gov unit 5 vocab

Question 1

15th amendment

Answer 1

franchised free black men, from Reconstruction era

Question 2

17th amendment

Answer 2

DC gets three electoral votes and Senators are now directly elected

Question 3

19th amendment

Answer 3

women’s right to vote

Question 4

24th amendment

Answer 4

no more poll taxes; Jim Crow era

Question 5

26th amendment

Answer 5

age requirement for voters lowered to 18; Vietnam War

Question 6

rational choice voting

Answer 6

political science theory that assumes that individuals vote in their own interest weighting pros and cons of alternatives

Question 7

retrospective voting

Answer 7

voting based on candidates past actions in office

Question 8

prospective voting

Answer 8

voting based on candidates ideas for handing issues (future)

Question 9

party line voting

Answer 9

voting based on candidate’s party

Question 10

political efficacy

Answer 10

belief that your vote matters and can make a difference

Question 11

structural barrier

Answer 11

insufficient infrastructure that would make it easy for people to go vote

Question 12

midterm election

Answer 12

State elections between presidential elections, upholds federalism; every two years

Question 13

presidential elections

Answer 13

elections held every four years, winner decided by electoral college

Question 14

candidate centered campaigns

Answer 14

celebrity-esque candidates; candidate has more influence than the party

Question 15

linkage institutions

Answer 15

political parties, interest groups, elections, media; connect people to the lawmakers

Question 16

political parties in elections

Answer 16

“group effort” to win elections, parties provide their candidates with fundraising, PR, and networking

Question 17

critical elections/realignment

Answer 17

an election where voters respond particularly strongly to a certain issue and disrupt the political order; has a lasting impact on public policy, support for parties, and party composition

Question 18

winner take all system

Answer 18

all electoral state votes go to the candidate with the higher percentage of votes in the state

Question 19

third parties

Answer 19

non-bipartisans, like the Greens or Libertarians

Question 20

interest groups

Answer 20

lobbyists funnel money and resources towards candidates to influence policy making

Question 21

free rider

Answer 21

individuals who benefit from the work of interest groups without providing them any support

Question 22

single issue groups

Answer 22

interest group devoted to only one issue; NRA

Question 23

social movements

Answer 23

ideological movements that are a collective action to bring social, political, economic, or cultural change

Question 24

protest movements

Answer 24

organized efforts where groups of people rally against perceived injustices or advocate for certain causes; public protests, strikes, civil disobedience

Question 25

incumbency advantage

Answer 25

current office holder benefits in elections from being currently in office; mostly for Congressional elections

Question 26

open primary

Answer 26

can choose which ballot to take (Rep or Dem) day of primary election

Question 27

closed primary

Answer 27

a voter must be registered with the party prior to the primary and gets their corresponding ballot

Question 28

caucuses

Answer 28

closed meeting of party members to select candidates

Question 29

party conventions

Answer 29

where delegates vote for their party candidate and there is a formal nomination for the VP

Question 30

general electins

Answer 30

presidential elections

Question 31

electoral college

Answer 31

electoral votes based on number of a state’s representatives and senators; candidate needs 270 votes to win

Question 32

PAC

Answer 32

private group that raises and distributes funds for use in elections campaigns

Question 33

super PACS

Answer 33

independent committees that can raise and distribute unlimited sums of money from corporations and other associations into campaigns

Question 34

Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act of 2002

Answer 34

banned “soft money” (PAC money) contributions made directly to candidates and set stricter guidelines for campaign ads (no smears)

Question 35

horse race journalism

Answer 35

focus on polling data and public perception during elections instead of their policies

Question 36

changing media

Answer 36

switch to social media from traditional news (radio, cable TV)