Gov test 12/15
HARD MONEY
Political contributions given to a party, candidate, or interest group that are limited in amount and fully disclosed.
NEGATIVE CAMPAIGNING
The act of attacking an opposing candidate's platform, past political performance, or personal characteristics.
COATTAIL EFFECT
The boost that candidates may get in an election because of the popularity of candidates above them on the ballot, especially the president.
INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM
the use of in-depth reporting to unearth scandals, scams, and schemes, at times putting reporters in adversarial relationships with political leaders
MAIL IN BALLOTS
voting ballots sent through mail
SPLIT-TICKET VOTING
voting for candidates of different parties for different offices at the same election
PRECINCT
A voting district
TWO PARTY SYSTEM
An electoral system with two dominant parties that compete in national elections.
Republican Party
Antislavery political party that formed in the 1850's.
MEDIA BIAS
Bias or slant in the selection of which news to report and how the news is reported.
INDEPENDENTS
a term used to describe people who have no party affiliation
SUPER PACS
a type of independent political action committee which may raise unlimited sums of money from corporations, unions, and individuals but is not permitted to contribute to or coordinate directly with parties or candidates.
ACCESS
admittance
POSITIVE/NEGATIVE ADS
ads funded by same or opposing party
POLITICAL TV AD
ads on tv - positive or negative
CYNICISM
an attitude or quality of belief that all people are motivated by selfishness
PRIMARY ELECTION
an election held to choose candidates for office
MANDATE
an official order or commission to do something.
501C4
an organization must not be organized for profit and must be operated exclusively to promote social welfare
CONTINUOUS NEWS CYCLE
constant news
FAKE NEWS
content, articles, videos that present made up or false information
527s
created primarily to influence the selection, nomination, election, appointment or defeat of candidates to federal, state or local public office.
FALSE EQUIVALENCE
describing a situation of logical and apparent equivalence, when in fact there is none.
NAKED BALLOTS
forgot to use secrecy envelope
PUBLIC FUNDING ($3 CONTRIBUTION)
fund major political parties
CONSENSUS
general agreement
MAJOR PARTIES
in American politics, the Republican and the Democratic parties
CITIZENS UNITED V. FEC
A 2010 decision by the United States Supreme Court holding that independent expenditures are free speech protected by the 1st Amendment and so cannot be limited by federal law. Leads to creation of SuperPACs & massive rise in amount of third party electioneering (Citizens for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow)
PUBLIC POLICY
A choice that government makes in response to a political issue. A policy is a course of action taken with regard to some problem.
POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEES (PACS)
A committee set up by a corporation, labor union, or interest group that raises and spends campaign money from voluntary donations
ELECTORAL COLLEGE
A group of people named by each state legislature to select the president and vice president
CAUCUS
A meeting of local party members to choose party officials or candidates for public office and to decide the platform.
PARTY PLATFORM - PLANK
A party platform is a set of principles, goals, and strategies designed to address pressing political issues. Each party's platform is broken down into "planks," or declarations that speak to each specific issue.
CONSERVATIVE
A person who believes government power, particularly in the economy, should be limited in order to maximize individual freedom.
DIRECT PRIMARY
A primary where voters directly select the candidates who will run for office
FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION
A six-member bipartisan agency created by the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1974. The federal Election Commission administers and enforces campaign finance laws.
MINOR PARTIES
AKA third parties; typically do not win major elections but often bring more voters into the electorate; often spoil elections for a major party; may bring issues that the major parties will adopt
ELECTORATE
All of the people entitled to vote in a given election
TRANSPARENCY
Allows you to see through the background
GENERAL ELECTION
An election held to choose which candidate will hold office
WINNER-TAKE-ALL ELECTIONS
An electoral system in which legislative seats are awarded only to the candidates who come in first in their constituencies.
SOFT MONEY
Campaign contributions unregulated by federal or state law, usually given to parties and party committees to help fund general party activities.
PARTISAN
Devoted to or biased in support of a party, group, or cause
REVOLVING DOOR
Employment cycle in which individuals who work for governmental agencies that regulate interests eventually end up working for interest groups or businesses with the same policy concern.
INTEREST GROUPS
Groups of people who work together for similar interests or goals
LOBBYING REFORM
Lobby reform bill was signed into law by Pres. George W. Bush and it changed lobby rules by: Establishing new means of lobbying disclosure including certifying that lobbyists did not provide direct gifts or travel to legislators; Increasing the fine for failure to comply with lobbying laws; Requiring the disclosure of any campaign donation made to a legislator, federal candidate for office, or PAC; Prohibiting former senators from lobbying for two years after they leave the Senate and prohibiting a legislator's spouse or immediate family member from lobbying their relative's staff; Banning all gifts and trip offers to legislators and their staffs
CDA Section 230
No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider.
OPEN/CLOSED PRIMARY
Open-Primary elections for anyone, dont need to be registered Closed-Closed Primary only registered party members
PARTY IDENTIFICATION
a citizen's self-proclaimed preference for one party or the other
HYPER-PARTISANSHIP
a commitment to party so strong it can transcend other commitments
POLITICAL PARTY
a group that seeks to elect candidates to public office
DEMOCRAT
a person who believes in the political or social equality of all people
REGISTRATION
a procedure of voter identification intended to prevent fraudulent voting
PUBLIC OPINION POLL
a survey in which individuals are asked to answer questions about a particular issue or person
IDEOLOGY
a system of ideas and ideals, especially one that forms the basis of economic or political theory and policy.
CONFIRMATION BIAS
a tendency to search for information that supports our preconceptions and to ignore or distort contradictory evidence
PUBLIC AGENDA
issues considered most significant by government officials
NETWORK NEWS/RAW NEWS
live news with no cutting
MODERATE
not extreme
BLUE/RED MIRAGE
one candidate appears to be winning but then lose
LIBERAL
open to new behavior or opinions and willing to discard traditional values.
SPLINTER PARTIES
parties that have split away from one of the major parties
LOBBYISTS
people who represent interest groups
CANVASSING
persuasion of voters in a political campaign
DARK MONEY
political money where the donors of the money do not have to be disclosed
STRAIGHT-TICKET VOTING
practice of voting for candidates of only one party in an election
POLITICAL SPECTRUM
range of political views
POST-TRUTH
relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief
POLL TAXES
required citizens of a state to pay a special tax in order to vote
SOUNDBITES
short video clips of approximately 10 seconds
QUID PRO QUO
something given in exchange or return for something else
DEMOGRAPHICS
statistical data relating to the population and particular groups within it.
RANDOM SAMPLE (POLLING)
taking a poll of a random group
QUOTA SAMPLE (POLLING)
taking a poll of a selected group
GRIDLOCK
the inability of the government to act because rival parties control different parts of the government
POLLING PLACE
the location where voting is carried out
NOMINATION
the official endorsement of a candidate for office by a political party
VOTER TURNOUT
the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election
POLITICAL SOCIALIZATION
the process by which people gain their political attitudes and opinions
FRANCHISE
the right to vote
SUFFRAGE
the right to vote