Unit 5 AP Government Vocab

Political Participation

the different ways in which people take action to make changes in government

Political Action Committee

an organization that raises money to elect and defeat candidates and may donate money directly to a candidate’s campaign (are subject to donation limitations)

Linkage Institutions

channels that connect individuals with government, including elections, political parties, interest groups, and the media

Social Movements

the joining of individuals seeking social or political change with the goal of placing issues on the policy agenda

Franchise/Suffrage

the right to vote

26th amendment

allows individuals who are 18 and older to vote

24th amendment

prohibits Congress and the states from imposing a poll tax as a condition for voting in federal elections

poll tax

a payment required by a state or federal government as a pre-requisite for voting in federal elections

voter turnout

the number of eligible voters who participated in an election as a percentage of the total number of eligible voters

demographic characteristics

measurable characteristics of a population, such as economic status, education, age, race or ethnicity, and gender

socioeconomic status (SES)

a measure of an individual’s wealth, income, occupation, and educational attainment

political efficacy

a person’s belief that they can make an effective political change

political mobilization

efforts by political parties to encourage their members to vote

registration requirements

the set of rules that govern who can vote and how, when, and where they can vote

rational choice voting

voting based on what a citizen believes is in their best interest

retrospective voting

voting based on an assessment of the incumbent’s past performance

prospective voting

voting for a candidate based on their potential future policies

party-line voting

voting for candidates who belong only to one political party for all offices on the ballot

electoral college

a constitutionally required process for selecting the president through slates of electors chosen in each state, who are pledged to vote for a nominee in the presidential election

Winner-Take-All System

a system of elections in which candidates who win the plurality of the votes within a state receives all of that state’s votes in the Electoral College

battleground state

a state where the polls show a close contest between the Republican and Democratic candidates in the presidential election

swing state

a state where levels of support for the parties are similar and elections swing back and forth between republicans and democrats

get out the vote (GOTV)

efforts to mobilize voters

super PAC

an organization that may spend an unlimited amount of money on a political campaign, as long as the spending is not coordinated with a campaign

political party

an organized group of party leaders, officeholders, and voters who work together to elect candidates to political office

party identification

the degree to which a voter is connected to and influenced by a particular political party

straight-ticket voting

voting for all of the candidates on the ballot from one political party

split-ticket voting

voting for candidates from different parties in the same election

party platform

a set of positions and policy objectives that members of a political party agree to

recruitment

the process through which political parties identify potential candidates

party coalition

groups of voters who support a political party over time

realignment

when the groups of people who support a political party shift their allegiance to a different political party

critical election

a major national election that signals a change in the balance of power between 2 parties

party era

time period when one party wins most national elections

era of divided government

a trend since 1969, in which one party controls one or both houses of Congress and the president is from the opposing party

nomination

the formal process by which parties choose their candidates for political office

delegate

a person who acts as the voter’s representative at a convention to select the party’s nominee

primary election

an election in which a state’s voters choose delegates that support a presidential candidate for nomination or an election by the plurality vote to select a party’s nominee for a seat in congress

open primary

a primary election in which all eligible voters may vote, regardless of their party affiliation

closed primary

a primary election in which only those who have registered as a member of a certain party may vote

caucus

a process through which a state’s eligible voters meet to select delegates to represent their preferences in the nomination process

superdelegate

usually a party leader or activist who is not pledged to a candidate based on the outcome of the state’s primary or caucus

frontloading

a decision by the state to push its primary or caucus to the earliest date possible in the election season in order to gain influence on other states in the presidential nominating process

national convention

a meeting where delegates officially select their party’s nominee for the presidency

candidate centered campaign

a trend in which candidates develop their own strategies and raise money with less influence from the party elite

interest groups

voluntary associations of people who come together with the goal of getting the policies that they favor enacted

theory of participatory democracy

the belief that citizens impact policy making through their involvement in civil society

civil society

groups outside of the government that advocate for policy

pluralist theory

a theory that political power is distributed among many competing groups, which means that no single group can become too powerful (controls factions)

elitist theory

a theory that the wealthy elite class has a disproportionate amount of power and thus political control

policy agenda

the set of issues to which government officials, voters, and the public are paying attention

collective action

political action that occurs when individuals contribute their energy, time, or money to a larger goal

collective good

also called a public good; a public benefit that individuals can enjoy or profit from even if they don’t help to achieve it

free riders

people who enjoy collective goods and benefit from the actions of interest groups without joining or contributing to them

selective benefits

benefits available only to individuals who join a group

economic interest groups

groups advocating on behalf of the financial interests of their members

public interest groups

groups that act on behalf of the collective interests of a broad gro

single-issue groups

associations focusing on one specific area of public policy, often a moral issue about which they are unwilling to compromise

government interest groups

organizations acting on behalf of local, state, or foreign governments

lobbying

interacting with government officials in order to advance a group’s public policy goals

revolving door

the movement of individuals between positions in government and lobbying positions

amicus curiae brief

a brief filed by someone who is not a party to a case in an attempt to persuade the court to agree with the arguments set forth in the brief

iron triangle

the coordinated and mutually beneficial activities of a bureaucracy, Congress, and interest groups to achieve shared policy goals

issue network

the webs of influence between interest groups, policymakers, and policy advocates

grassroots lobbying

mobilizing interest group members to pressure their representatives by contacting them directly through phone calls, email, and social media

protest

a public demonstration designed to call attention to a need for change

civil disobedience

intentionally breaking a law to call attention to an injustice or need for change

news media

a broad term that includes newspapers, magazines, radio, television, internet sources, blogs, and social media postings that cover important events

social media

forms of electronic communication that enable users to create and share content or participate in social networking

agenda setting

the media’s ability to highlight certain issues and bring them to the attention of the public

mass media

sources of information designed to reach a wide audience, including newspapers, radio, television, and internet outlets

wire service

an organization that gathers and reports on news then sells the stories to other outlets

investigative journalism

an approach to news gathering in which reporters dig into stories, often looking for instances of wrongdoing

broadcast media

outlets for news and other content including radio and television that bring news stories directly into people’s houses

media consolidation

the concentration of ownership of the media into fewer corporations

partisan bias

the slating of political news coverage in support of a particular political party or ideology

horse-race journalism

coverage of political campaigns that focuses more on the drama of a campaign rather than actual policy issues