AP Government Vocabulary (Chapter 4)

Political Participation

Actions of private citizens by which they seek to influence or support government & politics

Conventional Participation

Relatively routine political behavior that uses institutional channels & is acceptable to the dominate culture

Unconventional Participation

Relatively uncommon political behavior that challenges or defies established institutions & dominant norms

Direct Actions

Unconventional participation that involves assembling crowds to confront business & local governments to demand a hearing

Supportive & Influencing Behaviors

Action that expresses allegiance to the government & country. Behavior that seeks to modify or reverse government policy to serve political interests.

Class Action Suit

A legal action brought a person or group on behalf a # of people in similar circumstances.

Voter Turnout

The percentage of eligible citizens who actually vote in a given election

Suffrage & Franchise

The right to vote

Progressivism

A philosophy of political reform based on the goodness & wisdom of the individual citizen as opposed to special interests & political institutions.

Direct Primary

A preliminary election, run by the state government, in which the voters choose east party’s candidates for the general election.

Recall, Referendum, Initiative

The process for removing an elected official from office; an election on a policy issue; a procedure by which voters can propose an issues to be decided by the legislature or by the people in a referendum. 

Primary Election

An election in which voters choose candidates from each political party to run in the general election. Primaries determine which candidates will represent their parties on the final ballot.

Closed Primaries

A type of primary election in which only registered party members can vote to choose their party’s candidate.
Example: Only registered Democrats can vote in the Democratic primary.

Open Primaries

A type of primary election where any registered voter can choose which party’s primary to vote in, regardless of party affiliation.
Example: A Republican can choose to vote in the Democratic primary (but only one party’s primary).

Caucus/Convention

A meeting of party members to select delegates who will vote for candidates at higher-level party conventions or to directly select party nominees

General Election

The election in which voters make the final choice among the candidates nominated by political parties (and sometimes independents) for public office.

Straight & Split Ticket

Straight: When a voter chooses all candidates from the same political party on the ballot.
Example: Voting for all Democrats or all Republicans for every

Split: When a voter selects candidates from different political parties for different offices on the same ballot.

Example: Voting for a Republican for president but a Democrat for Congress.

Federal Election Commission (FEC)

An independent regulatory agency that enforces federal campaign finance laws, monitors campaign contributions and expenditures, and oversees public funding of presidential elections.

Political Action Committee (PAC)

An organization that raises and spends money to influence elections and legislation. PACs can donate directly to candidates but are subject to contribution limits and disclosure requirements.

Citizens United v. FEC

A landmark Supreme Court case that ruled that corporate and union spending on independent political ads cannot be limited under the First Amendment’s free speech clause.

This decision led to the rise of Super PACs, which can raise and spend unlimited amounts of money to support or oppose candidates (but cannot coordinate directly with them).