Citizenship, Voting, and Electoral College Study Guide

Flashcards covering U.S. citizenship, naturalization requirements, voting rights, amendments, demographics, voter suppression barriers, and Electoral College mechanics.

Naturalization

The process through which individuals born outside the United States become U.S. citizens.

Oath of Allegiance

The oath sworn by individuals upon completing the naturalization process to become a U.S. citizen.

Naturalization Test Requirements

A test process where applicants study 100 questions, are verbally asked 10 questions, and must answer 6 correctly.

Civic Responsibilities

Actions of a responsible citizen, which include voting in elections, serving on jury duty, and paying taxes.

Suffrage

The right to vote.

Voter Demographic Trends

Patterns where individuals aged 50+ or highly educated are most likely to vote, while teenagers, young adults, and poorer individuals are least likely to vote.

Suburban Voting Areas

Highly competitive geographic 'battleground' areas that shift between red (Republican) and blue (Democrat).

15th Amendment

Constitutional amendment stating that the right to vote cannot be denied based on race, color, or culture.

26th Amendment (1971)

Constitutional amendment that lowered the voting age to 18.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

The law through which African Americans fully obtained the right to vote.

Historical Voting Barriers

Past policies designed to restrict voting, including literacy tests, poll taxes, and grandfather clauses (requiring a grandfather to have voted before 1867).

Current Voting Barriers

Modern obstacles to voting, such as photo ID requirements, wrong names on records, reduced polling locations, and uncounted votes.

Convenience Voting Policies

Laws that make voting easier, including automatic voter registration, early voting, same-day voter registration, and voting by mail.

Electoral Vote Thresholds

Key numbers in the Electoral College, consisting of 538 total electoral votes, where 270 majority votes are needed to win.

Winner-Take-All System

The Electoral College approach in most states where the candidate winning the majority earns all of the state's electoral votes.

State Electoral Allocation

The calculation determining a state's electoral votes based on its population, giving each state 2 Senators plus its House of Representatives count.

Swing State

A state that frequently switches between voting red (Republican) and blue (Democrat), such as Georgia and Nevada.

Electoral College Tie

A scenario where no candidate gets a majority of electoral votes, resulting in the election being decided by a vote in the House of Representatives.

2000 and 2016 Presidential Elections

Elections in which candidates Gore (2000) and Clinton (2016) won the popular vote, but lost to George Bush (2000) and Trump (2016) in the Electoral College.