Unit 5

15 Amendment

Right to vote regardless of race

17 Amendment

Voters can directly vote for senators

19 Amendment

Women right to vote

24 Amendment

Prohibits a polling tax

26 Amendment

Vote can vote at 18

Rational Choice

\n A popular theory in political science to explain the actions of voters as well as politicians. It assumes that individuals act in their own best interest, carefully weighing the costs and benefits of possible alternatives.

Retrospective Voting

voting for a candidate because you like his or her past actions in office

Prospective Voting

voting for a candidate because you favor his or her ideas for handling issues

Party Line Voting

process in which voters select candidates by their party affiliation

Voter Registration Laws

system designed to reduce voter fraud by limiting voting to those who have established eligibility to role by submitting the proper documents

Midterm Elections

elections held midway between presidential elections

Presidential Elections

elections held in years when president is on the ballot

Party Identification

A citizen's self-proclaimed preference for one party or the other.

Polictical Parties

a group of individuals with common interest who organize to get candidates elected to office

Interest Groups

a group of people that seeks to influence public policy on the basis of a particular common interest or concern.

Party Platforms

a set of beliefs that are accepted as characteristic of a particular political party and presented to the public to help the public know the principles and values for which that party stands.

Campaign Management

how political organizations advertise their views and manage finances

Candidate Centered Campaigns

election campaigns and other political processes in which candidates, not political parties, have most of the initiative and influence.

Critical Elections

are an electoral earthquake where new issues emerge, new coalitions replace old ones, and the majority party is often displaced by the minority party.

Campaign Finance Law

laws that regulate the amounts of money political candidates or parties may receive from individuals or organizations and the cumulative amounts that individuals or organizations can donate.

Winner Takes All Voting

an electoral system in which a single political party or group can elect every office within a given district or jurisdiction

Third Party

a US political party other than the two major parties

Independent Candidate

A candidate for office who does not have a formal affiliation with a political party.

Iron Triangles

The relationship between congress(especially Sub-Committees), Government agencies(Bureaucracy), and interest groups.

Free Rider Problem

when people can benefit from a good/service without paying anything towards it.

Single Issue Groups

any association of individuals or organizations, usually formally organized, that, on the basis of one or more shared concerns, attempts to influence public policy in its favour.

Bureaucratic Agencies

an administrative group of nonelected officials charged with implementing polices created by the other branches of government

Constituencies

a body of voters in specified area who elect a representative to a legislative body

Incumbency Advantage Phenomenon

The electoral advantage a candidate enjoys by virtue of being an incumbent, over and above his or her other personal and political characteristics.

Open Primaries

Primary election in which any voter, regardless of party, may vote.

Caucuses

A meeting of local party members to choose party officials or candidates for public office and to decide the platform.

Party Conventions

A meeting of party delegates to vote on matters of policy and in some cases to select party candidates for public office.

Congressional Elections

held every two years on the first Tuesday in November to elect candidates for senate and house.

State Elections

elections to select state officers (first Tuesday after the first Monday in November on odd years)

The Electoral College

A group of people named by each state legislature to select the president and vice president

Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act

A law passed in 2002 that banned soft money, put limits on issue advertising, and increased the amount people can donate to candidates; also called the McCain-Feingold bill.

Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission

It allowed companies to donate money to political campaigns. People and companies could donate as much as they want because of free speech.

Political Participation

any number of voluntary activities undertaken by the public to influence public policy either directly or by affecting the selection of persons who make those policies

Closed Primaries

A primary in which only registered members of a particular political party can vote