Unit 3

Question 1

All the activities used by citizens to influence the selection of political leaders or the policies they pursue

Answer 1

political participation

Question 2

A committee set up by a corporation, labor union, or interest group that raises and spends campaign money from voluntary donations

Answer 2

political action committee (PAC)

Question 3

The channels through which people’s concerns become political issues on the government’s policy agenda. Elections, political parties, interest groups, and the media.

Answer 3

linkage institution

Question 4

A movement that represents the demands of a large segment of the public for political, economic, or social change

Answer 4

social movement

Question 4

the right to vote

Answer 4

franchise/sufferage

Question 4

Lowered the voting age to 18

Answer 4

26th amendment

Question 5

Abolished poll taxes

Answer 5

24th amendment

Question 5

A requirement that citizens pay a tax in order to register to vote

Answer 5

poll tax

Question 6

the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election

Answer 6

voter turnout

Question 7

measurable characteristics of a population, such as economic status, education, age, race or ethnicity, and gender

Answer 7

demographic characteristics

Question 8

A division of population based on occupation, income, and education

Answer 8

socioeconomic status (SES)

Question 9

The belief that one’s political participation really matters - that one’s vote can actually make a difference

Answer 9

political efficiency

Question 10

Efforts by political parties to encourage their members to vote

Answer 10

political mobilization

Question 11

the set of rules that govern who can vote and how, when, and where they vote

Answer 11

registration requirements

Question 12

A ballot completed and typically mailed in advance of an election by a voter who is unable to be present at the polls

Answer 12

absentee ballot

Question 13

Voting based on what is perceived to be in the citizen’s individual interest

Answer 13

rational choice voting

Question 14

Voting based on the past performance of a candidate

Answer 14

retrospective voting

Question 15

Voting for a candidate because you favor his or her ideas for handling issues

Answer 15

prospective voting

Question 16

Supporting a party by voting for candidates from one political party for all public offices at the same level of government

Answer 16

party-line voting

Question 17

A body of people representing the states of the US, who formally cast votes for the election of the president and vice president

Answer 17

electoral college

Question 18

An electoral system in which the candidate with a plurality in a state gets all of that state’s votes

Answer 18

winner-take-all system

Question 19

States in which the outcome of an election is too close to call and either candidate could win

Answer 19

battleground state