Semester 1 AP GOV Terms 2023

Amicus curiae brief

"friend of the court" brief filed by an interest group to influence a Supreme Court decision.

Balancing the ticket

occurs when a presidential nominee chooses a vice presidential running mate who has different qualities in order to attract more votes for the ticket.

Bicameral legislature

two-house legislature.

Block grant

money granted by the federal government to the states for a broad purpose ( e.g., transportation) rather than for a narrow purpose (e.g., school lunch program).

Categorical grant

money granted by the federal government to the states for a narrow purpose (e.g., school lunch program) rather than for a broad purpose (e.g., transportation).

Caucus

local party meeting

Centralists

those who favor greater national authority rather than state authority.

Checks and balances

system in which each branch of government can limit the power of the other two branches, e.g., presidential veto of a congressional law.

Closed primary

party election to choose candidates that is closed to independents. Voters may not cross party lines.

Coattail effect

the influence of a popular presidential candidate on the election of congressional candidates of the same party.

Commerce clause

gives Congress the power to regulate commerce among the states, with foreign nations, and among Indian tribes. Granted through Article 1, section 8 of the Constitution.

Concurrent powers

those held by both Congress and the states, e.g., establishing law enforcement agencies.

Confederation

system in which sovereign states are only loosely tied to a central government, e.g., the US under the Articles of Confederation.

Cooperative federalism

system in which both federal government and state governments cooperate in solving problem

Dealignment argument

contention that parties are less meaningful to voters, who have abandoned the parties in greater numbers to become independents.

Decentralists

those who favor greater state authority rather than national authority.

Demographics

characteristics of populations, e.g., race, sex, income.

Direct democracy

system in which the people rule themselves.

Direct election

election of an official directly by the people rather than by an intermediary group such as the Electoral College.

Primary Election

election in which the people choose candidates for the nomination of the party.

Divided government

government in which one party controls the presidency while another party controls the Congress.

Dual federalism

system in which the national government and state governments are coequal, with each being dominant within its respective sphere.

Elastic clause

Clause that states that Congress can exercise those powers that are "necessary and proper" for carrying out the enumerated powers, e.g., establishment of the first Bank of the United States.

Elite theory

theory that upper class elites exercise great influence over public policy.

Enumerated powers

those that are specifically granted to Congress in Article 1, section 8 of the Constitution, e.g., the power to tax. Also known as expressed powers.

Factions

term used by Madison to denote what we now call interest groups.

Federalism

constitutional sharing of power between a central government and state governments.

Federalist Papers

group of 85 essays written by Madison, Hamilton, and Jay for the purpose of persuading the people of New York to adopt the Constitution.

Feeding frenzy

Just as sharks engage in a feeding frenzy when they sense blood in the water, the media "attack" when they sense wrongdoing or scandal in government, and devote great amounts of coverage to such stories.

Fixed terms

terms of office that have a definite length of time, e.g., two years for a member of the House.

Formal amendment

a change in the actual wording of the Constitution. Proposed by Congress or national convention, and ratified by the states.

Free rider problem

the problem faced by interest groups when citizens can reap the benefits of interest group action without actually joining, participating in, or contributing money to such groups.

Front loading

scheduling presidential primary elections early (e.g., February or March) in an election year.

Gender gap

difference in voting patterns for men and women, particularly in the greater tendency of the latter to vote for Democratic presidential candidates.

General election

election in which the officeholders are chosen. Contrast with a primary election, in which only the candidates are chosen.

Hard money

campaign contributions donated directly to candidates.

Horse race coverage

the tendency of the media to report on an election campaign as if it were a horse race, i.e., who is ahead, who is behind, who is gaining ground.

Ideology

set of beliefs about political values and the role of government.

Implied powers

powers that are "necessary and proper" to carry out Congress' enumerated powers, and are granted to Congress through the elastic clause.

Incumbent

an officeholder who is seeking reelection.

Independent

one is not registered with a political party.

Indirect democracy

system in which the people are rule by their representatives. Also known as representative democracy, or republic.

Informal amendment

a change in the meaning, but not the wording, of the Constitution, e.g., through a court decisions such as Brown v. Board.

Inherent powers

foreign policy powers (e.g., acquiring territory) held by the national government by virtue of its being a national government.

Issue advocacy ads

ads that focus on issues and do not explicitly encourage citizens to vote for a certain candidate.

Judicial review

power of the courts to rule on the constitutionality of laws and government actions. Established by Marbury v. Madison, 1803.

Litigation

the act or process of carrying out a lawsuit.

Lobbying

attempting to influence policy makers

Mandates

requirements imposed by the national government upon the states.

Nonpartisan elections

elections in which candidates are not identified by party membership on the ballot.

Office column ballot

ballot in which candidates are arranged by office rather than party. Encourages split ticket voting.

Open primary

election to choose candidates that is open to independents, and in which voters may choose candidates from any one party.

Party column ballot

ballot in which candidates are arranged by party rather than office. Encourages straight ticket voting.

Party identification

a sense of affiliation that a person has with a particular political party.

Party platform

a list of positions and programs that the party adopts at the national convention.

Patronage

appointing loyal party members to government positions.

Photo opportunity

a staged campaign event that attracts favorable visual media coverage, e.g., a candidate reading to a group of school children

Pluralism

theory that policy making is the result of interest group competition.

Police powers

powers of the states to protect the public health, safety, morals, and welfare of the public.

Political Action Committee (PAC)

an interest group that raises funds and donates to election campaigns.

Political culture

the widely shared beliefs, values, and norms that citizens share about their government.

Political efficacy

capacity to understand and influence political events

Political socialization

process in which one acquires his/her political beliefs

Popular sovereignty

principle in which ultimate political authority rests with the people.

Reserved powers

powers held by the states through the 10th Amendment. Any power not granted to the US government is "reserved" for the states.

Revolving door

the cycle in which a person alternately works for the public sector and private sector, thus blurring the individual's sense of loyalty.

Safe seat

an office that is extremely likely to be won by a particular candidate or political party.

Shays' Rebellion

1786 revolt by Massachusetts farmers seeking relief from debt and foreclosure that was a factor in the calling of the Constitutional Convention.

Single member district system

system in which the people elect one representative per district. With a winner-take-all rule, this system strengthens the two major parties and weakens minor parties.

Soft money

campaign contributions that are not donated directly to candidates, but are instead donated to parties.

Solid South

historically, the South voted solidly Democratic. However, the South is now strongly Republican: Bush carried every Southern state in 2000.

Sound bite

a short, pithy comment that is likely to attract media attention, e.g., Ronald Reagan saying, "A recession is when your neighbor loses his job, a depression is when you lose your job, and recovery is when Jimmy Carter loses his job."

Spin control

placing a certain slant on a story to deflect negative public attention against a candidate or office holder.

Split ticket voting

casting votes for candidates of one's own party and for candidates of opposing parties, e.g., voting for a Republican presidential candidate and a Democratic congressional candidate.

Straight ticket voting

casting votes only for candidates of one's party.

Suffrage

the right to vote.

Super Tuesday

a Tuesday in early March in which many presidential primaries, particularly in the South, are held.

Superdelegate

a delegate to the Democratic national convention who is there by virtue of holding an office.

Supermajority

a majority greater than a simple majority of one over half, e.g.,3/5, 2/3.

unfunded mandates

Mandates that are imposed by the national government, but lack funding.

Baker v. Carr

Supreme Court case that set the precedent of SCOTUS hearing and ruling on political cases

McCulloch v. Maryland

Supreme Court case that said states cannot tax the federal gov't via the Supremacy Clause.

Marbury v. Madison

Supreme Court case that established the power of judicial review.

Gibbons v. Ogden

SCOTUS case that says commerce clause gives congress authority over interstate navigation. (Conflict over federal/state license.)

New York Times v. US

Supreme Court case protecting the freedom of the press by allowing the New York Times to publish the "Pentagon Papers" despite the Justice Department's order to restrict it. Created prior restraint.

Citizens United v. FEC

A 2010 decision by the United States Supreme Court holding that independent expenditures are free speech protected by the 1st Amendment and so cannot be limited by federal law. Leads to creation of SuperPACs & massive rise in amount of third party electioneering.

Shaw v. Reno

SCOTUS Case that said NO racial gerrymandering; race cannot be the sole or predominant factor in redrawing legislative boundaries; majority-minority districts.

feeding frenzy

Just as sharks engage in a feeding frenzy when they sense blood in the water, the media "attack" when they sense wrongdoing or scandal in government, and devote great amounts of coverage to such stories.