Political Participation Flashcards
What is the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act
a 2002 law to limit soft money donations to political parties
What is a general election
an election where candidates for elected office are formally chosen, or where the allocation of presidential electoral votes is decided
What is an incumbent
a candidate for office who presently holds that office and is running for re-election
What is a primary election
an election among members of the same political party, designed to narrow the field or identify the person who will ultimately serve as the party’s nominee for a particular office
What are electoral votes
votes made by the Electoral College, which, according to the Constitution, are the votes that actually elect a president
What is a caucus
a meeting of party members where delegates are selected to support a candidate for a party’s presidential nomination or other party issues are discussed. Caucuses occur at local, state, and national levels.
What are electors
persons selected by each state to cast Electoral College votes
What are independent voters
voters who indicate no preference for one political party or another
What are swing states
states with a history of voting for both political parties in recent presidential elections, considered by both sides as able to be persuaded
What is winner-take-all
a system of voting in which the candidate who wins a plurality of the popular vote is elected. In U.S. presidential campaigns, most states use this system, awarding all their electoral votes to the candidate who wins 50.01 percent or more of the popular vote.
What is a congressional district
one of 435 legally established areas of a state represented by one member of the House of Representatives. Each congressional district is approximately equal in population to all other congressional districts.
What are swing voters
voters who do not have a definite preference for the candidate of a political party and therefore are open to voting the candidate of any political party
What is brokered convention
a national party convention where no candidate for the party’s presidential nomination enters with a majority of the convention’s delegates, resulting in negotiating by “power brokers” to agree on a nominee
What is a district method
a method of allocating the electoral votes of a state in a presidential election among candidates according to the popular vote in each congressional district. The district method is rare, with most states using the winner-takes-all method.
What are faithless electors
a disparaging name for electors who violate their pledge to support a particular presidential candidate, voting instead for someone else
What are safe states
a state with historically strong leanings toward a particular political party, requiring relatively little effort from that party to win campaigns; the opposite of a safe state is a swing state
What are the constitutional requirements to serve in Congress
minimum age and citizenship tenure
What are the terms for a representative and senator
rep - 2 yrs
senator - 6 yrs
What is “soft money” in campaign funding
money raised for purposes like part-building efforts, etc. It had almost no regulations or limits unlike “hard money” which is specifically for a candidate
What is a PAC
a political action committee designed to raise hard money to elect or defeat candidates tended to be run by businesses or other groups like the Teamsters Union and the NRA
What is a super PAC
not bound by regulations that a PAC is. They cannot give money directly to a candidate or a party but they can raise and spend unlimited funds and can spend independently
How are the limits on campaign contributions set
amounts are adjusted every 2 years based on inflation
What is the difference between hard money and soft money?
Hard money is spent by a candidate or campaign while soft money is spent by a PAC
What is the difference between general election and primary election
general - the final election where voters choose between candidates from different political parties
primary - held before the general and helps parties select their nominees
What must a candidate win when seeking a state’s electoral votes?
A candidate must win a plurality of the state’s popular vote.
What must a candidate do to be successful in the primaries
A candidate must align and commit themselves to the ideology of the party.
How are the presidential electors decided for each state
equal to the sum of the state’s representatives and senators
How is a president selected if no one receives a majority vote in the Electoral College
The choice goes to the House of Representatives to determine who of the top three finishers will be elected with each state having one vote.
What is a lobbyist
represents interests of a group to government officials
What are public interest groups
pursues policies or goods that are useful for most or all citizens
What are private interest groups
seeks “particularized” benefits from the government that favor a single interest or a narrow set of interests
What are membership groups
people with common issues or concerns; join voluntarily and pay dues (NRA)
What are legislative liaisons
an individual who represents a government institution to other governmental decision-makers
What are associations (Trade Associants)
groups of institutions that join with others within the same trade or industry with similar concerns
What is Inside Lobbying (Direct Lobbying)
directly influencing government officials
What is Outside Lobbying (Indirect Lobbying)
influencing the people or public opinion such as issuing press releases
What is bundling
a fund raising strat in which the individual or PAC collects separate campaign donations and submits them as a single donation
How much can a PAC give directly to a presidential candidate
$5k per election so $10k total (primary and general)
What is Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission
Supreme Court said that corporations and union have free speech rights and can unlimited money advocating for their own interests as long as they do not coordinate their activities directly with a candidate
What is the consequence of Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission
there is no limit how much money unions or corporations can donate to Super PACs
What is the Lobbying Disclosure Act
requires registration of lobbyists representing any interest group and devoting more than 20 percent of their time to it
What are the 2 strategies of interest groups
Legislative - donate money to a candidate to gain an “in” with them
Electoral - work to elect candidates who already “fit” with their interests
What are amicus briefs
present legal arguments stating why a given court should take a case or why a court should rule a certain way. Filed by lobbyists
What is registration
the process of demonstrating to state election officials that an individual meets the qualifications to participate in an election
What is a literacy test
a detailed exam on reading ability and civic knowledge. This was historically used to prevent African Americans in the South from voting. During the 1960s, the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act, and several Supreme Court decisions put an end to this practice.
What is disenfranchise
to deny the right to vote
What is poll tax
historically in the United States, a fee required with the intention of preventing African Americans from voting; poll taxes were banned by the Twenty-Fourth Amendment.
What is online voter registration?
a voter registration process that can be completed over the internet without a paper application or signature
What is Motor Voter Law
A 1993 law, officially named the National Voter Registration Act but commonly called the Motor Voter Act or Law, that allows voters to register when they sign up for a driver’s license or some other government services.
What is voter-eligible population (VEP)
the percentage of citizens who, whether registered or not, are eligible to vote because they meet age and citizenship qualifications and are mentally competent and not imprisoned
What are compulsory voting laws
laws in some countries (not the United States) that require citizens to vote in elections
What is straight-ticket voting
an approach to voting where a voter selects all candidates on the ballot from a single party
What is ballot fatigue
the tendency of a voter to select a candidate in an important office and then stop voting before selecting candidates for lower offices
What is retrospective voting
a vote cast by a citizen on the basis of events that have transpired in the past
What is prospective voting
a vote cast by a citizen on the basis of what a candidate is expected to do in the future
What is an incumbency advantage
the tendency of voters to re-elect the candidate who is currently serving in a position or to select candidates who have previously served
What is the 24th amendment
ended poll taxes
What is the Voting Rights Act (VRA)
prohibits state laws that denied voting rights based on race
What is the 15th amendment
guarantees that neither federal nor state governments can prohibit someone from voting on account of “race, color, or previous condition of servitude”
What is the 19th amendment
extend the right to vote to all adult female citizens. some states and territories allowed women to vote but most did not prior to the amendment
What is the 26th amendment
lowered the minimum age to vote to 18
What are the socioeconomic factors affecting voter turnout
More likely to vote-
Occupation - managerial and professional positions
Income - wealthier
Educated - more educated
What are compulsory voting laws
citizens must vote in elections or pay a fine
What is pocketbook voting
when the voter looks at personal circumstances and finances to decide how to vote
What is a closed primary
election cycle even that allows registered party members to participate in the selection of a congressional nominee
What is a nominating convention
delegates assemble at to select a presidential candidate
What is the Federal Election Campaign Act
requires that candidates disclose the source of campaign contributions
What is Buckley v. Valeo
centered on the question of whether campaign finance laws that limited individual campaign contributions, total campaign spending, and candidate use of their own money in their campaign were a violation of the First Amendment right of freedom of speech.
