unit 7

electoral college

electoral college

representatives in each state who cast the final ballots that actually elect a pres

caucus

local gatherings of voters who vote at the end of the meeting for a particular candidate. Then it moves to nominating conventions

national convention

a party conclave (meeting) held in the presidential election year for the purpose of nominating a presidential and vice presidential ticket and adopting platform

party platform

set of principles, goals, and strategies designed to address pressing political issues.

critical election

an election that signals a party realignment through voter polarization around new issues; permanent new party takes over

electoral realignment

the change in voting patterns that occurs after a critical election

electoral de-alignment

parties breaking down voters & dealing w/parties (no real pattern anymore); voters move to nonpartisanship

national committee

an organization which is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the party at the national level, as determined by the Commission.

party machine

a party organization that recruits its members by the use of tangible incentives—money, political jobs—and that is characterized by a high degree of leadership control over member activity.

primary election

voters decide which candidates within party will represent party’s ticket in general election; (closed, open, blanket, runoff, nonpartisan)

closed primary

allow only party’s registered voters to cast a ballot; prevent mems of a party from influencing primaries of other part; considered healthier for party system

open primary

allow independents (sometimes mems of other parties) to participate (crossover voting, reading)

blanket primary

voters allowed to vote in either party’s primary (not both) on office-by-office basis

general election

voters decide which candidates will fill elective public offices. Held at many levels (country, state, national, etc)

Come in varieties b/c Americans perceive offices as different from each other

Sizing up pres elections, voter look for leadership &  base judgment on foreign policy

Leadership qualities=vital for gubernatorial & mayoral candidates (state & local concerns)

straight ticket

voter chooses candidates from the same political party for every office up for election.

split ticket

vote for candidates of diff party for various offices in same election; result of decisions by voters abt candidates’ pos on issues imp to them; ppl willing to vote for both types of candidates

Federal Election Committee (FEC)

independent regulatory agency responsible for administering, enforcing, defending and interpreting the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971. 1 The Commission is also responsible for administering the federal public funding programs for Presidential campaigns.

lobbyist

a person who takes part in an organized attempt to influence legislators. Can lead to the proposal of new legislation, or the amendment of existing laws and regulations.

interest group entrepreneur

interest group organizer/leader

free rider problem

the burden on a shared resource that is created by its use or overuse by people who aren't paying their fair share for it or aren't paying anything at all

political action committee (PAC)

federally mandated, officially registered fundraising committee that represents interest groups in the political process; organizations are required to establish officially recognized fund-raising committees called PACs in order to participate in federal elections; Incumbents benefit the most from PAC; use contributions to punish legislators & affect policy in the short run

direct lobbying

attempt to influence existing/ proposed legislation through interactions w/: Any member (or staff) of a legislative body; Any other government official or employee (apart from a member of a legislative body) who may participate in formulating legislation.

grassroots lobbying

form of pressure-group activity that attempt to involve the people that bottom level of political system; used as term by professional lobbyists for their activities to camouflage an unpopular or unsympathetic clients

coalition building

an organization of diverse interest groups that join their human and material resources to produce a specific change that they are unable to deliver as independent individuals or separate organizations.

public interest group

An organization of people sharing a common interest or goal that seeks to influence the making of public policy.

newsworthiness

whether or not a topic is interesting enough for people to want or need to know.

political agenda

is a list of subjects or problems (issues) to which government officials as well as individuals outside the government are paying serious attention to at any given time

Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

replaced FRC (all airwaves = pub property) in 1934; Composed of 5 members selected by pres for 5-yr terms; Independent regulatory agency; Oversees phone, telegraph, satellite, & foreign communications

equal access/time rule

requires broadcast stations to sell campaign airtime equal to their candidates; Exception: political debate

fairness doctrine

1949-1985; required broadcasters to be fair in news coverage events; had to cover events adequately & present contrasting views on imp pub issues

Broadcasters argued fairness = too difficult to define & 1st amend freedoms infringed upon;

\n Conventional vs. Unconventional Participation*

conventional participation is routine behavior that uses the institutional channels and is acceptable to the dominant culture (voting, signs in yard). Unconventional participation is relatively uncommon behavior that challenges or defies established institutions or the dominant culture Spray painting slogans on walls).

franchise

method of distributing products or services involving a franchisor, who establishes the brand's trademark or trade name and a business system, and a franchisee, who pays a royalty and often an initial fee for the right to do business under the franchisor's name and system.

Standard Socioeconomic Model

relationship between socioeconomic status and conventional political involvement: people with higher status and more education are more likely to participate than those with lower status.

referendum

state legislature submits proposed legislation to state’s voters for approval

initiative

process that allows citizens to propose legislation & submit to state electorate for pop vote (as long as get certain # of signatures on petitions); used in 24 states & District of Columbia; intended to give more control over lawmaking to citizens

Voter Motor Law

required states to permit individuals to register by mail, not just in person

Allows citizens to register vote when they visit any motor-vehicles office, public assistance agency, or military recruitment division; inc voting turnout and made it easier

Ex: registering at the DMV

Political Socialization

process where one acquires particular political orientations; learning process where ppl get political beliefs & values

public opinion

what public thinks abt issues at a particular time

ideological beliefs

set of opinions or beliefs of a group or an individual. Often refers to a set of political beliefs or a set of ideas that characterize a particular culture. Capitalism, communism, socialism, and Marxism.

patronage

Jobs, grants, or other special favors that are given as rewards to friends and political allies for their support

spoils system

firing of public-office holders of a defeated political party and their replacement with loyalists of the newly elected party.

political consultant

one of the most imp positions when campaigning for office; professional manages campaigns & political advertisements for political candidate;

Sells to a candidate tech, services, & strategies required to get that candidate elected to office;

Candidates hire these people to oversee the entire campaign → responsible for formulating strategy, developing tactics, and fighting individual battles alongside the candidate;

Seem to have a large impact on the candidate’s fundraising abilities and final vote shares

coattail effect

tendency of lesser-known/weaker candidates lower on the ballot to profit in an election by the presence on the party's ticket of a more popular candidate.

disturbance theory

political scientist David B. Truman’s theory that interest groups form in part to counteract the efforts of other groups

proportional representation

an electoral system where seats in a legislature or council are allocated to various interests in proportion to their strength in the electorate. Such a system might reward a group that is 15 percent of the electorate with roughly 15 percent of the seats in a legislature.

retrospective judgment

voter's evaluation of performance of party in power; makes sense (voters can evaluate record of office holders better than predicting the future)

prospective judgment

vote based on what candidate pledges to to abt an issue

Required electorate to examine views of rival candidates, then cast ballot for person they believe will best handle issues

Requires a lot of info about issues & candidates

Requirements: voters need an opinion on issue, have an idea of what action gov is taking on the issue, must see difference between parties on issue

recall

incumbent can be removed from office by pop vote; rare; AZ governor Mecham impeached 1988 for mishandling camping finances

Buckley vs. Valeo

struck down limits on spending by campaigns and citizens, but upheld the provision limiting the size of individual contributions to campaigns.

New York Times vs. Sullivan

Sullivan, took offense to the ad and sued the New York Times in an Alabama court. Sullivan argued that the ad had damaged his reputation, and he had been libeled. The Alabama court ruled in favor of Sullivan, finding that the newspaper had falsely represented the police department and Sullivan; holding that First Amendment freedom of speech protections limit the ability of public officials to sue for defamation

New York Times vs. United States

pentagon papers sent to Washington Post by Ellsburg; established only gov officials can be prosecuted for revealing classified info

Matching funds/federal subsidies

donations to the presidential campaigns from the federal government that are determined by the amount of private funds a qualifying candidate raises

Campaign Contribution

Research in political science shows that media coverage of the horse race affects campaign contributions to candidates; campaign contributions from ensure party discipline in voting

Campaign Expenditure

purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election

Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002/FECA

amends FECA by:

Banning dot money contributions

Increasing amount of hard money that individuals may donate

Imposing new restrictions on political advertising close to an election; national party committees = prohibited from accepting soft money donations; Closes legal loophole,

Incorporated entities = prohibited from financially electioneering communications

soft money

no cap on how much you can donate, but cap to the organizations/how many you can donate to; not subject to FECA regulation; campaign money raised apart from federal regulation and can be given directly to one candidate (SuperPACs)

hard money

campaign money raised for a specific candidate in federal elections and spent according to federal laws and restrictions; ex: can only donate a certain amount of $ to each campaign (PACs)

Issue advocacy ads

communications intended to bring awareness to a certain problem; can be paid for w/unregulated soft money

Independent expenditures

Spending by political action committees, corporations, or labor unions that is done to help a party or candidate but is done independently of them; must be paid by hard money

Yellow Journalism

printing comic strip “Yellow Kid” in color; featured pictures, comics, color, and sensationalized, oversimplified news coverage.

Muckraking

form of newspaper publishing, in vogue in the early twentieth century, concerned with reforming government & business conduct; exposed gov misconduct

Started demands for inc regulation of pub trusts

Led to gossip w/o proof

Investigative Journalism

Watergate began chain reaction that allows for intense media scrutiny of public officials’ private lives; shifted orientation of journalism away from mere description of things that happen to prescriptions & helping to set the campaign’s & society’s agenda by focusing attention on the candidates' shortcomings as well as on certain social problems