US GOVT CH 8

What is a party nomination?

A party's endorsement of a candidate to officially run for an office is called a party nomination.

A political party is best defined as what?

A political party is best defined as a team of men and women seeking control of the governing apparatus by gaining offices in a duly constituted election.

What indicates a successful party?

A successful party generally complies with the public's midpoint opinion(s) rather than the two extreme points.

A critical election entails the process of what?

A critical election entails a process of party realignment as a consequence of the termination of a party era.

What are open primaries?

Primaries that allow voters to decide on Election Day whether they want to participate in the Democratic or Republican contests are called open primaries.

What does Anthony Downs' model say?

According to Anthony Downs' model, a rational party will adopt a policy position that is closest to the views of a majority of voters.

What is the position of advocates for the responsible party model?

Advocates of the responsible party model believe that parties should present distinct, comprehensive programs for governing the nation and carrying out their programs.

American national parties are best described as what?

American national parties are best described as the loose aggregations of the state parties.

What is an example of a critical election?

An example of a critical election is the displacement of the majority Republicans with the Democrats during the Great Depression of the 1930s and the emergence of the Republican Party during the Civil War period.

Who was the first president identified as a democrat?

Andrew Jackson was the first president identified as a Democrat.

What do critical elections entail?

Critical elections occur rarely, but dramatically shake up American political system and involve a major realignment and coalitions by the major political party.

Who constitutes the "party-in-government" ?

Elected officials who call themselves the members of a party constitute the political "party-in-government."

Who brought together the New Deal Coalition and why was this significant?

Franklin D. Roosevelt was the president who brought together the original New Deal coalition in 1930s in support of his candidacy. This made the Republican Party as a minority party for decades.

Registered Democrats can vote in...?

If you are registered as a Democrat, you can vote in a Democratic closed primary, open primary, and blanket primary.

Registered Republicans can vote in...?

If you are registered as a Republican, you can vote in a Republican closed primary, open primary, and blanket primary.

What policies wounded the success of the Democratic party and doomed the following decades as a divided party government?

In 1968, the Democratic Party was torn apart over President Johnson's Vietnam War policies. Since then, United States has experienced a period of divided party government.

Who led the tiny party that showed the ideological power of third parties?

In 2000, Green party candidate Ralph Nader brought more attention on environmental issues and supposedly drew away a small percentage of votes from presidential candidate Al-Gore.

What has happened to voter loyalty to a party during the past 30 years?

In fact, the loyalty to a political party has decreased over the past thirty years. During this period, there has been a marked rise in people who did not have party affiliations.

Describe the trends in party identification in the United States in recent elections.

In recent elections, the trends in party identification in the United States have been a decrease in the percentage of parties and an increase in the percentage of Independents.

What are linkage institutions?

Institutions that translate the inputs from the public (concern, problem, or interest) into outputs from policymakers (law or policy) are called linkage institutions.

________________ is the battle between the two major political parties (Democrats and Republicans) for the control of the public offices.

Party competition is the battle between the two major political parties (Democrats and Republicans) for the control of the public offices.

Party identification refers to what?

Party identification refers to citizens' self-proclaimed preference for one party over the other parties.

Why is party realignment a rare event in the US?

Party realignment is a rare event in the United States; it usually associated with a major national crisis or trauma in which one party's majority domination is replaced with another party's majority position.

What term characterizes the government since 1968?

Since 1968, neither of two major parties has been completely and consistently dominant, and then the United States has been in an era of divided government system.

Describe the American two-party system?

The American two-party system promotes moderation in conflict, but may create ambiguous policy positions.

When the Republican party first started, what was it's principle defining factor?

The Republican Party started its activity principally as the anti-slavery party.

What event caused the party realignment that unseated the Republicans from a long duration of presidential power?

The Republicans had a long period as the country's dominant majority party which ended in 1932. This critical election, as a consequence of the Great Depression, brought the Democrats to the power.

The day-to-day activities of the national party are the responsibility of who?

The day-to-day activities of the national party are the responsibility of the national chairperson.

What two parties made up the first two-party system?

The first two-party system in the United States consisted of the Federalists and Democratic-Republicans.

The party's national committee keeps party operating between ____ consecutive conventions.

The party's national committee keeps party operating between two consecutive conventions.

People who are identified with party affiliations are what?

The political "party-in-the-electorate" is defined as people who are identified with party affiliations.

What is the supreme power of each party?

The supreme power of each of the parties is the party's national convention.

What is the theory that seeks to explain political processes and outcomes as the consequences of purposive behavior?

The theory that seeks to explain political processes and outcomes as the consequences of purposive behavior is called the rational-choice theory. Voters generally use rational-choice theory to cast their votes in favor of particular candidates.

What can voters registered as independent not do?

Voters registered as independent cannot vote in closed Republican or Democratic primaries.

What is ticket splitting?

Voting with one party for one office and the other party for another office is called ticket splitting.

What is a divided party government?

When one party controls the White House and the other party controls one or both houses of Congress, it is known as divided party government.