Chapter 14 Political parties

Political party

• group working together to win elections and control government

• Includes:

  • Leaders

  • Candidates

  • Voters

Rational-choice theory

• Parties act strategically to win

• Most voters are moderate, not extreme

Party identification

Strong connection to a party (Democrat, Republican, Independent)

Straight-ticket

refers to the practice of voting for every candidate that a political party has on a general election ballot.

Split-ticket

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

Realignment

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

Happens during a critical election – major national election that signals a change in the balance of power between the two parties

Party era

time period when one party wins most national elections

Currently seeing an era of divided government – a trend since 1969, in which one party

controls one of both houses of Congress and the president is from the opposing party

Party platform

is a formal set of principal goals, values, and policy positions adopted by a political party to garner public support, typically updated every four years before presidential elections

recruitment

is the structured, merit-based process of attracting, soliciting, and hiring qualified individuals for public sector roles, focusing on fair and open competition, equity, and transparency to build a diverse workforce.

Divided Government

One party controls presidency

Other party controls Congress

• Leads to:

  • Gridlock

  • Difficulty passing laws

  •  Example: Government shutdowns

Superdelegates

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 a state to push its primary or caucus to a

date as early in the election season as possible to gain more influence in

the presidential nomination process Wins in early states create momentum and target the issues important to those states.

Two-party system

a system in which two political parties dominate

politics, winning almost all elections

Third Parties

Winner-take-all electoral system/single-member districts

15% support in national polling required to participate in debates

Narrow focus/agenda

Lack of money and media attention

Main parties often incorporate the minor party platforms into their own platform