AP Government Ch 9 Edwards

501 (c) groups

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

527 groups

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

Battleground states

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

Campaign contributions

Donations that are made directly to a candidate 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.

Campaign strategy

The master game plan candidates lay out to guide their electoral strategy.

Caucus

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

Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission

A 2010 landmark Supreme Court case that ruled that individuals, corporations, and unions could donate unlimited amounts of money to groups that make independent political expenditures

Civic duty

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

Direct mail

A method of raising money for a political cause or candidate, in which information 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.

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 over represented and the winner-take-all rule concentrates campaigns on close states.

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 disclosure of campaign contributions.

Frontloading

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

Independent expenditures

Expenses on behalf of a political message that are made by groups that are uncoordinated with any candidate's campaign.

Invisible primary

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

Mandate theory of elections

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

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.

Motor Voter Act

A 1993 act that requires states to permit people to register to vote when they apply for a driver's license.

National party convention

The supreme power within each of the parties. The convention meets every four years to nominate the party's presidential and vice-presidential candidates and write the party's platform.

Nomination

The official endorsement of a candidate for office by a political party. Generally, success in the nomination game requires momentum, money, and 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 the party convention by a committee whose members are chosen in rough proportion to each candidate's strengths. It is the best formal statement of a party's beliefs.

Policy voting

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

Political efficacy

The belief that one's political participation really matters - that one's vote can actually make a difference.

Presidential primaries

Elections in which a state's voters go to the polls to express their preference for a party's nominee for president. Most delegates to the national party convention are chosen this way.

Selective perception

The phenomenon that people's beliefs often guide what they pay the most attention to and how they interpret events.

Soft money

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

Suffrage

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

Super PACs

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

Superdelegates

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

Voter registration

A 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 others permit Election Day registration.