AP Gov - Chapter 13 Vocab (Abernathy & Waples)

political participation

the different ways in which individuals take action to shape the laws and policies of a government

political action committee (PAC)

an organization that raises money for candidates and campaigns

social movement

large groups of citizens organizing for political change

franchise / suffrage

the right to vote in political elections

linkage institution

channels that connect individuals with government

(ex. elections, interest groups, media)

twenty-sixth amendment

allows those eighteen years old and older to vote

twenty-fourth amendment

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

poll tax

a payment required by a state or federal government before a citizen is allowed to vote

voter turnout

the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election

demographic characteristics

measurable characteristics of a population

(ex. race, education, age)

socioeconomic status (SES)

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

political efficacy

a person's belief that he or she can make 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 vote

absentee ballots

voting completed and submitted by a voter before the day of an election

rational choice voting

voting based on what a citizen believes is in his or her best interest

retrospective voting

voting based on an assessment of an incumbent's past performance

prospective voting

casting a ballot for a candidate who promises to enact policies favored by the voter in the future

party-line voting

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

Electoral College

a constitutionally required process for selecting the president through slates of electors chosen in each state

winner-take-all system

a system of elections in which the candidate who wins the plurality of 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 candidate in a presidential election

swing state

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

get out the vote (GOTV)

efforts to mobilize supporters

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 the campaign

linkage institutions

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

demographic characteristics

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

socioeconomic status

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

12th Amendment

separation of votes for President and Vice President

Buckley v. Valeo

Limits on individual and corporate contributions to campaigns were constitutional, but limiting how much money can be spent on a campaign is unconstitutional

Soft money

Money donated to a party or interest group who can buy advertising on the candidates behalf

BCRA (Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act)

Attempted to ban soft money by regulating issue advocacy and party building activities, only give money to campaign until 60 days before

Citizens United v. FEC

corporate funding of independent political broadcasts can't be limited, this is violation of free speech

Connected PACs

Corporations or labour unions. Collects money from those with the organization. Limited amounts

election campaign of 1971

Created the FEC- they oversee campaign finance laws

FECA (Federal Election Campaign Act)

Created to oversee and regulate the money being spent in political campaigns

if no nominee wins majority of electoral votes then

The election goes to congress and the HOR chooses among the top 3 electoral vote winners