Key Terms in Voting Rights and Political Campaigns

Voting Right Act 1965

a landmark federal law enacted in 1965 to remove race-based restrictions on voting by invalidating the use of any test or devices to denied votes from disenfranchised blacks.

ballot initiatives

The process where citizens propose state/local laws or amendment to the state constitution by signing a formal petition asking that it be submitted as a ballot proposition for voter approval.

down ballot

statewide races below the level of president, U.S. senator, or governor.

turnout rates

the proportion of eligible voters who actually voted.

Amendment 15

states that the right to vote shall not be denied by the US or any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude (slavery).

Amendment 17

changes that United States Senators would now be directly elected by popular vote (by the people), not by state legislatures.

Amendment 19

the right to vote shall not be denied on the basis of sex (women's suffrage).

Amendment 26

lowered voting age from 21 to 18.

demographic data

the information from population based characteristics such as age, race and sex used by the government, market researchers, and speech writers.

Political Efficacy

the citizens' trust in their ability to partake, change, and understand politics through voting.

party line voting

voting behavior pattern where individuals cast their votes based on political party affiliation rather than individual candidates/specific issues.

prospective voting

electoral behavior in which voters make their decisions based on well-informed opinions and consequences of how candidates will perform in the future.

rational choice

an approach that says individuals weigh the cost and benefits and make choices on a candidate or party to maximize their benefits and interests.

retrospective voting

electoral behavior in which voters decisions are based on an evaluation of past performance of a candidate.

straight ticket voting

practice where a voter selects candidates from the same political party for all offices on the ballot without researching each candidate individually.

Suffrage

the right to vote in political elections.

age and wealth groups

demographic factors used to determine which groups votes for who.

gender groups

demographic factor used to determine which gender more likely votes for who.

ethnic groups

demographic factor used to determine which ethnic group more likely votes for who.

midterm elections

non-Presidential elections (ex. Senate and House) that occur midway through a presidential term.

presidential elections

election held every four years for electing a new president.

rational choice voting

voting based on what is perceived to be in the citizen's individual interest.

structural barriers to voting

states have varying laws that can act as barriers to voting (ex: requiring photo ID, etc.).

vote incentives

many people vote based upon what they feel benefits their own self-interests.

voter registration rules

each state has their own voter registration laws and individuals bear the burden of qualifying to vote (ex: in Virginia, voters have to be registered 21 days in advance in order to vote).

campaign management

the person responsible for the overall strategy and planning of a campaign.

candidate recruitment

parties often recruit viable candidates to run and target seats they see as winnable.

Fundraising

the act of collecting money for campaigns.

linkage institutions

the political channels through which people's concerns become political issues on the policy agenda.

Amendment 24

it abolished and forbids federal and state gov't from charging poll taxes to vote.

media strategies

strategies that use media to spread awareness and gain support for a campaign.

mobilization of voters

a party's effort to inform and persuade potential voters about issues and candidates vote for them.

national committees

national committee is one of the institutions that keeps the party operating between conventions.

Platforms

a political party's statement of principles and objectives.

legislative leadership

a presiding elected officer of every house: the speaker of the house & president of the senate.

party dealignment

the gradual disengagement of people and politicians from the parties by either going independent or simply ceasing to vote.

candidate centered campaigns

politics that focuses on the candidates, their particular issues, and character rather than party affiliation.

changes in finance laws (Citizens United)

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.

critical elections

An election when significant groups of voters change their traditional patterns of party loyalty.

data management

A process that focuses on data collection, storage, and retrieval.

demographic coalitions

refers to a group of people with shared characteristics, such as age, race, gender, or socioeconomic status, who unit to influence political outcomes.

micro-data management

the study of survey and census data, microdata is information at the level of individual respondents.

ORCA Romney campaign

Mitt Romney's campaign microdata system that lets volunteers use a web app to search for and mark off voters as they left the polling location.

Project Narwhal--Obama

the name of a computer program used by the 2012 campaign by Barack Obama.

public primaries

Primary elections that allow anyone to vote in the party's election, rather than requiring them to be a registered member of that party.

regional de-alignments

the breaking down of traditional demographic support for a political party at the local or regional level.

independent candidates

a candidate who is not associated with any political party.

proportional elections

system where if a candidate wins an electoral college district, it will get that electoral vote, but not all the state's electoral votes.

winner take all elections

whichever candidate wins the majority of the popular vote, gets all the electoral college votes

single issue parties

Parties that concentrate on only one public policy matter

Club for Growth

an american political organization that promotes fiscally responsible activism as part of the Tea Party movement

Emily's List

a 2004 campaign movement to give soft money to improve women's voter turnouts and support women's issues

expert testimony

testimony from people who are recognized experts in their fields

free-rider problem

a problem of group behavior that occurs when an individual can receive a public benefit without making a personal contribution of money or effort.

issue networks (iron triangles)

a close relationship between an agency, a congressional committee, and an interest group

Lobbying

engaging in activities aimed at influencing public officials, especially legislators, and the policies they enact

protest movements

a group that brings attention to a social problem through public demonstration or other forms of direct action

re-alignments

the displacement of the majority party by the minority party, usually during a critical election period

single issue groups

groups that have a narrow interest, tend to dislike compromise, and often draw membership from people new to politics

Subsidies

government grants of cash or other commodities such as land given to an individual or organization. It helps promote activities desired by the government.

voter education

higher educated voters tend to vote more

voter mobilization

a party's efforts to inform potential voters about issues and candidates and to persuade them to vote

270 to win

number of electoral votes to win presidency

Caucuses

meetings where political parties choose their candidates

closed primaries

a primary election in which voting is limited to already registered party members

delegate counts

the amount of delegates awarded to each state

Electoral College

a body of people representing the states of the US, who formally cast votes for the election of the president and vice president

faithless electors

electors who do not vote for the candidate they promised to vote for. These have never determined the outcome of a presidential election but is a major problem with the electoral college system

Frontloading

states' decisions to move their presidential primaries and caucasus to earlier in the nomination season in order to capitalize on media attention

lame duck

a person still in office after he/she has lost a bid for re-election

Maine and Nebraska systems

Maine and Nebraska appoint individual electors based on the winner of the popular vote for each Congressional district and then 2 electors based on the winner of the overall state-wide popular vote

open primaries

primary elections in which eligible voters do not need to be registered party members to vote.

party conventions

meetings of party delegates called to nominate candidates for office and establish party agendas

presidential conventions

a political convention held every 4 years in the US by most the political parties who will be fielding nominees in the upcoming US presidential election.

Super Delegates

party leaders and elected officials who become delegates to the national convection without having to run in primaries or caucuses

Super Tuesday

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

swing states, battleground states

a state that could reasonably be won by either Republican or Democratic presidential candidates, are are highly targeted by each candidate in the general election

winner-take-all allocations

a system of which presidential candidates go through "take all" electoral college votes from their states and others they may come across

incumbency advantage

the electoral edge afforded to those already in office

Midterms

elections held part way through a president's four year term

the "constant campaign"

the situation in which presidential candidates and members of the House, who face re-election every other year, continually campaign to maintain their positions

501c groups, 527 groups

a non-profit organization in the federal law of the US

Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act 2002 (McCain-Feingold)

banned soft money contributions to national political parties from corporations and unions; independent expenditures by corporations, labor unions, trade associations, and non profit organizations were restricted

campaign contests

used to increase engagement in campaigns

canvassing, phone banking, internet canvassing

the systematic initiation of direct contact with individuals, commonly used during political campaigns.

dark money

political money where the donors of the money do not have to be disclosed

Hard/Soft money

directly to candidates campaigns

matching funds

contributions of up to 250.00 dollars are matched from the Presidential Election Campaign Fund to candidates for the presidential nomination who qualify and agree to meet various conditions, such as limiting their overall spending

PACs

Political Action Committees, raise money for candidates and/or parties

professional consultants

experts who provide business assistance for a fee

social media influences

put out information to voters, usually biased, to influence individuals to vote for certain candidates.

Stand by your Ad provision of the BCRA

requires candidates in the US for federal political office, as well as interest groups and political parties supporting/opposing a candidate, to include in political advertisement on television and radio. Statement by the candidate that identifies the candidate and states that the candidate has approved the communication.

Super PACs

political action committees established to make independent expenditures

24-hour news cycle

news is now reported on, investigated, and analyzed quickly and continuously over a 24- hour period in all forms of the media

agenda setting

determining which public-policy questions will be debated/considered

blogs and tweets

used to influence politics

investigative journalism

the use of in-depth reporting to unearth scandals, scams and schemes, at times putting reporters in poor relationships with political leaders

media bias, "fake" news

the bias/perceived bias of journalists and news producers within the mass media in the selection of events and stories that are reported and how they are covered.

media ownership

parties who own, control, or influence a given media, mostly corporate

Narrowcasting

targeting media programming at specific populations within society