Unit 5: Political Participation

Political Participation

All the activities used by citizens to influence the selection of political leaders or the policies they pursue

Political Action Committees (PACS)

A committee set up by a corporation, labor union, or interest group that raises and spends campaign money from voluntary donations

linkage institutions

Institutions that connect citizens to government. The mass media, interest groups, and political parties are the three main linkage institutions.

Social Movements

Active and sustained efforts to achieve social and political change by groups of people who feel that government has not been properly responsive to their concerns.

Suffrage Movements

groups that protest for voting rights and equality

poll tax

A tax of a fixed amount per person and payable as a requirement for the right to vote

General Elections

A regular election of candidates for office, as opposed to a primary election. In the presidential general election, voters elect the President and Vice President.

Midterm Elections

Midterm elections happen mid-way through every 4-year presidential election cycle. Midterms give voters a chance to decide which party controls Congress.

Voter Turnout

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

Voter Apathy

The lack of interest among the citizenry in participating in elections.

Demographic Characteristics

measurable characteristics of a population, such as economic status, education, age, race or ethnicity, and gender

Socioeconomic Status

A person's position in society as determined by income, wealth, occupation, education, place of residence, and other factors

Political Efficacy

The belief that one's political participation really matters - that one's vote can actually make a difference

Political Mobilization

Efforts to encourage people to engage in the public sphere: to vote for a particular candidate (and donate money, work on the campaign, etc.) or to get involved in specific issues.

Registration Requirements

the set of rules that govern who can vote and how, when, and where they vote

Absentee Ballot

a ballot completed and typically mailed in advance of an election by a voter who is unable to be present at the polls.

Rational Choice Voting

Voting based on what is perceived to be in the citizen's individual interest

Retrospective Voting

A theory of voting in which voters essentially ask this simple question: "What have you done for me lately?"

Prospective Voting

voting based on the imagined future performance of a candidate

party-line voting

process in which voters select candidates by their party affiliation

Electoral College

A body of people representing the states of the US, who formally cast votes for the election of the president and vice president.

winner-take-all system

All electoral college votes from a state go to the candidate the state has chosen, unless that state splits votes.

Battleground State

Competitive state where neither party holds an overwhelming edge.

Swing State

A state where levels of support for the parties are similar and elections swing back and forth between Democrats and Republicans in the Presidential election.

Super PAC (Political Action Committee)

a type of independent political action committee which may raise unlimited sums of money from corporations, unions, and individuals but is not permitted to contribute to or coordinate directly with parties or candidates.

Initiative

Procedure whereby a certain number of voters may, by petition, propose a law or constitutional amendment and have it submitted to the voters.

Recall

A procedure for submitting to popular vote the removal of officials from office before the end of their term.

Referendum

A state-level method of direct legislation that gives voters a chance to approve or disapprove proposed legislation or a proposed constitutional amendment.

Ballot Measure

A ballot measure is a law, issue or topic placed on a statewide or municipal ballot in the United States for voters to decide through an election.

Recruitment

the process through which the organization seeks applicants for potential employment when a government position needs to be filled.

Party Coalition

The groups and interests that support a political party.

Realignment

substantial and long-term shift in party allegiance by individuals and groups, usually resulting in a change in policy direction

Nomination

The official endorsement of a candidate for office by a political party. Generally, success in the nomination game requires momentum, money, and media attention.

Delegate

A person appointed or elected to represent others

Primary Election

Nominating election held to choose party candidates who will run in the general election for Presidency

Closed Primary

A primary in which only registered members of a particular political party can vote

Open Primary

A primary election in which voters may choose in which party to vote as they enter the polling place

Caucus

A meeting of local party members to choose party officials or candidates for public office and to decide the platform.

Superdelegate

In the Democratic Party an unelected delegate who is free to support any candidate for the presidential nomination at the party's national convention.

National Convention

The meeting of party delegates every four years to choose a presidential ticket and write the party's platform.

Candidate-Centered Campaigns

politics that focuses on the candidates, their particular issues, and character rather than party affiliation

Two-Party System

An electoral system with two dominant parties that compete in national elections.

Third Parties

electoral contenders other than the two major parties. American third parties are not unusual, but they rarely win elections.

Elector

member of the electoral college

electorate

the citizens eligible to vote

Gerrymandering

the drawing of legislative district boundaries to benefit a party, group, or incumbent

Incumbency

being already in office as opposed to running for the first time

Reapportionment

The process of reallocating seats in the House of Representatives every 10 years on the basis of the results of the census.

Redistricting

The redrawing of congressional and other legislative district lines following the census, to accommodate population shifts and keep districts as equal as possible in population.

runoff primary

A second primary election held when no candidate wins a majority of the votes in the first primary

Straight Ticket

a ballot on which a voter selects candidates from only one political party

Ticket-splitting (split-ticket voting)

The act of voting for candidates from different political parties for different offices--for example, voting for a Republican for president and a Democrat for senator.

Hard Money

Political contributions given to a party, candidate, or interest group that are limited in amount and fully disclosed.

Soft Money

Campaign contributions unregulated by federal or state law, usually given to parties and party committees to help fund general party activities.

Civil Rights Act of 1964

1964; banned discrimination in public accommodations, prohibited discrimination in any federally assisted program, outlawed discrimination in most employment; enlarged federal powers to protect voting rights and to speed school desegregation; this and the voting rights act helped to give African-Americans equality on paper, and more federally-protected power so that social equality was a more realistic goal.

Amendment 15

You cannot prevent a person from voting because of race, color, or creed.

Amendment 17

Popular Election of Senators

Amendment 23

Voters in Washington D.C. given the right to vote for presidential electors

Amendment 24

Abolition of Poll Tax in National Elections

Amendment 26

Voting Age Set to 18 Years

Voting Rights Act of 1965

1965; invalidated the use of any test or device to deny the vote and authorized federal examiners to register voters in states that had disenfranchised blacks; as more blacks became politically active and elected black representatives, it brought jobs, contracts, and facilities and services for the black community, encouraging greater social equality and decreasing the wealth and education gap

interest group

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

Civil Society

society created when citizens are allowed to organize and express their views publicly as they engage in an open debate about public policy

Pluralist Theory

a theory of democracy that emphasizes the role of groups in the policymaking process

Elitist Theory

a theory that a few top leaders make the key decisions without reference to popular desires

Collective Good

Something of value (money, a tax write-off, prestige, clean air, and so on) that cannot be withheld from a group member.

Policy Agenda

The issues that attract the serious attention of public officials and other people actively involved in politics at the time.

Collective Action

An action taken by a group of like-minded individuals to achieve a common goal.

Freerider

someone who consumes a resource without working or contributing to the resource's upkeep

Selective Benefits

Goods (such as information publications, travel discounts, and group insurance rates) that a group can restrict to those who pay their annual dues.

Public Interest Groups

Promote issues of general public concern.

Lobbying

A strategy by which organized interests seek to influence the passage of legislation by exerting direct pressure on members of the legislature.

Lobbyist

A person who is employed by and acts for an organized interest group or corporation to try to influence policy decisions and positions in the executive and legislative branches.

Grassroots-Lobby

influencing government decision makers though indirect pressure (usually in the form of letters, emails, phone calls) from large numbers of constituents. This is also called indirect lobbying.

Revolving Door

the tendency of public officials, journalists, and lobbyists to move between public and private sector (media, lobbying) jobs

Iron Triangle

The Iron Triangle is used to describe the conspiratorial relationship between bureaucracies, congressional committees, and interest groups. These three points on the triangle often cooperate to further their own financial gains and interests.

Issue Network

webs of influence between interest groups, policymakers, and policy advocates

Protest

A form of political participation designed to achieve policy change through dramatic and unconventional tactics.

Civil Disobedience

A form of political participation that reflects a conscious decision to break a law believed to be immoral and to suffer the consequences.

Free media

campaign coverage provided by the media outside of paid advertising. Though this coverage is free for a campaign, the candidate loses control over the content, message, and image conveyed to voters.

Paid Media

a category of promotional tactic based on the traditional advertising model, whereby a brand pays for media space

Mass Media

Television, radio, newspapers, magazines, the Internet, and other means of popular communication.

Investigative Journalism

news reports that hunt out and expose corruption, particularly in business and government

Mass Consolidation

the concentration of ownership of the media into fewer corporations

Horse-Race Journalism

Election coverage by the mass media that focuses on which candidate is ahead rather than on national issues.