Electoral Politics, Campaign Processes, the California Legislature, and Article I Constitutional Powers

Vocabulary flashcards covering political participation, election mechanics, campaign finance, California legislative structure and initiatives, and the constitutional powers outlined in Article I.

Political Participation

A broad spectrum of political activities ranging from voting in elections and attending rallies or fundraisers to contributing money, contacting officials, volunteering, protesting, and engaging on social media.

Insurrection

A violent uprising against government, defined as the act of revolting against civic authority or an established government.

Suffrage

The legal right to vote in political elections, also referred to as the franchise.

Nineteenth Amendment

The constitutional amendment ratified in $1920$ that extended the right to vote to women nationwide.

Twenty-Sixth Amendment

The constitutional amendment ratified in $1971$ during the Vietnam War that lowered the nationwide voting age from $21$ to $18$.

Clicktivism

Forms of political participation that require minimal effort on social media—such as liking, following, or sharing—which may not convert into offline political activity.

Socioeconomic Status (SES)

An individual's position in society based on level of education, income, and occupational prestige, functioning as a primary predictor of political participation.

Gender Gap

A distinctive pattern of voting behavior reflecting divergent political views between men and women, with women generally favoring Democratic candidates and men favoring Republican candidates.

Midterm Elections

Congressional elections that occur every two years and do not coincide with a presidential election year; also known as off-year elections.

Closed Primary

A primary election in which only voters registered with a specific political party may participate in selecting that party's general election nominees.

Open Primary

A primary election where registered voters, including independents, can choose on primary election day which political party's ballot to vote on.

Same-Day Registration

An election reform adopted by $20$ states and Washington, D.C., allowing eligible individuals to register to vote and cast a ballot on the very same day.

Automatic Voter Registration (AVR)

A state voting policy first enacted by Oregon in $2016$ that automatically registers eligible residents to vote upon reaching the voting age.

Help America Vote Act (HAVA)

A $2002$ federal law requiring computerized statewide voter registration databases and requiring first-time voters who register by mail to show identification at the polls.

Frontloading

The tendency of states to schedule their presidential primaries and caucuses earlier in the calendar year to gain greater media prominence and influence over candidate nominations.

Superdelegates

Unelected Democratic Party leaders and elected officials representing just under $15\%$ of convention delegates who are free to support any presidential candidate if no nominee wins a majority on the first ballot.

Electoral College

The system of $538$ presidential electors allocated to states according to congressional delegation size, where a minimum of $270$ votes is required to win the presidency.

Political Action Committee (PAC)

A private entity established by a corporation, labor union, or interest group to channel money into political campaigns, capped at donations of $\$5,000$ per candidate per election.

Super PAC

An independent expenditure-only committee authorized to solicit and spend unlimited sums of money to advocate for or against candidates, provided expenditures are not coordinated directly with campaigns.

527 Committee

A tax-exempt advocacy group organized under Section 527 of the Internal Revenue Code that can collect unlimited donations to influence elections and must disclose its finances to the IRS.

Dark Money Groups (501(c)(4) Committees)

Politically active nonprofit social welfare organizations that can spend unlimited sums on campaigns without disclosing donor names, as long as political advocacy constitutes less than half their spending.

Express Advocacy

Campaign communications explicitly urging the election or defeat of a candidate defined in Buckley v. Valeo through specific words such as 'vote for,' 'elect,' or 'reject.'

Micro-Targeting

A campaign technique utilizing extensive voter files and statistical algorithms to deliver customized messages to specific, narrow demographic and ideological subgroups.

Rejectionism

A political stance in which partisans refuse to accept the validity and legitimacy of their candidate's defeat at the ballot box.

Bicameral Legislature (California)

A two-house legislative branch consisting of an $80$-member State Assembly whose members serve two-year terms and a $40$-member State Senate whose members serve four-year terms.

Proposition 140 (1990)

A California initiative establishing strict legislative term limits of three terms ($6\text{ years}$) in the Assembly and two terms ($8\text{ years}$) in the Senate ($14\text{ years}$ total lifetime) while limiting staff spending.

Proposition 28 (2012)

A California ballot initiative reducing the maximum lifetime service in the state legislature to $12\text{ years}$ while allowing all $12\text{ years}$ to be served within a single chamber.

Proposition 11 (2008)

A California measure creating the $14$-member Citizens Redistricting Commission to draw state legislative district boundaries after each decennial census.

Proposition 14 (2010)

A California measure establishing the top-two primary system in which all candidates run on a single ballot regardless of political party, with the two highest vote-getters advancing to the general election.

Proposition 25 (2010)

A California constitutional initiative lowering the legislative vote threshold to pass the state budget from a two-thirds supermajority to a simple majority and forfeiting legislators' pay if the budget is late.

Proposition 54 (2016)

A California initiative prohibiting the legislature from passing any bill until it has been printed and published online for at least $72\text{ hours}$ prior to the vote.

Speaker of the Assembly (California)

The presiding officer of the California State Assembly with broad powers to establish committees, assign and remove members, refer bills, and assign office space.

President Pro Tempore (California Senate)

The presiding officer of the California State Senate and chair of the Senate Rules Committee, sharing administrative and committee appointment powers with the committee.

Casework (Constituency Service)

Direct intervention by a legislator or legislative staff to resolve individual constituents' bureaucratic grievances with government administrative agencies.

Gerrymandering

The drawing of legislative district boundaries to grant electoral advantages to a political faction, primarily through cracking (dispersing opponents) and packing (concentrating opponents).

Issue Networks

Alliances composed of committee members, legislative staff consultants, executive agency administrators, and interest-group lobbyists that govern policy details within a specific domain.

Gut and Amend

A legislative tactic where the original text of an existing bill is removed and replaced with entirely new, unrelated legislation to bypass bill introduction deadlines.

Line-Item Veto

The executive authority granted to the governor of California to reduce or eliminate specific spending items in appropriation and budget bills without rejecting the entire bill.

Vesting Clause (Article I, Section 1)

The constitutional provision granting all federal legislative powers to a bicameral Congress consisting of a Senate and a House of Representatives.

House of Representatives Qualifications (Article I, Section 2)

The constitutional requirements that a representative must be at least $25\text{ years}$ old, a citizen of the United States for at least $7\text{ years}$, and an inhabitant of the state represented.

Senate Qualifications (Article I, Section 3)

The constitutional requirements that a senator must be at least $30\text{ years}$ old, a citizen of the United States for at least $9\text{ years}$, and an inhabitant of the state represented.

Origination Clause (Article I, Section 7)

The constitutional mandate requiring all bills for raising revenue to originate in the House of Representatives, while allowing the Senate to propose or concur with amendments.

Congressional Veto Override (Article I, Section 7)

The constitutional procedure allowing Congress to enact a bill into law over a presidential veto through a two-thirds vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

Commerce Clause (Article I, Section 8, Clause 3)

The enumerated power granting Congress authority to regulate commerce with foreign nations, among the several states, and with the Indian tribes.

Necessary and Proper Clause (Article I, Section 8, Clause 18)

The constitutional provision empowering Congress to enact all laws necessary and proper for executing its enumerated powers and all other powers vested in the federal government.

Writ of Habeas Corpus (Article I, Section 9)

A legal guarantee protecting individuals against unlawful imprisonment, which Congress cannot suspend unless required by public safety in cases of rebellion or invasion.

Bill of Attainder

A legislative act that singles out a person or group for punishment without a judicial trial, prohibited by Article I, Section 9 for Congress and Section 10 for the states.

Ex Post Facto Law

A law that criminalizes conduct retroactively or increases the penalties for an infraction after it was committed, prohibited by Article I, Section 9 and Section 10.