Ch. 9 Key Terms

nomination

the official endorsement of a candidate for office by a political party

• success requires momentum, money, & media attention

campaign strategy

master game plan candidates lay out to guide electoral campaign

national party convention

supreme power within each of the parties

• meets every four years to nominate party’s presidential and vice-presidential candiddates and to write the party’s platform

McGovern-Fraser Commission

a commission formed at the 1968 Democratic convention in response to demands for reform by minority groups and others who sought better representation

superdelegates

national party leaders who automatically get a delegate slot at the national party convention

invisible primary

the period before any votes are cast when candidates compete to win early support from the elite of the party and create a positive first impression of their leadership skills

caucus

system for selecting convention delegates used in about a dozen states in which voters must attend an open meeting to express their presidential preference

presidential primaries

elections in which a states’ voters go to the polls to experess their preference for a party’s nominee for president

• Most delegates to the national party conventions are chosen this way

frontloading

recent tendency of states to hold primaries early in the calendar in order to capitalize on media attention

party platform

a political party’s statement of its goals and policies for the next four years. The platform is drafted prior to each candidate’s strength. It is the best formal statement of a party’s beliefs.

direct mail

a method of raising money for a political cause or candidate, in which info. and requests for money are sent to people whose names appear on lists of those who have supported similar views or candidates in the past

campaign contributions

Donations that are made directly to a candidates or a party and that must be reported to the FEC. As of 2012, individuals were allowed to donate up to $2,500 per election to a candidate and up to $30,800 to a political party

independent expenditures

expenses on behalf of a political message that are made by groups that are uncoordinated with any candidate’s campaign

Federal Election Campaign Act

a law passed in 1974 for reforming campaign finances. The act created the Federal Election Commission and provided for limits on and disclosures of campaign contributions

political action committees

groups that raise money from individuals and then distribute it in the form of contributions to candidates that the group supports. PACs must register with the FEC and report their donations and contributions to it. Individual contributions to the PAC are limited to $5,000 per year, and a PAC may give up to $5,000 to a candidate for each election

Federal Election Commission

a six-member bipartisan agency created by the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1974. The Federal Election Commission administers and enforces campaign finance laws

soft money

political contributions earmarked for party-building expenses at the grassroots level for generic party advertising. For a time, such contributions were unlimited, until they were banned by the McCain-Feingold Act

527 groups

Independent political groups that are not subject to contribution restrictions because they do not directly seek the election of particular candidates. Section 527 of the tax code specifies that contributions to such groups must be reported to the IRS.

Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission

A 2016 landmark Supreme Court case that ruled that individuals, corporations, and unions could donate unlimited amouns of money to groups that make independent political expenditures

501 (c) groups

Groups that are exempted from reporting their contributions and can receive unlimited contributions. Section 501c of the tax code specifies that such groups cannot spend more than half their funds on political activities

Super PACs

Independent expenditure-only PACs are known as Super PACs because they may accept donations of any size and can endorse candidates. Their contributions and expenditures must be periodically reported to the FEC.s

selective perception

phenomenon that people’s beliefs often guide what they pay the most attention to and how they interpret eventss

suffrage

the legal right to vote in the United States, gradually extended to virtually all citizens over age 18

political efficacy

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

civic duty

belief that in order to support democratic government, a citizen should vote

voter registration

system adopted by the states that requires voters to register prior to voting. Some states require citizens to register as much as 30 days in advance, whereas other permit Election Day registrationM

Motor Voter Act

a 1993 act requiring states to permit people to register to vote when they apply for a driver’s license

Mandate Theory of Elections

idea that the winning candidate has a mandate from the people to carry out platforms and politics. Politicians like the theory better than political scientists do.

policy voting

Electoral choices that are made on the basis of the voters’ policy preferences and where the candidates stand on policy issues

Electoral College

a unique American institution created by the Constitution, providing for the selection of the president by electors chosen by the state parties. Although the Electoral College vote usually reflects a popular majority, less populated states are overrepresented and the winner-take-all rule concentrates campaigns on close states

battleground states

the key states that the presidential campaigns focus on because they are most likely to decide the outcome of the Electoral College vote