Chapter 4 Political Parties

Which of the following is part of the party structure in Texas?

A. state executive committee

B. the Tea Party

C. county registrar’s office

D.the governor’s office

A. state executive committee

Party Platform

a statement of principles and political philosophy that a promises to enact if elected to office.

Partisan Polarization

the degree to which republican have become more conservative and democrats have become more liberal.

political socialization

the introduction of individuals into the political culture; learning the underlying beliefs and values on which the political system is based.

precinct

the most basic level of political organization at the local level.

Precinct chair

The local party official, elected in the party’s primary election, who heads the precinct convention and serves on the party’s county executive committee.

County executive committee

The party group, made up of a party’s county chair and precinct chairs, that is responsible for running a county’s primary and planning county conventions.

County chair

The county party official who heads the county executive committee.

State chair and vice chair

The top two state-level leaders in the party

State executive committee

The committee responsible for governing a party’s activities throughout the state.

Precinct convention

Held on the day of the party’s primary election and are open to anyone who voted in that election.

• Select delegates

• Submit regulations

County convention

Held by a political party following its precinct convention, for the purpose of electing delegates to its state convention.

State convention

Held every 2 years for the purpose of nominating candidates for statewide office, adopting a platform, electing the party’s leadership, and presidential election years selecting delegates for the national convention and choosing presidential electors.

Dixiecrats

Conservative southern democrats who abandoned the national Democratic Party in the 1948 presidential election over the issue of racial integration.

La Raza Unida

Former political party created in 1970 in Texas in order to bring attention to the concerns of Mexican Americans.

“First past the post”

An election rule that states that the winner is the candidate who receives a plurality of the votes.

Single-member district

An electorate that elects only one representative for each district.

Proportional representation

A multimember district system that allows each political party representation in proportion to its percentage of the total vote.

Tea Party Movement

Reaching prominence after Barack Obama’s election, a political movement that advocates lower government spending, lower taxes, and limiting government.

Shivercat movement

a movement led by Texas governor Allan Shivers during the 1950s in which conservative Democrats in Texas supported Republican candidate Dwight Eisenhower for the presidency because many of those conservative Democrats believed that the national Democratic Party had become too liberal.

presidential Republicanism

a voting pattern in which conservatives vote Democratic for state offices but Republican for president.

Blue Dog Democrats

another name for conservative Democrats, mostly from the South.

Which best explains why third parties do not win many elections in Texas?

A. Voters tend not to agree with their policies.

B. Third parties are not allowed to run for many offices.

C. Voters believe their votes are wasted if they vote.

D. Third parties are prevented from fundraising in state elections.

C. Voters believe their votes are wasted if they vote.

Which group had the most power in Texas politics during the early 1900s?

A. liberal democrats

B. conservative Democrats

C. liberal Republicans

D. conservative Republicans

B. conservative Democrats

Which statement best describes the evolution of the party system in Texas?

A. The Democratic Party has always been dominant in the state.

B. The Republican Party has always been dominant in the state.

C. The Democratic Party was dominant in the post–Civil War period, and the Republican Party became dominant beginning in the 1990s.

D. The Republican Party was dominant in the post–Civil War period, and the Democratic Party became dominant beginning in the 1990s.

C. The Democratic Party was dominant in the post–Civil War period, and the Republican Party became dominant beginning in the 1990s.

Which of the following is true about partisanship in Texas?

A. Rural areas are mixed between Democrats and Republicans.

B. Urban areas are strongly Democratic.

C. Suburban areas are strongly Democratic.

D. Urban and rural areas are strongly Republican.

B. Urban areas are strongly Democratic.

Latinos and African Americans in Texas

A. are strong supporters of the Republican party.

B. tend to vote at higher rates than other groups.

C. are unrepresented in Congress.

D. tend to support Democratic candidates for office.

D. tend to support Democratic candidates for office.