Elections & Voting

527 Organization

tax exempt group

Absentee Voting

provisions made for those unable to go to their regular polling places on election day

Ballot

device that voters use to register a choice in an election

Ballot Fatigue

phenomenon by which voters cast fewer votes for offices listed toward bottom of ballot

Battleground / Swing States

states in which the outcome of an election is too close to call and either candidate could win

Bipartisan

supported two parties

Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act

2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act attempted to close the soft

Caucus

as a nominating device, a group of like

Federal Election Commission

(FEC) an independent agency in the executive branch that administers all federal law dealing with campaigns

General Election

the regularly scheduled election at which voters make final decisions

Gerrymandering

the drawing of electoral district lines to the advantage of a party or group

Hard Money

contributions that are given directly to candidates for their campaigns, must be reported to government

Interest Group

private organizations whose members share certain views and work to shape public policy

National Party Convention

whoever wins party, celebration for winning candidate

Off

year Elections

Party Identification

loyalty of people to a political party

Plank

each individual part of the platform

Platform

a political party’s formal statement of basic principles and objectives

Political Action Committees

political arms of special

Political Efficacy

one’s own influence or effectiveness on politics

Political Party

group of people who seek to control government

Political Socialization

people gain their political attitudes and opinions

Political Spectrum

range of political views

Poll books

list of all registered voters

Poll Tax

special tax

Precinct

smallest unit of election administration

Primary Election

preliminary election that narrows the number of candidates by determining who will be the nominees in the general election

Prospective Issue Voting

policy promises

Purging

process of reviewing lists of registered voters and removing names of those no longer eligible to vote

Retrospective Issue Voting

past performance

Single

Issue Parties

Soft Money

money given the state and local party organizations for electoral

Split

Ticket Voting

Straight

Ticket Voting

Suffrage

right to vote

Two

Party System

Watchdog

plays the role of in loyal opposition

Winner

Takes

“Big Tent” Parties

both parties - their viewpoints, stances, and groups are very vast, covering many different policy beliefs all under one party

What was George Washington’s opinion on political parties?

warned against them