Poli sci final identification terms

affective polarization

the tendency for partisans to dislike and distrust those from the other party

agency loss

The discrepancy between what citizens ideally would like their agents to do and how the agents actually behave

articles of confederation

The compact among the thirteen original states that formed the basis of the first national government of the United States from 1777 to 1789, when it was supplanted by the Constitution.

australian ballot

A ballot prepared and distributed by government officials that places the names of all candidates on a single list and is filled out by voters in private. First adopted in the United States in 1888, the Australian ballot replaced oral voting and party-supplied ballots.

bill of rights

The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution

brown v. the board of education

a landmark 1954 Supreme Court case in which the justices ruled unanimously that racial segregation of children in public schools was unconstitutional

buckley v. valeo

A 1976 case in which the Supreme Court struck down the portion of the Federal Election Campaign Act that set limits on the amount of money individuals could contribute to their own campaigns.

checks and balances

A constitutional mechanism giving each branch some oversight and control of the other branches. Examples are the presidential veto, Senate approval of presidential appointments, and judicial review of presidential and congressional actions

cloture

A parliamentary procedure used to close debate. Cloture is used in the Senate to cut off filibusters. Under the current Senate rules, three-fifths of senators, or sixty, must vote for cloture to halt a filibuster except on presidential nominations to offices other than Supreme Court justice.

bicameralism

The practice of having two legislative or parliamentary chambers that share power.

commerce clause

The clause in Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution that gives Congress the authority to regulate commerce with other nations and among the states.

confederation

A political system in which states or regional governments retain ultimate authority except for those powers they expressly delegate to a central government.

de facto segregation

Segregation that results from practice rather than from law

divided government

A term used to describe government when one political party controls the executive branch and the other political party controls one or both houses of the legislature.

dual federalism

A system of government in which the federal government and state governments each have mutually exclusive spheres of action.

duverger’s law

In political science, this law holds that single-ballot majoritarian elections with single-member districts (such as first past the post) tend to favor a two-party system.

electoral college

A body of electors in each state, chosen by voters, who formally elect the president and vice president of the United States. Each state’s number of electoral votes equals its representation in Congress; the District of Columbia has three votes. An absolute majority of the total electoral vote is required to elect a president and vice president.

federalist

Name given to two related, but not identical, groups in late-eighteenth-century American politics. The first group, led by Alexander Hamilton and James Madison, supported ratification of the Constitution in 1787 and 1788. Subsequently, Hamilton and John Adams led the second group, the Federalist Party, which dominated national politics during the administrations of George Washington (1789–1797) and Adams (1797–1801)

executive order

A presidential directive to an executive agency establishing new policies or indicating how an existing policy is to be carried out.

federalist 51

Essay by James Madison that advocates for checks and balances

grants to the states

The three general types are categorical grants, block grants, and general revenue sharing

free-rider problem

A situation in which individuals can receive the benefits from a collective activity whether or not they helped to pay for it, leaving them with no incentive to contribute.

great compromise

The agreement between large and small states at the Constitutional Convention (1787) that decided the selection and composition of Congress. The compromise stipulated that the lower chamber (House of Representatives) be chosen by direct popular vote and that the upper chamber (Senate) be selected by the state legislatures. Representation in the House would be proportional to a state’s population; in the Senate each state would have two members.

ideological polarization

people used to hover around the middle ground, now each is scooching farther away from the middle

incorporation

The Supreme Court’s extension of the guarantees of the Bill of Rights to state and local governments through its various interpretations of the Fourteenth Amendment.

incumbency advantage

those who have a position in politics are more likely to keep their position

insurance company with an army

what they say about U.S. we have strong insurance and strong army

jim crow laws

A series of laws enacted in the late nineteenth century by southern states to institute segregation. These laws created “whites only” public accommodations such as schools, hotels, and restaurants

judicial review

The authority of a court to declare legislative and executive acts unconstitutional and therefore invalid.

lobbying

Activities through which individuals, interest groups, and other institutions seek to influence public policy by persuading government officials to support their groups’ position.

nationalization of politics

Shifting to the national government responsibilities traditionally exercised by the states.

necessary and proper clause

The last clause of Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution. This clause grants Congress the authority to make all laws that are “necessary and proper” and to execute those laws.

new jersey plan

New Jersey delegate William Paterson’s proposal for reforming the Articles of Confederation. Introduced at the Constitutional Convention (1787), the New Jersey Plan was favored by delegates who supported states’ rights.

originalism

a type of __judicial__ interpretation of a constitution (especially the US Constitution) that aims to follow how it would have been understood or was intended to be understood at the time it was written.

party identification

An individual’s enduring affective or instrumental attachment to one of the political parties; the most accurate single predictor of voting behavior.

party sorting

An effect in politics in which voters sort themselves into parties that match their ideology. It is distinct from political polarization, which is where partisans subscribe to increasingly extreme positions.

patronage

The practice of awarding jobs, grants, licenses, or other special favors in exchange for political support.

performance voting

Basing votes for a candidate or party on how successfully the candidate or party performed while in office.

pork barrel legislation

Legislation that provides members of Congress with federal projects and programs for their individual districts.

primary election

An election held before the general election in which voters decide which of a party’s candidates will be the party’s nominee for the general election.

prisoner's dilemma

A situation in which two (or more) actors cannot agree to cooperate for fear that the other will find its interest best served by reneging on an agreement.

separation of powers

The distribution of government powers among several political institutions. In the United States, at the national level power is divided between the three branches: Congress, the president, and the Supreme Court.

separate but equal

The Supreme Court–initiated doctrine that separate but equivalent facilities for African Americans and whites are constitutional under the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

soft news

also called ***market-centred journalism, journalistic style and genre that blurs the line between information and entertainment***

stare decisis

“Let the decision stand.” In court rulings, a reliance on precedents, or previous rulings, in formulating decisions in new cases.

shared federalism

A system in which the national and state governments share in providing citizens with a set of goods.

status quo bias

Institutional bias that fundamentally favors continuation of current public policy.

supermajority

A majority larger than a simple 51 percent majority, which is required for extraordinary legislative actions such as amending the Constitution or certain congressional procedures. For example, in the Senate sixty votes are required to stop a filibuster

supremacy clause

A clause in Article VI of the Constitution declaring that national laws are the “supreme” law of the land and therefore take precedence over any laws adopted by states or localities.

ticket-splitting

The act of voting for candidates from different political parties for different offices—for example, voting for a Republican for president and a Democrat for senator.

tyranny of the majority

An inherent weakness to majority rule in which the majority of an electorate pursues exclusively its own objectives at the expense of those of the minority factions.

unanimous consent

A unanimous resolution in the Senate restricting debate and limiting amendments to bills on the floor.

unfunded mandate

A statute or regulation that requires a state or local government to perform certain actions, with no money provided for fulfilling the requirements.

veto

The formal power of the president to reject bills passed by both houses of Congress. It can be overridden by a two-thirds vote in each house.

virginia plan

Constitutional blueprint drafted by James Madison that sought to reform the Articles of Confederation. Introduced at the Constitutional Convention (1787), the plan proposed a tripartite national government, but unlike the subsequent Constitution, it provided for a popularly elected legislature that would dominate national policymaking.

wealth inequality

Refers to the unequal distribution of assets in a group of people.

writ of certiorari

An order given by a superior court to an appellate court that directs the lower court to send up a case the superior court has chosen to review. This is the central means by which the Supreme Court determines what cases it will hear.