American Two-Party System & Electoral Rules – Key Vocabulary

These vocabulary flashcards cover central terms and historical examples from the lecture on the U.S. two-party system, electoral rules, and patterns of party alignment and realignment.

Two-Party System

A political system in which two major parties dominate elections and nearly all elected offices, as in the contemporary United States.

Winner-Take-All Election

An electoral rule where the candidate with the most votes wins the single seat available, shutting out all other contenders.

Single-Member District

A geographic constituency that elects only one representative, a structure that encourages two-party dominance.

Plurality Voting (First-Past-The-Post)

A system in which the candidate with the greatest number of votes wins, even without receiving an absolute majority (50% +1).

Majoritarian Voting

An electoral rule requiring a candidate to win an outright majority; often paired with a runoff if no one achieves 50% in the first round.

Runoff Election

A follow-up contest between top vote-getters when no candidate achieves a required majority in the initial round.

Proportional Representation (PR)

An electoral system allocating legislative seats to parties in proportion to the percentage of votes each party receives.

Third Party

Any political party in the U.S. other than the Democrats or Republicans; typically struggles to win offices under plurality rules.

Spoiler Effect

Phenomenon where a third-party candidacy splits the vote of a major party, potentially allowing the opposing major party to win.

Green Party (U.S.)

A minor party focused on environmental sustainability and social justice; Ralph Nader’s 2000 candidacy is its most famous bid.

Reform Party

A centrist third party founded by Ross Perot that captured 8% of the 1996 presidential vote but no congressional seats under plurality rules.

Populist Party

A late-19th-century agrarian third party that challenged the major parties but faded due to the winner-take-all system.

Progressive Party

Reform-oriented third parties (most notably 1912) that drew votes from major parties yet failed to sustain long-term success.

Dixiecrats

Southern segregationist Democrats who bolted the party in 1948; an example of a regional third-party movement.

Ballot Access Laws

State statutes governing how candidates and parties qualify for the ballot, often requiring large petition signature totals for newcomers.

Petition Requirement

The practice of demanding that independent or new-party candidates collect voter signatures before being listed on ballots.

Electoral College

The body that formally elects the U.S. president; winner-take-all allocation in most states reinforces two-party dominance.

Party Alignment

Stable, long-term voter identification with and loyalty to a particular political party.

Party Realignment

A durable, widespread shift in party loyalties among the electorate, producing a new party coalition.

Critical Election

An election that signals a sharp, lasting change in voter alignments—e.g., Franklin D. Roosevelt’s 1932 victory.

New Deal Coalition

FDR’s alliance of urban workers, African Americans, and the poor that made Democrats dominant from 1932 through the 1960s.

Southern Realignment

Post-1960s shift of white Southern voters from the Democratic to the Republican Party, transforming regional party control.

First-Past-The-Post (FPTP)

Another term for plurality voting—whoever finishes first wins the seat.

First Party System

Early U.S. party era (1796-1824) featuring Federalists vs. Jeffersonian Republicans.

Federalist Party

Early American party favoring strong national government and commercial interests; faded after 1816.

Jeffersonian (Democratic-) Republican Party

Early party supporting states’ rights and agrarian interests; forerunner of later Democratic Party traditions.

Whig Party

19th-century successor to Federalists opposing Andrew Jackson; fragmented into Republicans and others by the 1850s.

Republican Party (1860-)

Major party that emerged from anti-slavery Whigs; won the presidency with Abraham Lincoln in 1860 despite only 40% of the popular vote.

Mobilized Ethnicity

The formation of political parties around specific ethnic groups; relatively absent in U.S. politics, limiting viable third parties.

Dealignment

A trend of voters abandoning party identification without re-aligning with another party, increasing independent electorates.

Black Belt

Southern region with high African-American populations that tends to vote heavily Democratic in modern elections.

Great Depression

Economic crisis of the 1930s that catalyzed the New Deal coalition and Democratic realignment.

Spoiler Candidate Example – Ralph Nader (2000)

Green Party nominee whose Florida votes arguably diverted support from Democrat Al Gore, aiding George W. Bush’s victory.