ap gov unit 4 review

what institute elects the president

electoral college

17th Amendment

constitutional amendment that allowed for the popular election of United States Senators

Caucus

when members of a political party meet in private to nominate candidates to run for public office

Civic Responsibility

duties that all citizens are expected to do for their countr

Conservatives

a set of people who usually want a smaller government with traditional American values that promotes a free market economy

Democrats

a major political party that usually holds liberal values

Electoral College

the electors who elect the President and Vice President of the United States. Each state gets different numbers of electors based on their population. Electors vote for the president based on how the general population votes in elections. 270 electoral college votes are need to win a presidential election.

Entrance/Exit Polls

a polling type that asks people who they voted for when they exit the polling stations

Horserace Journalism

journalism that reports only on the results of an election and not on the issues

Ideological Interest Groups

focus on changing public policy through a lens of a particular ideology

Interest Groups

groups that try to change public policy

Iron Triangle

the relationship between interest groups, congressional committees, and the executive branch bureaucracy used to create public policy

Liberals

a set of people who usually want a larger government that provides benefits for its citizens

Linkage Institutions

help create public policy by linking people to the government

Platform

set of issues that parties select to campaign and run for office

Political Parties

groups that organize to run for and win elections

Political Spectrum

a technique of mapping where people stand in their political ideas

Politics

what we want from the government and how we want them to achieve it

What is a main way of measuring public opinion?

polls

Public Agenda

issues likely to be addressed by the government

Public Opinion

the way the public feels about a certain issue

Public Policy

everything the government does for the people

Republicans

a major political party that usually holds conservative values

Sample Polls

a polling type that tries to be accurate by capturing a sample of the U.S Population

Single Issue Interest Group

an interest group that only cares about one particular issue

Third Parties / Minor Parties

any party without widespread support

Tracking Polls

polls that track how people feel about a particular issue as each day passes

Two Party System

the idea that only one of the two major parties can win

Interest Groups

Focus on a singular issue, lbby, and help people participate in government and influence public policy

Bucky v. Valeo (1976)

court ruled campaign spending is a form of speech and can be protected under 1st amendment, so can't limit amount of money ppl give

Citizens United v. Federal Election Comission (2010)

include corporation spending as protected speech under 1st can influence campaign spending, led to rise of super PACS

PAC / Political Action Committee

raises private funds to unofficially support campaign or candidate