test 5 Flashcards
what does the voting rights act do
eliminates any way of voter suppression
19th amendment
womens suffrage
17th amendment
direct vote of senate
15th amendment
black male suffrage
24th amendment
no poll tax
26th amendment
18 to vote
what party is elastic?
democrats
what party is inelastic?
repubs
4 types of voting
- rational
- retrospective
- prospective
- party-line
rational voting
voting based on whether the voter benefits from that candidate or the party
retrospective voting
voting based on if the candidate has done well in the past
prospective
opposite of retrospective!
- voting based on how the candidate is PERCEIVED to do
party-line voting
voting based on party identification
voter turnout
the amount of registered voters that actually vote in an election
who has the highest voter turnout?
older people
if most people who identify with the ____ party were to have higher voter turnout, they would most likely do better
democratic
what varies voter turnout?
the type of election
4 polling concerns
- poll locations
- voter id
- absentee voting
- early voting
jungle primary
all candidates run together regardless of party
general election
choosing candidates to office
runoff election
election held after general when no candidate gets majority
presidential exploratory committees
committees hired by person who wants to run to assess the chances of that person winning
open primary
primary where anyone can vote
closed primary
primary where only registered party members can vote
criticisms of the electoral college (4)
- doesnt reflect peoples will
- faithless electors
- disproportional representation
- ties/no majority
supports for the electoral college (3)
- creates clear winners in close elections
- fundamental part of federalism
- makes candidates campaign in rural states
critical election
an election that signifies a shift in issues/coalitions
third parties
any party other than the main 2
types of third parties (4)
- conservatives
- moderates
- liberals
- libertarians
proportional systems
- opposite of winner takes all
- representation handed out in proportion to the popular vote
rank choice voting and what does it prevent?
- voters select 1st and 2nd (potentially 3rd) favorite candidates in order to prevent wasting a vote
interest groups
organizations that advocate for policy issues
interest groups funded by industries or individual citizens (2)
- industry interest groups
- grassroots interest
industry interest groups
focus on specific economic interests
grassroots groups
funded by citizens, focuses on more specific policy issues
how do interest groups influence? (4)
-electioneering
-lobbying
-litigation
-legislation
electioneering
becoming directly involved in the election process
lobbying
educating lawmakers on issues in attempt to get them to care
litigation
challenging laws/policies in state/fed courts
legislation
proposing specific legislation to lawmakers in hopes they would pass them
free riders
people who benefit from interest groups work without being in the interest group
bipartisan campaign reform act (BCRA) is also known as the
McCain-Feingold act
what is the BCRA and what does it do
formed with a goal to
-minimize soft money
-ban soft money contribution to parties
-limit independent expenditures
PACs (political action committees)
groups set up by corps or unions that receive money to use in races. money is used to either bring down a candidate or help a candidate win
PAC rules (2)
-disclose donors
-limited acceptance amt from donors
SuperPAC
same as PAC but can donate unlimited amt of money to candidates or parties
SuperPAC rules
- no donation limits
- all spending must be independent
- can advocate for candidates
-unlimited spending
527s
groups that are allowed to create generic party ads etc with no spending limit and basically replaced parties role in soft money spending
what is the major source of campaign finance since 2006
527s
527s rules (2)
-disclose donors
-unlimited spending
501(c)4
non profit organizations that can donate to campaigns
501(c)4 rules
-primary purpose of group cant be on politics
-does not need to publicly disclose donors (DARK $)
citizens united v fec background
court case on citizens united who made a film hating on hilary clinton but BCRA bans airing this type of media right before elections
precedent of citizens united v fec
mcconell v fec
ruling of citizens v fec
-in favor of citizens united
- the decision widened the limits of donations to these groups, meaning they can receive more money
what is the key linkage institution?
media
horse race journalism
media uses polls to measure trust and confidence in the government
