| Term | Definition |
|---|
| campaign finance reform | legislation aimed at placing limits on political candidates accepting money and gifts from individuals and special interest groups |
| elite and class theory | a group theory that revolves around an economic stratum of society controlling the policy agenda |
| faction | term used by Madison in the Federalist #10 to describe groups that are formed which threaten minority rights |
| Freedom of Information Act (1974) | act that incorporates sunshine laws; opened up the government's meeting of record to the public and media |
| hard money | federally regulated campaign contributions made to political candidates and political parties. Under current law, the contributions cannot exceed $1000 per individual, per election cycle |
| hyperpluralism | a group theory characterized by many interest groups vying for control resulting in a government that is tied up in gridlock |
| interest group | a public or private organization, affiliation, or committee that has as its goal the dissemination of its membership's viewpoint |
| lobbyists | the primary instruments of fostering a special interest group's goals to the policymakers. The term comes from people who literally wait in the lobbies of legislative bodies for senators and representatives to go to and from the floor of the legislatures. |
| political action committees (PACs) | they raise money from the special interest constituents and make contributions to political campaigns on behalf of the special interest group. |
| soft money | unrestricted and unregulated legal campaign contributions made to political parties and intended for party development. Significant abuses of these contributions were discovered during the 1996 election |
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