US Elections Flashcards
when do presidential elections happen and how are they diffrent to the UK?
America has fixed term elections that happen every 4 years while in the UK the pm are able to chose when elections are through royal prerogative
what are the 7 stages of the presidential election?
the invisible primary
primary and caucuses
choseing the vice presidential candidate
national party conventions
general election campaign
Election day
electoral collage
who can run for president according to article 2 of the constitution ?
a ‘natural born’ american citizen
35 yrs+
resident in US for 14 yrs
only 2- terms in office
what is a war chest?
the amount of money a candidate raises
what are some entry requirements not mentioned in the constitution?
-political experience
-endorsement of major party
-personal characteristics (most has been white male married, no scandals ect)
-ability to raise money
-effective political organization
-policies with substance
what is the function of the invisible primary and when does it happen?
the calendar year before the election - candidates declare their intention to run for president, gains recognition and money (war-chest)
what is a primary and a caucus and when do they happen?
primary- a state based election to chose a party’s candidate for presidency
caucuses- state based series of meeting that chose a party’s candidate for presidency
held mid- January to the beginning of June
what are the advantages of an invisible primary?
-it helps candidates get visibly and build a platform
- allows for a range if different candidates
- media scrutinises candidates in greater detail
what are the disadvantages of the invisible primary?
-lacks serious debate
-dependent of fundraising
-voter apathy
-hidden scandals may be unearthed after the invisible primary so they don’t fulfil there function
name and describe all the different types of primaries
Closed primary - where only registered members of that party can vote
Open primary- where any registered voter can vote in the primary of either party
modified primaries- where only registered members of that party can vote but independents can vote in any
Proportional primaries- this is when the number of delegates are awarded proportionally to the votes won
what does incumbent president mean?
current president
what are the strengths of primaries?
-there in an increased level of participation by ordinary voters
-wider range of candidates
-opened to outsiders
-the power if party bosses are reduced
-maintains federalism as the states decide whether to hold primaries and caucuses
weakness of the primaries?
-produce apathy and bordem
-voters are unrepresentative of the voting-age population
-process is expensive
-too media dominated
-can develop into bitter personal battles
-caucuses are undemocratic and use voters that are too ideological
What factors affect turnout in primaries? Whos more likely to vote?
higher-educated, higher income and older people are more likely to vote in primaries than younger, less-educated and poorer people
what does the Presidential candidate look for in the vice-presidential candidate?(stage 3)
-They look for a balanced ticket
-They look for balance sometimes to promote the best government
-They may be chosen to premote party unity (sometimes when 2 candidates clash throught the primaries they may choose them as candidate)
when are national conferences held?
august/September of an election year for 3-4 days
what functions did the national party conventions historically do and how has this changed?
-Choose the party’s presidential candidate (now delegates just confirm)
-Choosing the vice-presidential candidate (now it’s usually announced before the convention)
-Deciding the party platform (a doc containing party policies that the candidate intends to pursue if elected)
now that all 3 convention functions are now questionable what informal functions do they preform?
-Promoting party unity - probably the most important function
-Enthusing the party faithful
-Enthusing ordinary voters
What are the advantages of conventions?
-They give exposure for the candidate and they can experience a bounce which can have a positive impact on their campaign
-it allows candidates to set a narrative
what are the Disadvantage of conventions?
-few major decisions are taken all former functions are now done before
-they offer little detail about policy and are usually reduced to soundbites
what elections had the winner not won the popular vote but won the electoral college vote?
-2000 AL gore won the popular vote but George bush won the electoral college
-2016 Hillary Clinton won almost three million votes more then trump but
trump won a majority electoral college votes
How many electoral collage votes are there? and how many do you have to win to get a presidency?
538 and to win a candidate must win an absolute majority of 270
why did the founding fathers set up the electoral collage?
to elect the president indirectly due to a fear of the popular vote and tyranny
What is the coattails effect?
this is where candidates benefit from the popular presidents or governers coattails because they run in the same year
when has the electoral collage failed to come up with a winner?
1800 and 1824
what are the strengths of the electoral collage?
-preserves federalism
- tends to promote a two horse race
what are the weaknesses of the electoral collage?
-small states are over-represented
-the ‘winner takes all’ system distorts the result
-it’s unfair to national third parties
-rouge electors can cast there ballot in a different way then the popular vote
-if the electoral collage is deadlocked congress can elect a president and a vice-president from different parties
what happens if the Electoral College is deadlocked?
house of rep votes for the president
house of Senators vote for vice president
What evidence is there that incumbency is a strong factor for presidential elections?
-69% of all Presidents have won re-election
-More able to raise money
What are the limits to the incumbency advantage?
Four most recent presidents who didn’t benefit were during economic crisis/unforeseen events:
-Trump loss of 40mil jobs in covid
-Carter Iran scandal with 52 American hostages, seemed weak
What are the limits to the incumbency advantage?
Four most recent presidents who didn’t benefit were during economic crisis/unforeseen events:
-Trump loss of 40mil jobs in covid
-Carter Iran scandal with 52 American hostages, seemed weak
How does incumbency positively affect congressional elections?
-Mid 80% re-election rate
-Gives name recognition and experience
-Raised 5 times more funds than opponents in 2020
How does incumbency positively affect congressional elections?
-Mid 80% re-election rate
-Gives name recognition and experience
-Raised 5 times more funds than opponents in 2020
How is incumbency shown to not be a significant factor in congressional elections?
-20 members of the House and 5 Senators defeated in 2020
-At least two dozen House incumbents lost in 2022
-> however eight of those were defeated by another incumbent
Examples for the coattails effect (pos/neg)
Shown: 1980s - Reagan helped gain 33 House and 12 Senate seats
Limited: 16/21 Republican Senators won a higher vote share than Trump in presidential
What is significant about the timing of primaries?
-States try to hold them early to have a greater influence on candidate selection, however parties have brought restrictions (‘front loading’)
-Now held on the same day to increase prominence (Super Tuesday - 15 states)
What was the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) 1974?
Result of Watergate scandal, limits candidate reliance on wealthy donors by limiting individuals ‘hard money’ to $1,000 and corporate to $5,000, also forbade abroad donations
What was held in Buckley v Valeo? (campaign finance)
SC rules that the limits of FECA 1974 infringed on individuals or PACs 1st amendment rights
What is a PAC?
Political Action Committee
What were the McCain-Feingold Reforms?
Attempted to ban ‘soft money’ that congress allowed in 1979, and deal with attack ads by making candidates verbally endorse broadcasts
What is ‘soft money’? (US campaign finance)
Funds not spent directly on a candidates campaign - instead voter registration drives and party building
What are 527 groups?
Spend millions but cannot call for election or defeat of a candidate
What are Super PACs?
Created from Citizens United v Federal Election Commission, fundraising committees that are able to spend an unlimited amount of money to elect or defeat candidates in federal elections - but cannot make direct contributions
How much money has been raised and spent by Super PACs?
2016 - $300 million
2020 - $2 billion
Arguments against PACs/Super PACs
-Raise large sums of money
-Most effective fundraiser wins compared to candidate performance
-Interest groups influence on democracy
Arguments in favour of PACs/Super PACs
-Citizens United v FEC reinforced 1st Amendment (freedom of expression)
-Super PACs give incumbents challengers a greater chance
-Non mainstream candidates pose a greater challenge
-Social media dilutes impact of Super PACs
What are ‘matching funds’? (US Campaign Finance)
FECA 1974 - federal gov would match any contribution made up to $250
What are examples that the electoral college disadvantages third parties?
-Ross Perrot won 19% popular vote in 1992, no ECV
-George Wallace won 14% vote and 46 ECV, strategy to prevent main parties from winning majority and popular as an outsider
