PS 101 Exam 2

Bureaucracy

Government departments and agencies that implement laws and public policies.

Office of Management and Budget (OMB)

Executive office that prepares the president's budget and reviews agency proposals and regulations.

Civil servants

Government employees hired mainly based on qualifications rather than political loyalty.

Bureaucratic drift

When a government agency's actions or policies move away from the preferences of elected officials.

Political appointees

Officials selected by political leaders, often the president, to fill government positions.

Police patrol oversight

Continuous, routine monitoring of government agencies by legislators.

Regulation

A government rule that controls behavior of individuals, businesses, or organizations.

Fire alarm oversight

Oversight triggered when citizens, interest groups, or others report government problems.

Notice-and-comment procedure

Process allowing the public to review and comment on proposed federal regulations before they are finalized.

State capacity

The government's ability to implement policies, enforce laws, and achieve its goals.

Problem of control

The difficulty elected officials face in ensuring bureaucrats carry out their preferred policies.

Principal-agent game

A relationship in which a principal delegates work to an agent whose interests may differ from their own.

Party organization

The formal party structure, including committees, leaders, and staff that organize party activities.

Party in government

Elected officials who belong to a political party and serve in government.

Party in the electorate

Voters who identify with or support a political party.

Party system

The pattern of competition and relationships among political parties.

Realignment

A lasting shift in party coalitions or voter loyalties that changes the political balance between parties.

National committee

A political party's national organization that coordinates campaigns, fundraising, and party strategy.

Political Action Committee (PAC)

An organization that raises and spends money to influence elections, subject to contribution rules.

527 organization

A tax-exempt political organization that can raise and spend money to influence elections and political activity under tax law.

Issue ownership

The belief that one political party is more capable of handling a particular issue.

Caucus (Congressional)

A group of legislators who organize around shared interests, goals, or policy positions.

Conference

A meeting of members of a political party in Congress to discuss strategy, leadership, and policy.

Unified government

A situation in which the same party controls the presidency and both chambers of Congress.

Divided government

A situation in which different parties control the presidency and at least one chamber of Congress.

Party identification (party ID)

A person's long-term psychological attachment to or identification with a political party.

Negative partisanship

Opposition to a political party driven mainly by dislike or distrust of that party.

Party coalitions

Groups of voters and interests that regularly support the same political party.

Primary election

An election in which voters choose a party's candidate for the general election.

Caucus (electoral)

A local party meeting where participants discuss candidates and select or express preferences for nominees.

Nominating convention

A party meeting where delegates formally select candidates and adopt a party platform.

Party platform

A political party's official statement of its policy positions and goals.

Duverger's Law

The tendency for single-member plurality electoral systems to favor two major parties.

Single-member districts

Electoral districts that each elect one representative.

Plurality voting

A system in which the candidate with the most votes wins, even without a majority.

Party principle

The idea that political parties organize competition and help voters and officials coordinate around shared goals.

Spoils system

The practice of giving government jobs to political supporters, often after an election victory.

Mass media

Communication channels that distribute news and information to large audiences.

Linking institution

An organization or mechanism that connects citizens to government, such as parties, elections, interest groups, or media.

Yellow journalism

Sensationalized reporting designed to attract attention, sometimes at the expense of accuracy.

Broadcast media

Media that distribute content to large audiences through radio or television signals.

Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

Federal agency that regulates interstate and international communications, including broadcast radio and television.

Equal time provision

FCC rule generally requiring broadcasters to offer equal opportunities to legally qualified political candidates who request them.

Media conglomerates

Large corporations that own multiple media outlets or companies.

By-product theory

The idea that people often gain political information indirectly while pursuing other interests or activities.

On background/off-the-record

Reporting agreements limiting how a source's information may be attributed or published; off-the-record information generally cannot be published as direct sourced material under the agreement.

Leaking

Providing confidential or nonpublic information to journalists without official authorization.

Media effects

Ways media coverage can influence what people know, believe, or consider important.

Hostile media effect

The tendency for people with strong opposing views to perceive neutral media coverage as biased against their side.

Filtering

Selecting which information or events receive media attention and which are left out.

Framing

Presenting an issue in a particular way that shapes how audiences interpret it.

Attack journalism

Reporting that emphasizes criticism, scandals, or negative information about political figures.

Horse race coverage

Political reporting that focuses on who is winning or losing rather than policy issues.

Soft news

News focused on entertainment, lifestyle, personalities, or human-interest stories.

Hard news

Reporting on important public affairs, politics, economics, and other significant events.

Pseudo-environment

The mental picture of the world people form from media and other information rather than direct experience.

Interest groups

Organizations that seek to influence public policy without directly trying to control government by winning office.

Lobbying

Communicating with government officials to influence laws, policies, or decisions.

Interest group state

A political system in which organized interest groups play a major role in policymaking.

Centralized groups

Interest groups with a strong central leadership that coordinates member activities.

Confederation

An organization in which relatively independent member groups retain substantial autonomy while cooperating.

Revolving door

Movement of individuals between government jobs and private-sector positions related to their former work.

Iron triangles

Stable relationships among congressional committees, bureaucratic agencies, and interest groups that benefit from cooperation.

Mass associations

Interest groups with large memberships made up of individuals.

Selective incentives

Benefits offered only to members to encourage people to join or participate in a group.

Solidary benefits

Benefits of group membership that come from social interaction, belonging, or friendship.

Purposive benefits

Benefits from supporting a cause or advancing a principle someone believes in.

Coercion

Using requirements, penalties, or pressure to compel participation or compliance.

Material benefits

Tangible benefits, such as discounts, services, or financial rewards, offered through group membership.

Inside strategies

Efforts to influence policy by working directly with government officials and policymakers.

Outside strategies

Efforts to influence policy indirectly by mobilizing citizens, media attention, or public opinion.

Direct lobbying

Communicating directly with policymakers to influence their decisions.

Grassroots lobbying

Encouraging ordinary citizens to contact officials or otherwise pressure government on an issue.

Astroturf lobbying

A campaign made to appear like spontaneous citizen activism but actually organized or funded by powerful interests.

Referendum

A process in which voters directly approve or reject a proposed law or policy.

Initiative

A process that allows citizens to propose a law or ballot measure, usually by collecting signatures.

Issue salience

The degree to which an issue matters to voters or receives public attention.

Incumbents

Current officeholders running for reelection.

Primary election (and types)

An election to choose a party nominee; types include open, closed, semi-closed, and semi-open primaries.

General election

An election in which voters choose among candidates to determine who will hold office.

Majority voting

A system requiring a candidate to receive more than half of the votes to win.

Runoff election

An additional election between leading candidates when no candidate meets the required winning threshold in the first round.

Proportional allocation

A system that distributes delegates or seats according to each candidate's or party's share of votes.

Winner-take-all system

An electoral system in which the candidate with the most votes receives all the relevant electoral votes or seats being allocated.

Popular vote

The total number of individual votes cast by voters for a candidate.

Electoral College

The system in which state-appointed electors formally choose the U.S. president and vice president.

Election cycle

The recurring period of campaigning, fundraising, voting, and election-related activity.

Open seat

An election for an office whose current officeholder is not running for reelection.

Get-out-the-vote (GOTV)/ground game

Organized efforts to contact voters and encourage them to vote, often through canvassing, calls, and reminders.

Federal Election Commission (FEC)

Independent federal agency that administers and enforces federal campaign finance laws.

Hard money

Campaign contributions regulated by federal election law and subject to contribution limits and disclosure rules.

Soft money

Money historically given to political parties outside federal candidate contribution limits; federal rules now restrict its use.

Downs' Paradox (Paradox of voting)

The puzzle that voting costs time and effort, while one vote is extremely unlikely to change an election's outcome.

Issue voters

Voters who choose candidates primarily based on their positions on particular issues.

Voting cues

Information shortcuts, such as party labels or endorsements, that help voters make decisions.

Coattails

The effect in which a popular candidate helps candidates from the same party win other races.

Split ticket (a)
straight ticket (b)

a) choosing candidates from different parties .
b) choosing candidates from the same party across races.

501(c)(4) organization

A tax-exempt social-welfare organization that may engage in political activity, subject to legal limits.

Super PAC

A political committee that can raise unlimited funds from individuals, corporations, and unions for independent political spending, but cannot coordinate spending with candidates.