Unit 5 AP Gov review

Political Participation

The different ways in which individuals take action to shape the laws and policies off government

Political action Committee (PACS)

an organization that raises money to elect and defeat candidates and may donate money directly to a candidate's campaign

Citizens United vs FEC

Landmark case that allows unlimited corporate funding to campaigns

Linkage Institution

Channels that connect individuals within the government

Social movements

The joining of individuals whose goal is to bring change on certain policy issues

Suffrage

The right to vote

26th Amendment

Anyone older than 18 can vote

24th Amendment

Prohibits congress from implementing poll taxes on votes

Poll tax

A payment to the state before a citizen can vote

Voter turnout

The eligible amount of voters in an election

Demographic characteristics

Measurable aspect of population, age, race, gender, etc

Socioeconomic status

A measure of an individuals wealth, education, etc

Political efficacy

he believe that an individual can make political change

Political mobilization

Efforts by political parties to get members to vote

Absentee ballot

voting completed by a voter before the election

Participatory governments

The belief that citizens impact policymaking through their involvement in civil society

Civil society

groups outside the government advocate for policy

Interest groups

voluntary associations of people who come together with the goal of enacting favorable policy

Pluralist Theory

Theory that political power is distributed among many competing groups, so no group becomes too powerful

Elitest theory

A theory that wealthy class has too much economic and political power

Policy Agenda

A set of issues to which the government and public pay attention to

Collective action

Political action when individuals provide for larger goal

Collective good

A benefit that individuals can enjoy even if they do not help achieve it

Free Riders

Individuals who enjoy collective benefit from interest groups without belonging to one

Selective benefits

Benefits only apply to those in interest groups

Economic Interest group

Groups advocating financial interests

Public interest groups

act on interests for a broad group of individuals

Single issue interest groups

Groups focusing on one area of public policy

Government Interest groups

Interest group that is acting on behalf of local, state, or foreign governments

Lobbying

interacting with government officials to help advance a groups policy goals

Amicus Curiae brief

An attempt to persuade the court to agree with the arguments set forth in the brief, comes from outside the case.

Iron Triangle

Coordinated and mutually beneficial activities of the bureaucracy, Congress, and interests groups to achieve shared goals

Issue network

Webs of influence between interest groups, policymakers, and policy advocating

Grassroots Lobbying

mobilizing interest groups to pressure representatives through direct contact like phone calls and emails.

News Media

a broad term that includes newspapers, magazines, radio, television, internet, blogs, and social media

Social Media

forms of electronic communication that enable users to create and share content to participate in social networking

Agenda Setting

the medias's ability to highlight certain issues and bring them to the attention of the public

Mass Media

Sources of info designed to reach a wide audience including newspapers, etc

Wire service

An organization that gathers and reports on news and then sells stories to outlets

Investigative journalism

An approach to newsgathering in which reporters dig into stories, often looking for instances of wrongdoings

Broadcast Media

Outlets for news and other content including radio and television

Media Consolidation

Concentration of ownership of media to fewer corporations

Partisan bias

the slanting of political news coverage in support of particular party ideologies

Horse- Race journalism

Coverage of political campaigns that focus on drama instead of policy.

Political Parties

an organized group of party leaders, officeholders, and voters who work together to elect candidates to political office.

Straight Ticket Voting

voting for all of the candidates on the ballot from one political party.

Split Ticket voting

voting for candidates from different parties in the same election.

Party Platform

a set of positions and policy objectives that members of a political party agree to.

Recruitment

the process through which political parties identify potential candidates.

Party Coalition

interest groups and like-minded voters who support a political party over time.

Realignment

when the groups of people who support a political party shift their allegiance to a different political party.

Critical Elections

a major national election that signals a change in the balance of power between the two parties.

Party Eras

time period when one party wins most national elections.

Era of Divided government

a trend since 1969, in which one party controls one or both houses of Congress and the president is from the opposing party.

Nomination

the formal process through which parties choose their candidates for political office.

Delegate

a person who acts as the voters' representative at a convention to select the party's nominee.

Primary elections

an election in which a state's voters choose delegates who support a particular presidential candidate for nomination or an election by a plurality vote to select a party's nominee for a seat in Congress.

Open Primaries

a primary election in which all eligible voters may vote, regardless of their party affiliation.

Closed Primaries

a primary election in which only those who have registered as a member of a political party may vote.

Caucases

a process through which a state's eligible voters meet to select delegates to represent their preferences in the nomination process.

Super delegates

usually, a party leader or activist who is not pledged to a candidate based on the outcomes of the state's primary or caucus.

Front loading

a decision by a state to push its primary or caucus to a date as early in the election season as possible to gain more influence in the presidential nomination process.

National Convention

a meeting where delegates officially select their party's nominee for the presidency.

Candidate centered

a trend in which candidates develop their own strategies and raise money with less influence from the party elite.

Two party system

a system in which two political parties dominate politics, winning almost all elections.

Proportional representation systems

an election system for a legislature in which citizens vote for parties, rather than individuals, and parties are represented in the legislature according to the percentage of the vote they receive.

Single member plurality systems

an election system for choosing members of the legislature where the winner is the candidate who receives the most votes, even if the candidate does not receive a majority of the votes.

Third parties

a minor political party in competition with the two major parties.