Political Parties Flashcards
Political Party
an organization that seeks power by electing people to office so that the party’s positions and philosophy become policy
Nonpartisan Election
an election in which candidates are not selected or endorsed by a political party; party affiliations are not listed on ballots
Organize the Competition
parties exist as an organizing mechanism to win elections, and thus, control the government
Unifying the electorate
parties tend to create conflict with other parties - the party system tends to minimize/ moderate conflict between members of the same party
Organizing the Government
parties are now important in the organization of all levels of government
Patronage
the dispersing of government jobs to people who belong to the winning political party
Make Policy
the concept of the winning party has a chance to enact its policies and promises from the campaign
Provide Loyal Opposition
accountability is provided by the minority party keeping very close track and commentary on the actions of the majority party
Honeymoon
the period at the beginning of a new president’s term; typically the first 100 days
Caucus
a meeting of local party members to choose party candidates for public office and decide the platform; 1/4 of the states
The Party Convention
a meeting of party delegates to select party candidates for office, as well as establish the political platform of the party
Direct Primary
an election in which voters choose party nominees for office; 3/4 of the states
Open Primary
a primary election in which any voter, regardless of party, may vote
Crossover Voting
a member of one political party voting in the other political parties primary
Closed Primary
a primary election in which only people registered in the party may vote in that party’s primary
Local Caucuses
local caucuses choose delegates to attend sub-regional meetings, which in turn select delegates to attend regional meeting, which select delegates to send to a national convention and choose the political nominees
National Party Convention
a meeting of delegates elected through primaries and caucuses, to choose their nominees for president and vice president
National Chair
appointed leader of the National Committee
Party Platform
every four years, the political parties draft a document that states the policy positions of the party
Who determines the influence/ power in the legislative branch?
the power and influence in Congress is determined by which party holds the majority of the House and Senate
Who has the power in the executive branch?
the president staffs the White House, and appoints Cabinet members from the same political party
Soft Money
money raised in unlimited amounts by political parties for party-building purposes; advertising, vote drives, etc.
Hard Money
political contributions given to a party, candidate or interest group that are limited in amount and fully disclosed
Party-Independent Expenditures
spending money by political party committees that is independent of the candidates
Minor/ Third Party
a small political party that persists over time that is often composed of ideologies on the right and left, or centered on a charismatic candidate
Winner-Take-All System
an election system in which the candidate that wins the majority of state votes, wins all of the electoral college votes in that state
Realignment Elections
an election during periods of change in the economy and society, that proves to be a turning point, redefining the agenda of parties, and the alignment of voters within parties
Party Registration
the act of declaring party affiliation; required by some states when a person registers to vote
Party Identification
affiliation with a political party that most people acquire in childhood; best predictor of voting behavior in partisan candidate elections
Dealignment
the weakening of partisan preferences that point to a rejection of both major parties, and a rise in the number of Independents
Regularly Scheduled Elections
congressional elections are held every two years, and presidential elections every four, regardless of circumstance
Fixed Terms
means that term lengths for all offices are defined
Staggered Terms
the concept of spacing out/ staggering the election dates so that the entire government isn’t up for reelection at the same time
Electoral College
used to elect the president and vice president, in which voters vote for electors who are pledged to vote for a particular party’s candidate
Safe Seats
an elected office that is predictably won by one party or the other
Primary Campaign
candidates build fundraising bases and increasing the candidate’s
General Election
candidates are running for a larger voter base (not just candidate’s party primary now) - including more independents
Primaries
a method of choosing delegates to the national convention that 3/4 of the states use today
Superdelegates
delegates that are not elected via primary or caucus, but are delegates due to to their serving in some important political position (at the state or local level)
Proportional Representation
delegates to the national convention are allocated based on the percentage of voters that voted for a particular candidate
Delegate Selection and Separate Presidential Poll
voters must twice - one vote on their preferred candidate for president, and another vote for the delegates of their choice
Super/ Faithless Delegates
superdelegates (chosen by the party) are an attempt to give more influence in the nominating process back to the party leaders
National Party Convention
national meeting of delegates elected in primaries and caucuses, who assemble once every four years to nominate candidates for president and vice president, as well as ratify the party platform, elect officers, and adopt rules
Presidential Debates
televised debates between qualifying candidates serve to highlight the differences and for the public to evaluate their qualifications for office
Advertising
politicians today used advertising on the radio, television, and internet to garner support and visibility for the campaign
Democratic Advantage
typically, more voters identify as Democrats than do Republicans (though this number has been dropping in recent years in a shift toward independents)
Republican Advantage
typically have access to more money - results in greater advertising advantage
Political Action Committees (PAC)
a committee that donates money to a candidate and/ or political party
Super PACs
committees that have unlimited spending power; independent expenditures-only
PAC work to buy legislation
make campaign contributions to those that will support their policy goals
Efforts at Reform
- imposing limits on giving, receiving and spending political contributions
- requiring public disclosure of the stores and uses of political contributions
- giving government subsidies to campaigns to lower the reliance on campaign contributions
Federal Election Campaign Act (1971)
limited amounts that candidates for federal office could spend on advertising and required the disclosure of sources of campaign contributions, as well as how the money is spent
Federal Election Commission (FEC)
commission created by the 1974 amendments to Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) to administer election reform laws; oversees the disclosure of campaign finance information, public funding of presidential elections and the enforcing of contribution limits
Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (2002)
restored a long-standing prohibition on corporations and labor unions for using general treasury funds for electoral purposes; largely banned party soft money
Mass Media
means of communication that reaches the public; newspaper, magazines, radio, television, films, books, social media, podcasts, etc.
Misinformation
false information, especially that which is intended to deceive people
Media as a Political Tool
the importance of the news media early in the countries history would be defined by partisan newspaper, advocating for the policies/ beliefs of one of the major parties
Financial Independence
newspapers changed from a elitist tool to a tool speaking to the masses once the popular vote was expanded in the 1820’s and 30s - papers also began charging per issue
Objective Journalism
be the early 1900s there was a movement away from linking newspapers and parties and toward objective journalism
Investigative Journalism
as a result of the Watergate scandal, journalists didn’t just report the news anymore and began investigating the news a well
Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
regulates the content that can appear on television
Issue Framing
media is also used to frame a controversial issues into a particular context
Political Socialization
the development of our political beliefs and worldviews are generally influenced far more by family and social peer groups
Selective Exposure
the tendency of people to screen out messages that do no conform with their biases
Selective Perception
the tendency of people to hear what they want to hear
Choice of Candidates
the media greatly influences which candidates get coverage, and what a successful candidate looks like; must look good on television, a pleasant way of speaking, and no physical impairments
Campaign Events
televised campaign events, including rallies, interviews, and photo ops are staged in order to enhance their image, or bring attention to their political messaging
Technology
while the engaging expense and number of campaign advertisements has caused the cost of elections to balloon, technology has resulted in politics being accessible to a much larger body of the population
Personality Over Substance
one criticism remains that television cameras have resulted in a greater focus on a candidate personality, as opposed to their beliefs on policies and governance
Horse Race Politics
again, media coverage tends to cover elections like a horse race; not focusing on comparing the policies of different candidates - rather, the dominant amount of coverage is regarding how candidates are doing in the polls
Negative Advertising
while most voters polled saying they disliked negative ads, while most involved in politics believe them to be effective
