Political Belifs and Campaigns Flashcards
0
Q
What are some causes of factions?
A
- Differences in religion
- Different ideas about government
- Charismatic leaders
- -Different class/ economic situations
1
Q
What was Madison’s definition of faction?
A
A group of people with the same interests, against the rights of the citizens or the common good. Ex. KKK, Nazis
2
Q
What are possible ways to combat factions?
A
- Removing the causes
- Controlling the effects
3
Q
How does family influence our attitudes about issues?
A
- Children tend to inherit their parents’ political views.
4
Q
How do our peers influence our attitudes about issues?
A
- Children are taught respect for their nation (pledge of allegiance)
- high school/ college classes can influence views
- peers influence political views
5
Q
How does television influence our attitudes about issues?
A
- Sounds bites on TV
- Talk shows
- TV enlightens voters an encourages voter turnout
6
Q
How has the internet influences out attitudes about issues?
A
- Candidates usually launch their own internet sites
- Major networks and newspapers have reporting sites
- Blogs and social networks contain information
7
Q
How does religion influence out attitudes about issues?
A
- Second largest predictor of vote
- Tends to effect voting and stances on particular issues
- Religious Leaders impact views
8
Q
How does race and ethnicity influence our attitudes about issues?
A
- Race is a reliable predictor of political attitudes
- There are many hot button issues where the opinion of blacks and whites is very different.
9
Q
How does age influence our attitudes about issues?
A
- Opinion on the role of government differs depending on the era in which a person is born
10
Q
How does region affect our attitudes about issues?
A
- Immigrants arrived with their own unique views
- Southerners advocate for a weaker central government (rep)
- West tends to be anti-government (rep)
11
Q
How does gender influence our attitudes about issues?
A
- Women tend to have more liberal attitudes on social welfare issues
- Men tend to favor war and military intervention
12
Q
What are public opinion polls?
A
Interviews or surveys with samples of citizens that are used in order to estimate the feeling and beliefs of an entire population.
13
Q
What are straw polls?
A
Unscientific surveys used to gauge public opinion on a verity of issues and policies. There are many errors with straw polls.
14
Q
What is a push poll?
A
Polls taken for the purpose of providing information on an opponent that would lead respondents to vote against that candidate. They are designed to give respondents some negative or even untruthful information to push them away from the candidate and towards the one paying for the poll.
15
Q
What are tracking polls?
A
Continuous surveys that enable a campaign to chart its daily rise or fall in support.
16
Q
What are exit polls?
A
Polls conducted as voters leave selected polling places at Election Day.
17
Q
What is the bandwagon effect?
A
A strong showing in the polls that causes new supporters to hop on and donate money to a campaign.
18
Q
What is a conservative?
A
One who believes that the best government governs the least, and that big government can only infringe on individual, personal, and economic rights.
19
Q
What is a liberal?
A
One who favors government involvement in the economy, and in the provision of social services and who takes a role as an activist in protecting the rights of women, the elderly, minorities, and the enviernment.
20
Q
What was George Washington’s farewell warning?
A
Washington warned the nation against parties, but the unification of the nation ended as soon as his presidency was over.
21
Q
Which party held the first national party convention?
A
Democratic Party
22
Q
What types of people formed the early Republican Party?
A
Anti slavery activists, mainly from the north, and former member of the Whig party. They set their sights on abolition of slavery.
23
Q
What is a political machine?
A
A party organization that recruits voter loyalty with tangible incentives and is characterized by a high degree of control over membership activity.
24
What is ticket splitting?
Voting for candidates of different parties for various offices in the same election.
25
What is candidate-centered politics?
Politics that focuses directly on the candidates, their particular issues, and character rather than on party affiliation.
26
Why are parties most visible in congress?
The majority party has power over the minority party, and occupies the leadership positions.
27
How is party identification used?
A citizens personal connection to a political party is usually expressed by a tendency to vote for candidates of that party. My citizens identify with a party but do not belong to it.
28
What is party dealignment?
A general decline in party identification and loyalty in the electorate.
29
Is there a rise in the number is independents?
Yes, numbers of self described independents has risen to about 40% in recent years.
30
What is party realignment?
A shift of party coalition groupings in the electorate that remains in place for several years.
31
What is secular realignment?
The gradual realignment of party alliances, based more on demographic shifts than on shocks to the political system.
32
What is soft money?
Virtually unregulated money fumbled through political parties for party-building purposes, such as get out the vote efforts or issue ads. Banned after 2002.
33
What is hard money?
Money that can be used for direct electioneering but is limited and regulated by the Federal Elections Commission.
34
How does ones social and economic status influence their attitude about govrnment?
The more money one has, the less they favor government.
35
How does education influence ones views on government?
The more educate a person is, the more likely the are to favor a strong central government.
36
What is random sampling?
A method of polling that gives each person in a group an equal chance of getting selected. (This is impossible to achieve)
37
What are moderates?
People who have liberal views on some issues and conservative views on others.
38
What are the chances of electing minor parties/third parties?
Slim to none, the two major parties are so strong that minor parties don't tend to do very well in elections.
39
What is the plurality system?
Whoever gets the most votes wins. (Except in the presidential election)
40
What are critical election?
An election that signals a party realignment.
1. Thomas Jefferson nonfederalist
2. Civil War
3. FDR Great Depression
41
How do parties "get out the vote"?
Reminding people to go vote in the days leading up to the election, and advocating for your candidate in the process.
42
What are national committees?
Committees that make arrangement for the national convention and coordinate the future party campaigns.
43
What is a national convention?
A party meeting held in the presidential election year for the purpose of nominating a presidential and vice presidential ticket and adopting a platform.
44
What are think tanks?
People who study/ research issues and create reports that candidates often use in their platforms.
45
What is the role of the chairperson of a national committee?
They are the key national party official, usually selected by the sitting president or newly nominated candidate (formally elected by a committee), the prime spokesperson for the party between presidential elections.
46
What is conventional political participation?
Political participation that attempts to influence the political process through well-accepted, often moderate forms of persuasion Ex. writing letters to government officials
47
What is unconventional political participation?
Political participation that attempts to influence the political process through unusual or extreme measures such as protests, boycotts and picketing Ex. Boston Tea Party
48
What is voter turnout?
The proportion of voting-age public that votes.
49
Why is voter turnout so low?
- difficulty of registration
- difficulty of absentee ballot
- lack of pressing issues/ content
- too busy/ conflicts/ inconvenient
- large number of elections
50
Why is turnout so important in American elections?
Candidates are selected by the winner-take-all system, where a single voter can influence an election outcome.
51
Is the voter turnout higher in midterm or presidential elections?
Presidential, people care less/ find the elections less important/ decrease in enthusiasm.
52
What factors influence voter turnout?
Tend to vote: Education(highly educated), income(higher income), age(citizens over 30), gender(women slightly higher), race and ethnicity(whites), group membership(labor unions), interest in politics(political upbringing).
53
What was the 19th Amendment?
Gave women the right to vote.
54
What was the 26th amendment?
Made voting age 18
55
What was the Voting Rights Act of 1965?
Gave African Americans the right to vote.
56
What was the national voter registration act of 1993?
Requires states to provide the opportunity to register through drivers license agencies, public assistance agencies, and the mail.
57
What is the electorate?
Citizens eligible to vote.
58
What is a mandidate?
A command incubated by an electorate's vote for the elected official to carry out their platform.
59
What is a closed primary?
A party election in which only the party's registered voters are eligible to vote.
60
What is an open primary?
A primary in which party members, independents, and sometimes members of other parties are allowed to vote.
61
What is a runoff primary?
A secondary primary between the two candidates receiving the greatest miner of votes in the first primary.
62
What is a general election?
An election in which voters decide which candidates will actually fill elective public offices.
63
What are ballot measures?
An election option such as initiative, referendum, or recall that enables voters to enact public policy.
64
What is initiative?
An election that allows citizens to propose legislation and submit it to the state for a popular vote.
65
What is referendum?
An election where state legislator submits proposed legislation to the states voters for approval.
66
What is recall?
An election in which voters can remove an incumbent from office by popular vote.
67
What is a caucus?
A system I which party members meet in small groups throughout a state to discuss as select a party's delegates to the national convention.
68
How can redistricting favor the party in power?
Redistricting can often punish the incumbents of the out of power party.
69
How are mail in ballots used?
Registered voters are mailed ballots and have several weeks to mail them back with their votes.
70
What was the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act?
Banned unregulated soft-money donations to political parties, restricted the use of political ads, and increased the political contribution limits for private individuals.
71
Is internet voting likely to occur in the coming years?
Yes, many citizens view it as an instant democracy and a way to improve citizen participation.
72
What did the use of voting machines limit?
Reduced fraud and electoral ambiguity.
73
What is the electoral college?
Representatives of each state who cast he final ballots that actually elect a president.
74
Who are electors?
Members of the electoral college chosen by methods determined by each state.
75
What is the magic number for winning the electoral college vote?
270
76
How are delegates selected?
The selection of delegates to the convention is no longer a function of party leaders, but of primary elections and grassroots caucuses.
77
What are super delegates?
Delegated slot to the party's national convention that is reserved for an elected party official.
78
What is reaportionment?
The reallocation of the number of seats in the House of Representatives after each decennial cencus.
79
What is the advantage of an incumbent?
People in office tend to remain in office.
80
What are the reelection rates in congress?
Extremely high
81
What are free mass mailings/ franking privilege?
The ability to send mass mailing to the electorate without charge is a big advantage incumbents recieve.
82
What is gerrymandering?
The legislative process by which the majority party in each state tries to ensure the maximum number of representatives from its political party are elected to congress through the redrawing of legislative districts.
83
What are presidential coatails?
Successful presidential candidates usually carry into office confessional candidates of the same party in the year of their election. The coattail effect has declined over time as party identification has weakened, and incumbency perks have grown.
84
What is a midterm election?
An election that takes place in the middle of a presidential term.
85
Campaign manager?
The individual that travels with the candidate and coordinates the many different aspects of the campaign.
86
Finance chair?
A professional who coordinates the find raising efforts for the campaign.
87
Pollster?
A professional who takes public opinion surveys that guide political campaigns.
88
Direct mailer?
A professional who supervised the political campaign's direct mail fund raising strategies.
89
Communications director?
The person who develops the overall media strategy for the candidate by blending free press coverage with paid tv, radio, and mail media.
90
Press secretary?
The individual who communicates and interacts with journalists on a daily basis.
91
Internet team?
The campaign staff makes use of web-based resources to communicate with voters, organize volunteers, raise funds, and plan campaign events.
92
Campaign consultant?
A private sector professional who sells the candidate the technologies and services needed to get elected.
93
527 political committees?
Nonprofit and unregulated interest groups that focus on specific causes or policy positions to attempt to influence voters.
94
Positive ads?
Advertising on behalf of a candidate that stresses the candidate's qualifications, family, and issue positions, without reference to the opponent.
95
Negative ads?
Advertising on behalf of a candidate that attacks the opponents platform or cheracter.
96
Contrast ads?
Ad that compares the records and proposals of the candidates with basis towards the sponsor.
97
Spot ads?
Television advertising on behalf of a candidate that is broadcast in 60, 30, or 10 second durations.
98
Inoculation ads?
Advertising that attempts to counteract an anticipated attack from the opposition before the attack is launched.
99
Rapid response technique?
The changes allow candidates to from prompt and informed responses to changing events on the campaign battlefeild.
100
Express advocacy ads?
Candidates are allowed to only use explicit words or phrases that qualify as express advocacy like vote for, vote against, elect, or support
101
Issue advocacy?
Political advertisements that do not use the specific words or phrases.
102
Federal Election Campaign Act?
First established public funding of presidential campaigns.
103
Federal Election Commission v. Wisconsin Right to Life?
The Supreme Court invalidates the BCRA's strict ban on genuine issue ads during the "blackout" period on the grounds that the timing of the ad does not cause it to be electioneering.
104
McConnell v. FEC?
The Supreme Court ruled that the governments interest in prevention of corruption overrides the free speech rights to which parties would otherwise be entitled to, and did not violate free speech rights.
105
Media Consulant?
A professional who produces candidate's television, radio, and print advertisements.
