govt. chapter 9-10
6- public funding
-elgible if raises at least $5,000 in individual contributions of $250 or less in each of 20 states - cant spend more than $42 million
the 1st party
-federalists vs Jeffersonian republicans
1-indivdual donors
-individuals can donate up to $2,600 per candidate, $5,000 per PAC, $32,000 per national party committee, and $10,000 to state and local committees
2- PAC
-interest groups -can make large contributions
presidential elections
-the national convention nominated candidates for pres -pres is elected by electoral college
5- political parties
-unlimited "independent expenditures" advocating support for its own pres candidate - national party committee spend up to $19 million on pres candidate
2 types of general elections today
1- the organizationally driven, labor-intensive election (local, volunteers, rallies) 2- the media-driven, capital-intensive electoral elections (tv ads, 10 competitive swing states)
6 sources of campaign funds
1-indivdual donors 2-PACS 3-independent spending/super PAC committees 4-themselves 5-political parties 6-public funding
2 media techniques
1-talk show interviews (used to reach a large audience) 2-the "electric town hall meeting" (opportunity to interact w/ citizens)
1st electoral realignment
1790 jeffersonians republicans defeated the federalist
2nd electoral realignment
1828 jacksonian democrats
3rd electoral realignment
1860 republican party beats the whigs
4th electoral realignment
1896 republican defeats democrat
5th electoral realignment
1932 democrats take control and controls though 1960s
nominating pres candidates (old way)
1st primary election & causus - front-loaded 2nd national convention - picking out of the 2 parties -delegates vote
1896 the republicans beat the populist-democrats winning control for another ___ years
36
3-independent spending/super PAC committees
527 = nonprofit independent group that receives & distributes funds to influence the election of a candidate. 501c(4) = nonprofit groups that engage in issue advocacy - not covered by the campaign-spending restrictions -spend unlimited amount of money
ranked choice voting ensures
winner has the support of the majority, rather than plurality
spot (advertisement)
a 15, 30, or 60 second tv campaign that emits a subjective message to a target audience (used to build up yourself or bad mouth ur opponent)
ranked choice voting (RCV)
a ballot form used in countries around the world. ranks the most preferred to the least
majority-minority district
a gerrymandered voting district that improves the chances of minority candidates by making selected minority groups the majority within the district
dealignment
a movement away from the major political parties or partisan attachment
proportional representation
a multiple-member district system that allows each political party rep in proportion to its % of total votes (most Europeans use this) -benefits small groups
national convention
a national institution that nominates the partys presidential and vice presidential candidates, makes party rules and writes & ratifies the platform (held every 4 years)
causcus
a normally close meeting of a political group to select candidates, plan strategy or make decisions
platform
a party document that contains party philosophy, principles, and positions on issues
recall
a procedure to allow voters to remove state officials from office before their term expires but petitions to call a vote
ballot initiative
a proposed law that is place on the ballot by citizens or groups for a popular vote
general elections
a regularly scheduled election involving most districts in the nation or state, in which voters select officeholders. general elections for national office and most state and local offices are held on the first Tuesday
delegates
a rep who votes accordingly to the preferences of his constituency
runoff elections
a second round election in which voters choose between the top of two candidates from the first round
majority elections
a type of electoral system in which to win a seat in parliament, a candidate must receive a majority of all the votes (used in some primary elections)
plurality system
a type of electoral system in which to win a seat you must receive the most votes, not a majority. (used in most elections)
an ideal candidate will have
an clean record and the ability to raise money for a serious campaign
party identification
an individual voters psychological ties to one party
policy entrepreneurs
an individual who identifies a problem as a political issue and brings a policy proposal into the political agenda
town hall meeting
an informal public meeting in which candidates meet w/ ordinary citizens. no journalist
republican party was founded as a political expression of the
antislavery movement
the democrat party seeks to
at national level unite organized labor the poor ans working class, members of racial minorities, and liberal upper middle class professionals.
todays American party is very different from 50 years ago, but the democrats and republicans continue to
be the major competing forces
direct mail
both a vehicle for communicating w/ voters and a mechanism for raising funds (not very effective)
4- themselves
buckley v. valeo -no limit to their own money -only limited in presidential campaigns (<50,000 personal $)
the republican party appeals to
business, upper-middle and upper class, white working classism military families, religious and social conservations.
McCutcheon et al v. FEC (reformers)
challenged the 2 year cap on the amount of $ an individual can give to fed candidates, fed political action committees, and political party committees.
citizens united vs. federal election committee
changed the spending terms for campaigning again
southern republicans agree with democrats on
civil rights movement, racial liberalism and liberal positions on social issues
the solution to an unequal government is to have
competitive and responsible political parties
spoiler effect
concerns about wasting ones vote on a third party
midterm elections
congressional elections that do not coincide w/ a presidential election (off-year elections)
states and local party organizations came to _______________, despite the collapse of patronage machines.
control large financial resources and play important roles in elections
internet is an effective campaign tool bc
cost
the responsibility for running elections are
decentralized
post-civil war was solidly
democrat
women are somewhat more likely to vote
democratic
Latinos are more likely to support the
democrats
Mexican americans favor
democrats
lower-income Americans were likely to be
democrats
more than 90% of African Americans describe themselves as
democrats
urban areas provide more votes for
democrats
young voters are usually
democrats
in the 1990s the west coast voters shift towards
democrats bc growing latino votes
the 2nd party
democrats vs. the whig party
national conventions tasks are
determine the partys rules and platform
initiative and referendum are examples of
direct democracy
gerrymandering
district boundary lines are redrawn to benefit one party
party polarization (def. #2)
division between 2 parties with little crossover
the election of Al Gore and George W. Bush caused
efforts to reform American election
closed primary
election in which voters can participate in the nomination of candidates, but only of the part they are enrolled in prior to the primary
primary elections
elections held to select a partys candidate for the general elections
the Australian ballot (long form ballot)
eliminated straight ticket voting by listing all candidates names not just parties
republican president are known to focus on
enhancing the parties capabilities to mobilize voter and win elections
men and the republicans prioritize
fiscal and economic issues and national security
micro targeting
focusing on individuals in small similar groups, to measure the effectiveness
interest groups benefit from
focusing on narrow policy issues
incumbents have an advantage when it comes to securing
free media time
the 1st party: jeffersonians favored
free trade, promotion of ag, and friendship w/ France
in elections the US uses a
geographic single-member district combined with a winner-takes-all system (important)
GOP
grand old party ( republicans)
the # of individuals identifying themselves as independents is
growing
party identification among a large number of the most active voters has
grown stronger
women and democrats prioritize
health, education, and social services
partisanship
identification w/ or support of a particular party or cause
voting rights act
increased votes for democrats
self-sorting
individuals segregating themselves by living in liberal or conservative areas
third parties have a good deal of _____ and exist to _____ and ______
influence, protest, promote specific ideas
incumbents can easily out-raise opponents because
interest group contributions go to incumbents
voter mobalization
is applied by using data to locate involved individuals
one of the most loyal constituent groups of the democrats are the
jews
realignments occur when
large numbers of voters permanently shift their support
gray v. sanders weberry v. sanders reynlds v. sims
leg districts within a state must include equal pop "one person, one vote"
democrats positions reflect the interest of the
less-affluent americans
new deal coalition
made democrats majority party 36 years
parties play central roles in
mobilizing citizens to vote & ensuring that the public voice is heard.
soft money
money contributed directly to political parties that is not regulated by laws
party platforms should be seen as
more a internal part doc than as public pledges
republican activists views are
more conservative than republican voters
democrat activists views are
more liberal than democrat voters
to have a chance of winning a seat in the house, candidates may need to raise
more than $1 million
a single vote
most preferred way of voting
527 committees
nonprofit independent groups that receive and disperse funds to influence the nomination, elections or defeat of candidate
precinct committees
not district from which any rep is elected but instead are legally defined subdivisions of wards that are used to register votes and set up ballot boxes or voting machines
often independence lean towards
one major party
political parties
organized group that attempts to influence the government by electing their members to important govt offices
democrats strength in the northeast and Midwest is because the continuing influence of _______ in the large cities and its large population of ______
organized labor, minorities and elderly voters
winner-takes-all has helped create
our two party dominant system
party polarization
parties face a stalemate over economic matters.
third parties
parties that are competing against the 2 major parties
party activists
partisans who contribute time, energy and efforts to support their party and its candidates
parties an campaigns help when ppl have to choose an obscure candidate, voters rely on their
partisanship and vote all one party
a feature of contemporary party system is
party polarization
traditional party machines depend heavily on
patronage
grassroots politics
political campaigns that operate at local level, often using face to face communication to generate interest
the government often seeks to organize & influence groups in society through
political parties to win elections and gain power
reconstruction
program the enfranchised newly freed slaves
BCRA bipartisan campaign reform act
prohibits froups from running ads that mention names within 30 days of a primary election and 60 days of a general election
the new deal
proposed by franklin Roosevelt, because of the great depression, cause the size and reach of amercias national govt to increase a lot
political parties must expand conflict to
public arena & focus on policy issues from the economy to foreign policy.
democrats presidents are known to
put less energy into party apparatus and focusing on their leg agenda and their own re-election
partied today are important in electoral process in
recruiting & nominating candidates for office
tv has ____ the role of parties in elections
reduced bc it focuses on individual candidates vs parties
economic conservationist care about
reducing government regulations and taxes
way to amend voting laws
replace electoral college w/ a national popular vote
white workers w/o college degree vote
republican
Cuban americans lean toward
republicans
men are more likely to support
republicans
rural and suburban areas provide more votes for
republicans
upper-income Americans were likely to be
republicans
Catholics are shifted towards
republicans bc of the abortion issue
protestants lean more towards
republicans bc stand of marriage and abortion
straight ticket voting
selecting candidates from the same political party for all the offices on the ballet
the populist appealed to
small farmers and western mining and urban workers
social conservationist care about
social issues, abortion and same-sex marriage
the biapartisan campgaign reform act outlaws
soft money
machines
strong party organizations in late 19th and early 20th century American cities, led by "bosses" who controlled party nominations & patronage
federal election commission v. Wisconsin right to life
struck down band on ads, unconstitutional restriction on speech
incumbents have more than double
the amount of $ then the challenger does
democrats are represented in
the coast, the upper Midwest and across the northern states
schettschneider believed that
the competition between political parties would push the parties to expand out to the nonvoting members of society to gain a majority vote
divided govt
the condition in American govt wherein the presidency is controlled by one party while the opposing controls one or both houses of congress
after the collages of the federalist, America only had one political party, the Jeffersonian republicans, which became known as
the democrats
parties play a important role in
the facilitation of democratic processes
party organization
the formal structure of a political part, including its leadership, election committees, active members, and paid staff
citizens united v. federal election commission (reformers)
the govt couldn't restrict independent expenditures by corporations to political campaigns ($ to influence the campaign, cant coordinate w/ official campaign)
the actual selection of the speaker is made by
the majority party
republicans are represented in
the mountain west, the southwest, and the south
majority party
the party that holds a majority of leg seats in either the house or the senate
minority party
the party that holds a minority leg seats in either the house or the senate
electoral realignment
the point in history when a new party supplants the ruling party, becoming the dominate political force. tends to occur every 30 years ( 5 realignments)
referendum
the practice of referring a proposed law passed by a leg to the vote of the electorate for approval or rejection (required to change state constitutions)
the party that controls the white house, that party national committee chair is appointed by
the president
electoral college
the presidential electors from each state who meet after the general election to vote for pres & vice pres
the national committee seeks funds for __ ____ ____, while the congressional campaign committee approaches the same contributors for the support for __ ________ _____.
the presidential race, the congressional contests
nominations
the process by which political parties select their candidates for election to public office
redistricting
the process of redrawing election districts & redistributing leg reps. occurs ever 10 years to reflect shift in pop
the general election is when
the promoting of the parties start (bumper stickers, commercials)
patronage
the resources available to higher officials, opportunities to make partisan appointments to offices and to confer grants, licenses, or special favors to supports
ranked choice voting eliminates
the spoiler effect
the 2nd party: whigs were
the successors of the federalist, united by the opposition of the democrats than by the agreements on programs
republican strength in the south is related to __________ in these regions and to the dependence on ________ supported by the republicans
the weakness of organized labor, military programs
hard cider campaign
the whigs campaign relied more on the use of food and drinks to win votes
voters are likey to pass down their views and interest to
their children
interest groups seek to
try to influence government policies
open primary
voters can wait until the day of the primary to choose which party to enroll in
republicans positions reflect the interest of the
wealthy
free media
when the cost of air time is borne by the media themselves
the US system is also called
"first past the post" bc the canidate w/ the most votes wins the election, even if they did not win popular vote.
party system
# of parties, competing for power
buckley v. valeo (reformers)
$ counts as "speech" under the 1st amendment & candidates can spend an unlimited amout of their own personal money
the 1st party: federalist spoke for
England merchants and supported protective tariffs, states revolutionary war debts, national banks, commercial ties w/ Britain