gov unit 5 vocab Flashcards
15th amendment
franchised free black men, from Reconstruction era
17th amendment
DC gets three electoral votes and Senators are now directly elected
19th amendment
women’s right to vote
24th amendment
no more poll taxes; Jim Crow era
26th amendment
age requirement for voters lowered to 18; Vietnam War
rational choice voting
political science theory that assumes that individuals vote in their own interest weighting pros and cons of alternatives
retrospective voting
voting based on candidates past actions in office
prospective voting
voting based on candidates ideas for handing issues (future)
party line voting
voting based on candidate’s party
political efficacy
belief that your vote matters and can make a difference
structural barrier
insufficient infrastructure that would make it easy for people to go vote
midterm election
State elections between presidential elections, upholds federalism; every two years
presidential elections
elections held every four years, winner decided by electoral college
candidate centered campaigns
celebrity-esque candidates; candidate has more influence than the party
linkage institutions
political parties, interest groups, elections, media; connect people to the lawmakers
political parties in elections
“group effort” to win elections, parties provide their candidates with fundraising, PR, and networking
critical elections/realignment
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
winner take all system
all electoral state votes go to the candidate with the higher percentage of votes in the state
third parties
non-bipartisans, like the Greens or Libertarians
interest groups
lobbyists funnel money and resources towards candidates to influence policy making
free rider
individuals who benefit from the work of interest groups without providing them any support
single issue groups
interest group devoted to only one issue; NRA
social movements
ideological movements that are a collective action to bring social, political, economic, or cultural change
protest movements
organized efforts where groups of people rally against perceived injustices or advocate for certain causes; public protests, strikes, civil disobedience
incumbency advantage
current office holder benefits in elections from being currently in office; mostly for Congressional elections
open primary
can choose which ballot to take (Rep or Dem) day of primary election
closed primary
a voter must be registered with the party prior to the primary and gets their corresponding ballot
caucuses
closed meeting of party members to select candidates
party conventions
where delegates vote for their party candidate and there is a formal nomination for the VP
general electins
presidential elections
electoral college
electoral votes based on number of a state’s representatives and senators; candidate needs 270 votes to win
PAC
private group that raises and distributes funds for use in elections campaigns
super PACS
independent committees that can raise and distribute unlimited sums of money from corporations and other associations into campaigns
Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act of 2002
banned “soft money” (PAC money) contributions made directly to candidates and set stricter guidelines for campaign ads (no smears)
horse race journalism
focus on polling data and public perception during elections instead of their policies
changing media
switch to social media from traditional news (radio, cable TV)
