTE ENCOURAGES VOTING by making it EASIER (ex. helping with registration), go door to door, call you, send mail to make sure you vote (not for a party, just in general)
explain the history of ballot access
US was one of the LAST developed countries to have UNIVERSAL SUFFRAGE. constitution of 1788)
DIDN’T GUARANTEE everyone the right to vote. originally only LAND OWNERS had a true STAKE in the vote (cared about who was elected and could influence others to vote-NO SECRET BALLOT-exploitative). only TAXPAYERS (people with jobs) had A SAY in how government money was being spent.
Once women+other races could vote: married women were MENS SECOND VOTES, independent women were UNTRUSTWORTHY. white people wanted to EXCLUDE people of colour and their preferences (some states didn’t let certain groups become CITIZENS-prevent from voting)
what is the timeline of gaining voting rights in the us?
FIRST WAVE: MALE SUFFRAGE (land owner or not)
RECONSTRUCTION: slavery ends, BLACK VOTING rights established (Republicans wanted black votes to gain support in south)
WOMENS SUFFRAGE: SENECA FALLS (women’s rights convention), 19th AMENDMENT-women can vote
JIM CROW: LAWS and policies by the GOV. to try and RESTRICT BLACK RIGHTS (especially in south) ex. POLL TAXES, LITERACY TESTS (rigged, subjective), GRANDFATHER in-now banned
what are the 6 voting restrictions?
- REGISTRATION: way to REDUCE FRAUD and KEEP TRACK of voters, can be a BURDEN to do (the HARDER=LESS likely LOW INCOME people/ IMMIGRANTS VOTE)-have to do it early, takes time and distance, tricky hours, etc. (dems and challengers in favour of registration, reps and incumbents against it)
- VOTER ID: requires people to SHOW an ID to vote, poll workers may be PICKY/ selective (varies among locations), DIFFERENT locations may take DIFFERENT IDs (ex. no student ids, but yes firearm licenses-democrats are more students and republicans are more gun owners)
- POLLING PLACES: states choose HOW MANY/ WHERE they are (how CLOSE to your house/ work impacts WILLINGNESS to vote, different places have different HOURS)
- BALLOT DESIGN: can be tricky to know how to FILL OUT votes (MAIL IN ballots are more CONFUSING ex. butterfly ballot and require you to spell the persons name), whoever is FIRST is more likely to WIN
- BALLOTING PRACTICES: concerns/ distrust in MACHINES due to too many VARIABLES (miscounting, hacking, paper is more reliable ex. RECOUNTS-screens had paper receipts, why not vote on paper atp)
- FELON DISENFRANCHISEMENT: people convicted of felonies and RESTRICTED from voting when INCARCERATED, on parole, or forever, or until they PETITION to get rights back (usually have to pay fine-outstanding court fees-before voting)
shelby county v holder case
supreme court INVALIDATED section 4B of voting rights act due to it being UNCONSTITUTIONAL-ruled that it SINGLED OUT specific states based on racial discrimination
SECTION 4B: STATES that were KNOWN for being RACIST had POLICIES in place to make it HARDER for there to be EQUALITY
what does ‘voting restriction’ mean?
things that REDUCE VOTER TURNOUT (intentionally or not)
what is the issue with trust in polls?
trust WAIVERS when people see different polls with DIFFERENT RESULTS. people assume that SMALL SMAPLE sizes lead to INACCURACY-NOT TRUE (false issue-law of stats says that a sample size of 1200 can be accurate)
why is trust in elections low?
people DON’T TRUST RESULTS or the GOV.
ELECTION PROBLEMS make people lose trust in the system: voter FRAUD, election INTERFERENCE, others REJECTING the OUTCOMES (when people are scared of these things happening, their trust lowers)
what is the overall role of the media in politics?
MONITORS candidates, SOURCE of INFORMATION for most political news (accurate and truthful info), reports about PUBLIC OPINION (tells us how others are feeling), a way for POLITICAL REPRESENTATIVES to COMMUNICATE with the PUBLIC (interviews, social media posts, etc.) NOT a FORMAL INSTITUTION, but still plays a CRITICAL INSTITUTIONAL ROLE
what is the difference between how traditional and social media are used in elections?
Traditional: BROAD REACH, CREDIBILITY (facts are checked before being spread), ONE-WAY communication, PAID ADVERTISING
social: TARGETED (content based on what appeals to you-2 people may see different ad s from the same candidate based on their algorithms), INTERACTIVE (candidates can interact with people and show ore personality), CHEAPER, VIRALITY (can seep into mainstream media)
what does the media do to change peoples political opinions-how are they biased?
media is DRIVEN by different things (money, ideals, success, etc.)
AGENDA SETTING: CHANGING what a person THINKS is IMPORTANT (ex. showing candidates in a certain light or highlighting certain policies/ issues to impact voting OR bringing attention to issues they want the government to address)
FRAMING and PRIMING: INFLUENCING how people PERCEIVE INFO and MAKE DECISION
how has media access changed with the introduction of social media?
people from ALL BACKGROUND/ AGES have access, the MORE KINDS of media you have the MORE KNOWLEDGEABLE you will be on politics, caused by society evolving and people WANT MORE INFO
how does soft news and satire influence politics?
makes the news MORE CONVERSATIONAL and ACCESSIBLE. people with LESS political KNOWLDGE can get ACCESS to political info
note: satire can REDUCE TRUST in political institutions (seen as a joke?)
what are the effects of media changing?
people are LESS TRUSTING of MAINSTREAM media, people ENGAGE more on SOCIAL media (can be useful-showing support, donating, sharing info), candidate ENGAGEMENT has been TIED TO WINNING (EMOTIONAL messages INCREASE PARTICIPATION, SHIFT VOTE + public PERCEPTION of POLICIES, NEGATIVE messages work AGAINST INCUMBENT and FOR CHALLENGER)
*note: most people only consume political media, only a few ‘super-users’ who share excessive political info
what are the 3 motivations for the media sharing political information?
ECONOMIC: CLICKBAIT (makes money but spreads misinformation)
IDEOLOGICAL: ex. appealing to black population, ex. liberal news focuses on social justice, conservative focuses on pro-business
TRADITIONAL: reputation (tv), prestige, providing info that reinforces social norms-remaining neutral and providing info
why do we take polls?
PROVIDES INFO FOR voters, campaigns, media
PROVIDES INFO ABOUT voter enthusiasm, intentions, preferences
what is forecasting?
trying to PREDICT certain OUTCOMES of the election BASED ON DATA
what is response and nonresponse bias?
response: people provide FALSE ANSWERS
nonresponse: ABSENCE of PARTICIPANTS (becomes problem when based on race, economic status, gender, etc.) ex. trump supporters saying not to answer polls
why are public opinion polls good?
RELIABLE (BIG SAMPLE size, people are more HONEST), allows for an ANALYSIS of TRENDS
what are alternative means of gathering election info (other than polls)?
INTERVIEWS and conversations, FOCUS GROUPS, LETTERS/ PHONE CALLS, looking at PROTEST activities
explain the gallup poll
predicted dewey would defeat truman and prematurely printed it, truman won. INTERVIEWERS CHOSE who they interviewed-statistically MORE LIEKLY to choose people LIKE THEM (white collar-SAMPLE SKEWED)
what is the margin of error in polling (and error bars)?
RANGE where the TRUE RESULTS are expected to FALL (ex. 50% support with +-3% means answer could be from 47-53%)
error bars are AROUND the percent of votes a candidate will get and show the 95% CONFIDENCE (ex. if poll was taken 100 times, 95x this would be the result) when polls are WRONG it is a SYSTEMIC bias
explain the literary digest poll
predicted alf landon would beat fdr by a lot, fdr ended up beating by 20%.
SAMPLIGN ERROR due to SAMPLING/ SELECTION BIAS. postcards sent to people with SUBSCRIPTIONS and PHONES (middle/ upper class people). EXCLUDED LOWER CLASS VOTERS
what is the marxist theory
politica CHANGE is DRIVEN by CLASS STRUGGLE
what are the concerns about money in politics?
the RICH are MORE HEARD (have more of a voice than poor), PERCEPTION of CORRUPTION UNDERMINES elections (even if there isn’t any, it is dangerous to democracy if people refuse to accept election results), campaign MONEY INFLUENCES politicians ACTIONS (VOTE BUYING-shapes politics, cater to donors interests), money can make them adopt more EXTREME POSITIONS
what is the history of. campaign finance?
PENDELTON ACT of 1883: BANNED GOV OFFICIALS from requiring EMPLOYEES to make political CONTRIBUTIONS
TILLAM ACT of 1907: designed to STOP LARGE CORPS from using money to INFLUENCE FEDERAL ELECTIONS
FEDERAL CORRUPTION PRACTICES act of 1925: set SPENDING LIMITS and DISCLOSURE RULES fore parties
explain citizens united vs FEC
supreme court ruled to ALLOW UNLIMITED CAMPAIGN SPENDING by CORPORATIONS in order to PROTECT FREE SPEECH (congress opposed this)
what did buckley v valeo do (1976)?
upheld: LIMITS on INDIVIDUAL CONTRIBUTIONS and DISCLOSURE
struck down: LIMITS on spending (on candidates and parties)
what happens when the supreme court can’t find common ground?
GRIDLOCK
congress focuses on CORRUPTION, court focuses on POLITICAL EXPRESSION and justice
what is average treatment effect?
HOW MUCH ADDITIONAL *blank) does X AMOUNT of money BUY?
challengers: LESS MONEY buys MORE VOTES (typically starting with less name recognition, need to build a campaign)
incumbents: close to NOTHING
how is donating exploited during elections?
giving money as a form of VOTE BUYING (in exchange for POLICY FAVOURS) more money=more/ more significant favours. higher bidders have MORE INFLUENCE
what is deconstructive politics and how has it undermined efforts to regulate money in politics?
QUESTIONS traditional political STRUCTURES and reestablishes NORMS. has ADVOCATED AGAINST LAWS to prevent spending money-against free speech
what are the incumbency patterns?
incumbents are MORE LIKLEY to get REELECTED (voters know them, know they are good), all members of congress are CONSTANTLY CAMPAIGNING to get REELECTED
what are the benefits of incumbency?
FRANKING (free main to constituents?), DETER CHALLENGERS, FINANCIAL advantages
what is an electoral connection?
RELATIONSHIP between ELECTED officials and their CONSTITUENTS, driven by the need for them to SECURE a REELECTION (will engage with public, respond to local concerns, etc. to gain votes)
what are the 3 specific areas incumbents focus on to get re-elected?
ADVERTISING: need to be KNOWN-increase name recognition with ads
CREDIT CLAIMING: CLAIM CREDIT FOR BENEFITS people gained in their district (ex. i lowered your taxes)-more likely to be reelected if people feel like they WORK ON THEIR BEHALF
POSITION TAKING: want to demonstrate that they SHARE VALUES and PRIORITIES by TAKING A POSITION on issues
what is packing and cracking?
packing: placing VOTERS of OPPOSING PARTY into FEW DISTRICTS with LARGE MAJORITIES (they win but it is contained)
cracking: SPLITTING voters of OPPOSING PARTY across a LARGE number of districts to DILUTE POWR (don’t win at all)
what is partisan fairness and response?
partisan fairness: do parties get the SAME SEAT GAINS out of VOTES (are boundaries drawn fair, does their number of votes translate into proportional seats-AVOIDING PACKING)
responsiveness: how much does a 1% CHANGE in VOTES IMPACT the DIVISION OF SEATS
what is contiguity?
KEEPING DISTRICTS TOGETHER (want a circle, not a big squiggly line)-compactness is good
what is gerrymandering and the 2 types?
MANIPULATING BOUNDARIES of a district to FAVOUR a PARTY.
POLITICAL gerrymandering: TARGETED towards a POLITICAL group (ex. does it severely disadvantage a party-can happen since parties in power create the boundaries)
RACIAL gerrymandering: TARGETED against RACIAL MINORITIES (creating mainly minority-filled districts, make polls far away from certain neighbourhoods) STILL unconstitutional if it benefits them
what are non-partisan elections?
usually LOCAL, all candidates are listed on ballot with NO LABELS IDENTIFYING THEIRY PARTY
what do voters rely on instead of party values when there are non-partisan elections?
ENDORSEMENTS (leaders or groups endorse candidates, shows they are respected by people), what candidates DO
what are the theories on the effects of non-partisan elections?
LOWER voter TURNOUT, voters PARTY ALLEGIANCE (ex. hardcore republican) WON’T have as much of an IMPACT, INCUMBENCY has a LARGER IMAPCT
what are slating groups?
ORGS SUPPORT CANDIATES and end up CONTROLLING ELECTIONS
what is partisan heuristics?
MENTAL SHORTCUT where voters make POLITICAL DECISIONS based on PARTY ASSOCIATION rather than the candidate
what is direct democracy?
the PEOPLE MAKE the DECISIONS
what is a referendum?
VOTE on a STATUTE or AMENDMENT done by the PEOPLE (that has already been considered by a legislative body) ex. should Quebec separate from Canada
what is an initiative?
PROPOSED BILL by the PEOPLE that APPEARS on the BALLOTS if filed with appropriate office and sufficient signatures (if enough people want a law and go through the motions they will vote on it)
what is a recall?
a VOTE on REMOVING an ELECTED OFFICIAL from office following a PETITION
what are retention elections?
YES/ NO to KEEPING an INCUMBENT in office (when there is no opponent)
what is a partisan election?
PARTIES LISTED on the BALLOT, candidates openly identify with a party
what is a judicial election?
VOTERS SELECT JUDGES for courts (local, state, or federal level). can be PARTISAN or NON (depending on jurisdiction) to ensure FAIR/ IMPARTIAL JUDGE SELECTION
what is the issue with judicial elections?
voters know VERY LITTLE ABOUT judges and what they DO, voters may PUNISH JUDGES for UNDERSENTENCING (ex. people v brock turner)
what is unidirectional concergence?
judges become MORE PUNITIVE as their TERM PROCEEDS
what is police patrol oversight by voters?
CONSTANTLY MONITORING judges and their DECISIONS by the public
what is fire alarm oversight?
victims rights groups, police, etc. make UNDERSENTENCING PUBLICLY KNOWN (draw attention to it)
why are nonpartisan retention elections better for judges?
ALLOW INDEPENDENCE (can focus more on making just decisions rather than trying to look good or do what the public wants)
