ap gov voting rights

when are federal elections held on

the first tuesday in november of every even numbered year

who do we vote for every federal election

our representatives and 1/3 of the senators

when do we vote for our president

every 4 years

14th amendment

grants citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the US, including former slaves

15th amendment

granted African Americans voting rights

17th amendment

changed the election of senators from a vote by state legislatures to a direct vote by the people

19th amendment

granted women the right to vote

23rd Amendment

gave washington DC three electoral votes

24th amendment

eliminated poll taxes

26th amendment

lowered voting age to 18

rational choice voting

refers to individuals who base their decisions on what is perceived to be in their best interest.

retrospective voting

refers to individuals who decide whether the party or candidate in power should be re-elected based on the recent past

prospective voting

individuals who vote based on predictions of how a party or candidate will perform in the future

straight ticket voting

individuals who vote for all the candidates from one political party on the ballot

split ticket voting

individuals who vote for one party for president and the opposite party for house or senate

voter turnout

number of voters that cast ballots as a % of the voting age population

voter apathy

my vote does NOT make a difference

political efficacy

my vote DOES make a difference

structural barriers

polling hours, registration requirements, age requirements, citizenship requirements and early voting options.

individual barriers

apathy, weather, work, away from home, long lines at polling locations

turnout is impacted by

differences in state laws

variations in registration laws

election type

electorate

defined by all eligible registered voters

absentee voting

if you vote out of your area on election day, you can file an absentee ballot

incumbency adavatages

-support from a paid staff

-incumbents are more visible

-scaring off other challengers

incumbency disadvatages

-redistricting can pit incumbents against one another

-scandals

-presidential coattails

-midterm elections

political party

organized group with similar ideologies and goals that seek to elect candidates to public office by supplying them with a label by which they are known to electorate

parties are considered a linkage institution because

they keep people informed and try to shape public opinion and policy

what are linkage institutions

channels that allow individuals to communicate their preferences to policy makers: political parties, interest groups, elections, media

what are the functions of political parties

they mobilice and educate voters, create platforms that define their ideas and goalsm recruit candidates and manage their campaigns, decide committee assignments and party leadership in legislatures

how do parties play a role in which candidates will run for office

they draw legislative distrcits, mobilize voters through registration drives and robocalls, educate voters on issues

parties have adapted to

candidate- centered campaigns

what are candidate centered campaigns

characteristics of candidate is the focus, not the party

the role of parties in the nominating process has become _______ in recent years

weaker

parties adapt their message to

appeal to various demographic coalitions

why do parties use communication technology and voter data managment

to control and clarify political messages and enhance outreach and mobilization efforts

what are party platforms

written list of beliefs and political goals

what do party platforms try to do

appeal to as broad of a base of voters as possible

republicans/elephants

-strong national defense

-reduction in wasteful government spending

-limited regulation on business

democrats/donkeys

-support minority rights

-stronger positions on the environment

-government services to solve public problems

how do parties impact the government

by writing public policy, electing candidates who transform preferences into policy, maintain power in the various chambers and branches

third party

-winner takes all voting serves as a structural barrier to third party and independent candidate success

-third party agendas are incorporated into the platforms of major parties which hinders the chances of a third party or independent candidate

why does a 2 party system exist

1 electoral system 2 opinions of voters 3 state laws make it difficult for third parties to get on the ballot

hard money

-contributions subject to regulation and limits

-donations from individuals, political parties, or political action committees

-candidate controls how the money is spent

soft money

-contributions that are not subject to regulation of limits

-party building activities not given to a specific candidate

-candidate and campaign have no access/creative control of ads

federal election campaign

-tracked hard money

-limited individuals contributions to 1000 per election

-limited candidates own contribution to 50,000 per election

-defined and regulated donations of PACS

Bipartisan Campaign reform act

-banned soft money to national parties

-increased limits on hard money to 2000 from individuals

-5000 for PACS

-increases every few years for inflation

Citizen United v FEC

overturned key parts of BCRA saying that the law violated the 1st amendment free speech clause and that corporations, labor unions, and other organizations could use their money to endorse or denounce a candidate as long as they did not coordinate with the campaign directly

candidate recruitment

-can connect with voters

-are charismatic with a grasp of the issues and ability to articulate them

-party volunteers, community leaders, or well known people around town.