Exam 2 Review

Only specific reasons entitle a registered voter to vote early by mail (no longer called absentee voting). You may request a ballot by mail if you:

- will be away from your county on Election Day and during the hours that early voting is conducted; - are sick or disabled; -are 65 years of age or older on Election Day; or - are confined in jail.

The election of ______________ was the last one in which any Democrat won a statewide office

1994

temporary party organization

: Primaries and conventions that function briefly to nominate candidates, pass resolutions, adopt a party platform, and select delegates to party conventions at higher levels

independent

A candidate who runs in a general election without party endorsement or selection.

precinct convention

A convention, held at the voting precinct level, to adopt resolutions and to select delegates and alternates to the party's county or senatorial district convention.

voting center

A countywide voting system that allows voters to vote, after being electronically verified, at any voting center in a county

Platform

A document that sets forth a political party's position on issues such as income tax, school vouchers, or the environment

jungle primary

A nominating process in which voters indicate their preferences by using a single ballot on which are printed the names and respective party labels of all persons seeking nomination. A candidate who receives 50 percent of the vote is elected; otherwise, a runoff between the top two candidates must be held.

white primary

A nominating system designed to prevent African Americans and some Latinos from participating in Democratic primaries from 1923 to 1944.

direct primary

A nominating system that allows voters to participate directly in the selection of candidates to public office

third party

A party other than the Democratic Party or the Republican Party. Sometimes called a "minor party" because of limited membership and voter support.

crossover voting

A practice whereby a person participates in the primary of one party, then votes for one or more candidates of another party in the general election.

closed primary

A primary in which voters must declare their support for a party before they are permitted to participate in the selection of its candidates.

Texas Ethics Commission

A state agency that enforces state standards for lobbyists and public officials, including registration of lobbyists and reporting of political campaign contributions. • Universal suffrage: Voting is open for virtually all persons 18 years of age or older

poll tax

A tax levied in Texas from 1902 until voters amended the Texas Constitution in 1966 to eliminate it; failure to pay the annual tax (usually $1.75) made a citizen ineligible to vote in party primaries or in special and general elections.

Since the 1930s, most _______________________________________________________. After national civil rights legislation was adopted in the ______________________________________________, a Texan, Democratic Party identification of African Americans strengthened.

African American Texans have identified with the Democratic Party; 1960s under the leadership of President Lyndon Johnson

________________________________ Republicans gained power during Reconstruction and disenfranchised sympathizers of the Confederacy. During Reconstruction, E.J. Davis was elected governor and presided over an unpopular administration in which he was accused of corruption, graft, and high taxation. After Davis's defeat, it would be more than 100 years before another Republican would win the governorship.

After the Civil War,

literacy test

Although not used in Texas as a prerequisite for voter registration, the test was designed and administered in ways intended to prevent African Americans and Latinos from voting.

grandfather clause

Although not used in Texas, the law exempted people from educational, property, or tax requirements for voting if they were qualified to vote before 1867 or were descendants of such persons.

special election

An election called by the governor to fill a vacancy (for example, U.S. congressional or state legislative office) or to vote on a proposed state constitutional amendment.

primary

An election conducted within the party to nominate candidates who will run for public office in a subsequent general election.

________________________________________________________________________There were two factions: one side supporting Sam Houston and the other opposing him. The pro-Houston faction referred to itself as the Jackson Democrats, whereas the anti-Houston faction called themselves the Calhoun Democrats.

Before Texas joined the Union in 1845, political parties had not yet fully developed.

Hard money

Campaign money donated directly to candidates or political parties and restricted in amount by federal law.

state executive committee

Composed of a chair, vice chair, and two members from each senatorial district, this body is part of a party's permanent organization.

county executive committee

Composed of a party's precinct chairs and the elected county chair, the county executive committee conducts primaries and makes arrangements for holding county conventions.

early voting

Conducted at the county courthouse and selected polling places before the designated primary, special, or general election day

_______________ advocate minimal intervention by government in economic matters and who gives a high priority to reducing taxes and curbing public spending, while supporting a more active role for government in traditional social issues.

Conservatives

Texas was firmly a ______________________ state for the about a century.

Democratic

The two major political parties in Texas, the _______________ and the _______________

Democrats; Republicans

____________________________________________________________, the number of women elected to statewide office increased dramatically with women serving as mayors in about 150 cities and towns in Texas, including the top four in population.

Despite women getting a late start in voting and holding public office in Texas, after 1990

gerrymandering

Drawing the boundaries of a district, such as a state senatorial or representative district, to include or exclude certain groups of voters and thus affect election outcomes.

county chair

Elected by county party members in the primaries, this key party official heads the county executive committee.

at large district

Elected representatives who are elected from an entire entity, and not a single- member district.

campaign reform act

Enacted by the U.S. Congress and signed by President George W. Bush in 2002, this law restricts donations of soft money and hard money for election campaigns, but its effect has been limited by federal court decisions.

runoff primary

Held after the first primary to allow party members to choose a candidate from the first primary's top two vote-getters if no candidate received a majority vote..

general elction

Held in November of even-numbered years to elect county, state, and federal officials from among candidates nominated in primaries or (for minor parties) in nominating conventions.

permanent party organization

In Texas, the precinct chairs, county and district executive committees, and the state executive committee form the permanent organization of a political party.

special elections

In addition, ____________________ are called to vote on constitutional amendments and local bond issues, as well as fill interim vacancies in legislative and congressional districts.

super PAC

Independent expenditure-only committees that may raise unlimited sums of money from corporations, unions, nonprofit organizations, and individuals.

motor voter law

Legislation requiring certain government offices (for example, motor vehicle licensing agencies) to offer voter registration applications to clients.

_______________ advocate government support in social and economic matters; they favor political reforms that extend democracy, achieve a more equitable distribution of wealth, and protect individual freedoms and rights. Liberals tend to want less government regulation in the private lives of individuals.

Liberals

_________________ advocate minimal government intervention in both economic and social issues

Libertarians

_____________________________ remains a remnant of that time period

Low voter participation

These off-year or midterm elections are held in _____________________between presidential elections.

November of the even-numbered years

dealignment

Occurs when citizens have no allegiance to a political party and become independent voters.

realignment

Occurs when there is a major change in the support of political parties.

election judge

Official appointed by the county commissioners court to administer an election in a voting precinct.

elections administrator

Person appointed to supervise voter registration and voting.

_______________________________ Conducted at the county courthouse and selected polling places before the designated primary, special, or general election day. At least 17 days before the election

Provided Early voting:

___________________________________ was elected governor in 1978, he was the first republican governor of Texas since reconstruction

Republican William Clements

___________________________________________, provided for federal oversight of voter registration in areas where less than 50 percent of the non-white population had not registered to vote, and authorized the U.S. attorney general to investigate the use of poll taxes in state and local elections

The act banned the use of literacy tests

voting precinct

The basic geographic area for conducting primaries and elections; Texas is divided into more than 8,500 voting precincts.

Texas Election Code

The body of state law concerning parties, primaries, and elections.

voter turnout

The percentage of voters (either voting age population, voting eligible population, or registered voters) casting a ballot in an election.

canvass

To scrutinize the results of an election and then confirm and certify the vote tally for each candidate.

soft money

Unregulated political donations made to national political parties or independent expenditures on behalf of a candidate that is used to fund election activities but are not directly donated to a political campaign

The _____________________________ expanded the electorate and encouraged voting; it has been amended by Congress four times.

Voting Rights Act (VRA) of 1965

independent candidate

a candidate who runs in a general election without party endorsement or selection

Political parties

are chiefly concerned with the recruitment, nomination, and election of citizens to governmental office.

Primaries

are party functions that allow party members to select nominees to run against the candidates of opposing parties in a general election for national, state, and county offices

Democrats are taking steps to become competitive ________________________________________________________ Groups that traditionally support Democrats, women, Hispanics, and African Americans, have increased in number. Texas public opinion survey evidence from 2015 indicates Democrats have a potential opportunity among younger and more racially and ethnically diverse Texans

as the demographics of the state change.

A third party's success is measured not so much by winning elections but in _____________________________________________________. For this reason, they have had very modest success in this state.

creating public awareness of its issues

General elections

determine which candidates will fill government offices.

elections

for governor and other statewide officers serving terms of four years are scheduled in the off year

The role of the temporary party organization consists of ____________________________

holding primaries and running conventions.

Political parties have temporary and permanent party organizations. The role of the permanent party organization ________________________________________

is to recruit candidates, devise strategies, raise funds, distribute candidate literature and information, register voters, and turn out voters on Election Day.

24th amendment

made poll taxes illegal in federal elections; poll taxes in state elections were banned in 1966 by the U.S. Supreme Court

Slightly more than half of Texas's total population is composed

of Latinos (chiefly Mexican Americans) and African Americans, making Texas a majority-minority state.

A _____________ is an ideological organization with the primary interest of controlling government by winning elections.

political party

Historically, many minorities were prevented from voting by one barrier after another such as ______________________________________________

poll taxes, all-white primaries, literacy tests, and the grandfather clause

The electoral process includes the nomination and election of candidates through ________________________________

primary, general, and special elections.

_______________________ was completed in the early 2000s when conservative Anglo Democrats switched their allegiance to the Republican Party

realignment

campaigns in the 21st century

rely increasingly on email and social media to communicate with voters

If no candidate obtains a majority in a special election, a __________________ between the top two contenders must be conducted to determine a winner.

runoff contest

In 2002, Republicans gained control of the Texas House of Representatives for the first time ___________________

since Reconstruction.

These electoral contests are public and are conducted, financed, and administered by state, county, and municipal governments as well as by special districts.

special districts.

Even removing obstacles to voting and the U.S. Congress enacting important voting rights laws, _____________________________

voter turnout has not increased either nationally or in Texas

straight ticket voting

voting for all the candidates of one party