Political participation(unit 5)

Demographics

The various characteristics of a population.

Political efficacy

Belief can we can influence political change. A low amount of this leads to low political engagement.

Motor Voter Act(1993)

Made registration easier, required states to allow eligible voters to register by checking a box on driver’s license application

Exit Poll

Survey of voters conducted immediately after they leave a polling place.

Partisan

A strong supporter of a party, cause, or person.

Independents

A voter who votes for candidates on issues rather than on the basis of a political ideology or partisanship

Red/Blue/Purple states

Red designates a state voting mostly Republican and blue designates a state voting mostly Democratic. A few states are “purple” where they swing back and forth from election to election.

Caucus

A closed meeting of a group of persons belonging to the same political party or faction usually to select candidates or to decide on policy.

Primary ( closed, open, blanket )

OP-any voter can cast their ballot for any party, even if the voter is not officially affiliated with that party.

CP-require voters to officially register with a specific party before Election Day. This means that voters cannot cast their ballots until they have affiliated with a party.

BP-all candidates:

• Run against each other at the same time

• Appear on the same ballot

Super-delegates

A delegate to a presidential nominating convention who is seated automatically.

Critical election

Sharp but lasting change in the groups and blocs of voters that support the parties

Dealignment

A process where a large portion of the electorate abandons their previous partisan affiliation without developing a new one.

Realignment

When voters switch their preference from one party to another. 

Divided Government

occurs when different branches of the federal government are controlled by different political parties.

Third party

political parties other than the two major parties (the Republican and Democratic parties).

Initiative

a procedure by which voters may propose a law or a state constitutional amendment. Citizens obtain a sufficient new law or amendment. In a direct initiative, the proposition is presented to voters in a general election. in an indirect initiative, the proposition goes first to the state legislature.

Referendum

A vote on a single specific issue put to the public by the government of the day

Reapportionment

the process by which congressional districts are redrawn and seats are redistributed among states in the House

Electoral college (# of votes and #/% needed to win)

the process by which the United States elects the President, even though that term does not appear in the U.S. Constitution( 270/538 only needs to be ahead by 51% to win)

Winner-take all

The candidate who won at least 51% of the votes in the state gets to take all the electoral college votes.

Split-ticket voting

a voter in an election votes for candidates from different political parties when multiple offices are being decided by a single election

Retrospective voting

A theory of voting in which voters essentially ask this simple question: "What have you done for me lately?"

Selective perception

The process by which individuals perceive what they want to in media messages.

Federal Election Campaign Act of 1974/FEC

set limits on contributions by individuals, political parties and PACs. The 1974 amendments also established an independent agency, the FEC.

Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act/McCain-Feingold

amended the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, which regulates the financing of political campaigns.

Soft money

unlimited amounts of money may be given to a political party as long as a candidate is not named; this money can then be spent to help candidates with voting drives and so on.

Lobbying

communicating with any official in the legislative or executive branch for the purpose of attempting to influence legislative or administrative action or a ballot issue.

527s

Can spend their money on politics so long as they do not coordinate with a candidate or lobby directly for that person

“Swiftboating”

refer to a political attack that is dishonest, personal, and unfair.

Polarization/party polarization

the act of dividing something, especially something that contains different people or opinions, into two completely opposing groups

Candidate-center campaign

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

Political action committees(PAC)

is a political committee that raises and spends money to elect or defeat candidates, ballot initiatives, or legislation.

Spin/ Spin Doctor

a public relations professional who tries to present information in a positive way about a politician, organization, or famous person.