Political parties and Elections
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Created by:
drawinlover10 on December 18, 2011
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42 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 conservative | a person who believes government power, particularly in the economy, should be limited in order to maximize individual freedom |
| liberal | a person who generally believes the government should take an active role in the economy and in social programs but that the government should not dictate social behavior |
| moderate | a person who takes a position in the political center |
| caucus | A private meeting of members of a political party to select candidates. |
| closed primary | a primary in which only registered members of a particular political party can vote |
| selective perception | the phenomenon that people often pay the most attention to things they already agree with and interpret them according to their own predispositions |
| party dealignment | the gradual disengagement of people and politicians from the parties, as seen in part by shrinking party identification. |
| PAC's | political action committee: committee formed by a special-interest group to raise money for their favorite political candidates |
| soft money | political contributions made in such a way as to avoid the United States regulations for federal election campaigns (as by contributions to a political action committee) |
| McGovern Fraiser Commission | commision that chaged representation . it made conversations more democratic by including minority representation. |
| superdelegates | National party leaders who automatically get a delegate slot at the Democratic national party convention. |
| critical election | Sharp changes in the existing patterns of party loyalty due to changing social and economic conditions |
| open primary | a primary in which any registered voter can vote (but must vote for candidates of only one party) |
| national nominating convention | delegates from the states gather to decide on the party's presidential nominee; replaced the caucus system |
| party realignment | the displacement of the majority party by the minority party, usually during a critical election period |
| Federal Election Campaign Act | law passed in 1974 for reforming campaign finances. The act created the Federal Election Commission (FEC), provided public financing for presidential primaries and general elections, limited presidential campaign spending, required disclosure, and attempted to limit contributions. |
| FEC | Federal Election Commission, issues regulations & adviosry opinions that control PAC activities |
| hard money | Political contributions given to a party, candidate, or interest group that are limited in amount and fully disclosed. |
| gatekeeper | the role the press plays by influencing what subjects become national political issues and for how long. |
| scorekeeper | The role played by the national media in keeping track of and helping make political reputations. |
| Buckley v. Valeo | a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States upheld federal limits on campaign contributions and ruled that spending money to influence elections is a form of constitutionally protected free speech. The court also stated candidates can give unlimited amounts of money to their own campaigns. |
| frontloading | the recent tendency of states to hold primaries early in the calendar in order to capitalize on media attention |
| tracking polls | continuous surveys that enable a campaign to chart its daily rise or fall in support |
| random sampling | a method of poll selection that gives each person in a group the same chance of being selected |
| political efficacy | The belief that one's political participation really matters - that one's vote can actually make a difference |
| split ticket voting | voting for candidates of different parties for different offices at the same election |
| blanket primary | a primary election in which each voter may vote for candidates from both parties |
| McConnell v. FEC | Upheld the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, which permits donations to state political party, but reduces the role of soft money (money not directly related to a federal election) and prohibits unions and corporations from sponsoring ads that refer to federal candidates within 60 days of an election. requires disclosure of individuals or organizations spending $10,000 or more a year and individuals contributing $1,000 or more a year for broadcast advertisements referring to candidates in preelection periods |
| midterm elections | The congressional elections that take place midway through a president's four-year term. |
| Citizens United v. FEC | ruled that corporations may spend money in order to influence election process without donating to a campaign |
| Help America Vote Act | The law that passed in 2002 to regulate federal elections and help poorer counties acquire more modern voting machines. |
| Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act | Largely banned party soft money, restored on long-standing prohibition on corporations and labor unions for using general treasury funds for electoral purposes, and narrowed the definition of issue advocacy. |
| exit polls | Polls based on interviews conducted on Election Day with randomly selected voters. |
| stratified sampling | the population is divided into subpopulations (strata) and random samples are taken of each stratum |
| civic duty | the responsibilities of a citizen |
| straight ticket voting | practice of voting for candidates of only one party in an election |
| political socialization | the process by which people gain their political attitudes and opinions |
| political culture | an overall set of values widely shared within a society |
| political participation | All the activities used by citizens to influence the selection of political leaders or the policies they pursue |
| Year of the Woman | 1992, 11 woman ran and 5 won in US Senate, 24 elected to House of Representatives |
| Motor Voter Bill | a legislative act passed in 1993 that requires all states to allow voters to register by mail when they renew their driver licenses and provides for the placement of voter registration forms in motor vehicle, public assistance, and military recruitment offices |
| EMILY's List | A recent campaign movement to give soft money to improve women's voter turnouts and support women's issues. |
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