Political Process Textbook Vocab Exam 1

election

the selection of a persons to hold office by a vote

incumbent

the candidate in an election who already occupies the office

campaign

organized effort to persuade and mobilize voters to support or oppose a party or candidate

independent candidates

persons running for office who are not affiliated with any particular political party

term limits

legal restrictions on the maximum time a person can hold a specific office

primary election

election in which voters select the candidate that will run for the party in the general election

permanent campaign

the notion that candidates never stop campaigning because of the constant need to raise money for the next election cycle

single member districts

geographic units that elect only one person to represent the entire unit

at large elections

geographic units that elect multiple members as their representatives

reapportionment

process of determining the number of representatives allowed to each state after the decennial census count

redistricting

drawing new district lines after the decennial census count

malapportionment

any significant differences in the number of citizens across districts

one person, one vote

the principle that each person’s vote should have qual weight in determine representation first articulated in reynolds vs sims 1964

voting rights act of 1965

congressional legislation designed to end discrimination practices disenfranchising blacks

communities of interest

redistricting principle that districts should attempt to keep together citizens in areas that share a political history or set of interests

gerrymandering

drawing district lines to maximize some political interest

majority minority districts

districts in which racial or ethnic minorities form a majority of the population

poll taxes

fee requirements for voting typically used to keep blacks from voting in southern states

literacy tests

knowledge questions asked by election officials at the polls; used to prevent blacks from voting in souther states and were suspended in states where turnout was less than 50% of the age eligible population by the civil rights act

closed primary

election for the party’s nominee in which only those registered as party members can vote

semi closed primary

election for the party’s nominee in which party registrants and those unaffiliated with any party are allowed to vote

open primary

elections for the parties’ nominees in which registrants are allowed to vote in any primary they choose (but only in one)

blanket/jungle primary

election in which all candidates for each office are listed on the ballot, and anyone registered to vote in that election may vote for any one candidate typically the top two vote-getters advance to a second, runoff election

plurality rule

a way of determining who wins elections in which the candidate with the most votes wins (even if they do not get a majority of the votes)

proportional representation

system in which seats are allocated based on the percentage of the votes won by each party

duvergers law

single member, simple plurality election systems tend to produce two major political parties

strategic voting

in an elections witham ore than two candidates voting for a candidate other than one;s first choice in order to prevent an undesirable outcome

era of pre-democratic campaigns

times between ratification of constitutions in 1788 and widespread expansion of electing public officials in 1820s

Federalist Party

party associated with Hamilton representing a more expansive view of federal governing power especially with respect to regulating commercial interests. support strongest in northeast states

republican Democratic Party

party associated with Thomas Jefferson representing a more limited view of federal governing powers preferring state and local governing authority. support strongest in southern and western states.

whig party

party that rose in response to democratic party in 1830s representing votes concerned by Jackson’s expansive view of the presidnecy and his attacks on commercial interest

Republican Party

party originally associated with Lincoln and representing interest opposed to slavery and favoring the continuation of the union

reconstruction

era after civil war where policies created to protect freedoms and rights of black citizens. compromise of 1977 officially ended it.

political machines

party organizations that mobilized lower status citizens to win office, and then used government to reward party workers and bestow services and benefits to their constituents

front-porch campaign

tactic whereby the candidate stays at home and allows his campaign team to arrange for select meetings with news media outlets

progressive/bull moose party

party associated with Roosevelt and representing disaffected republicans who favored greater power and democratic prerogatives for the ‘little man’ and regulation of major industries

civil service

government jobs or positions in which employment and promotion are based on professional qualifications and performance

australian ballot

method of voting by secret ballot widely adopted by United States in early 1900s that made it impossible for causal observers or party workers to determine for a who a citizen had cast a vote

retail politics

face to face communication between candidates and voters of political positions and arguments

survey research

research method involving the use of questionnaires and/or statistical surveys to gather data about people and their thoughts and behaviors

focus groups

form of qualitative research in which a group of people are asked about perceptions, opinions, etc. questions are asked in an interactive group setting where participants are free to talk with other group members.

sorting

people’s partisan preferences have become more closely aligned with their political views

open seat

election in which no incumbent is running

quality challenger

candidate with the experience and backing necessary to run a competitive campaign

political amateur

candidate with no political experience

Hill committees

terms used to refer to the four major party campaign committees involved in congressional elections

earned media/free media

publicity that candidates get by engaging in promotional activities

coordinated expenditures

money that political parties spend to cover a candidates campaign costs in a federal election. such expenditures are limited by law

independent expenditures

piece of campaign communication by an independent group that engages in express advocacy party; expenditures made without consulting or coordinating with a candidate

incumbency advantage

the vote share earned by an incumbent compared to what a non incumbent would have earned if he or she had run

casework

work performed by members of congress or their staff to help constituents deal with government bureaucracies

personal vote

that portion of an elected official’s vote share that can be attributed to their relationship with constituents

citizen legislature

legislature in which serving as a legislator is a part time position that comes with relatively little salary or staff support

coattails effect

popular high profile candidate is on the ballot, lesser known candidates in that party benefit from that candidates appeal to votes

ballot initiatives

measures that affect laws or public policy that are proposed buy interested citizens and then voted on by citizens in elections

referenda

measures that affect laws or public policy that allow citizens to vote on a statue already passed by state legislatures

retention elections

judicial elections in which voters decide wether a sitting judge should continue in that position; these elections do not feature a competition between the sitting judge and an opponent

electoral participation

range of activities by which individuals attempt to affect the outcome of an election

participatory distortion

occurs when certain groups of citizens have a greater impact on political process than others

get-out-the-vote efforts

the efforts of candidates, parties, and interest groups to get citizens to vote

material benefit

reward or payment received in exchange for political participation

solidarity benefits

intangible reward for participation that comes form being part of a collective effort

purposive benefits

satisfaction one derives from having advanced an issue or ideological position or from having fulfilled a duty

political interest

having an ongoing interest in politics

internal efficacy

confidence that one has the ability to understand and engage in politics

external efficacy

belief that the political system will be responsive to one’s desires and needs

social context

people with whom one communications and interacts, such as family friends classmates

generational cohort

group of people who came of age politically at about the same time

mobilization

range of activities that candidates, parties, activists, etc engage in to encougrace people to participate

motor voter act

federal law requiring states to allow voters to registers when they are applying for a drivers license and public assistance programs to allow Election Day registration

convince voting

absentee, early, or mail in voting conducted before Election Day to facilitate turnout

absentee voting

process by which citizens who cannot vote in person on election request that ballots be mailed to their homes and then vote by mailing those ballots to election officials

panel study

survey that interviews respondents at one point in time and then reinterview at a later point in time to measure change in opinion

retrospective voting

choosing between candidates according to broad appraisals of whether things have improved or gotten worse under the incumbent

sociotropic voting

choosing between candidates based on how one thinks the country has faired under incumbent party’s rule

pocketbook voting

choosing between candidates based on how one’s personal finances have faired during the incumbent party’s rule

proximity voting

choosing a candidate vase don how close their views are to one’s own views across a range or relevance issues

ad watch

feature in media outlets in which journalists study campaign ads and comment on their content and truthfulness

donation booth

blind trust established in a candidates or political party’s name into which individuals or PACS can make anonymous donations

democracy index

ranking of all states and localities based on how democratic their elections are

deliberative poll

type of survey in which random sample of citizens are asked about issues or candidates then attend meeting where they discuss more than answers second set of questions to see changes

day of deliberation

paid day for citizens to take time off from work to attend meetings to discuss an upcoming election