gov test
Unit 3 Test Review Topics
Nominations
o Formal process where president proposes individuals for appointed positions and the Senate has power to confirm or reject them. Political party nominations were a party selects a candidate to run for a position in office.
Campaign Strategies
o Voter outreach, digital/media, and mobilization efforts.
Party Conventions
o Meetings where political parties formally nominate their candidates, adopt a platform, and build unity.
Primaries v. Caucuses
o Primaries: voters choose their preferred candidate by voting
o Caucus: meetings run by political parties held at county, district, precinct levels.
1968 Democratic National Convention
o In chicago. Marked significant division over the vietnam war that led to chaos and the public perception of the party as fractured. Introduced primary and caucus systems that is used today
McGovern Fraser Commission
o Democratic party committee created in 1969 to thorn presidential nominating process after the 1968 convention. Made to ensure all democratic voters had a “full, meaningful, and timely opportunity to participate” in choosing delegates
Superdelegates
o Unpledged delegates to US political party presidential nominating conventions who are free to vote for any candidate, regardless of primary or caucus resulted. A safegaurd against unelectable candidates
Critics and Proponents of Current Primary System
o Critics: individuals or groups hat express disapproval or offer staples analysis of government policies, actions, or structures.
o Proponents: person, group, or agency that advocates for or supports a specific proposal, policy, or action.
Buckley v. Valeo (1976)
o Determined that limits on a candidates’ personal spending, independent expenditures, and total campaign spending violates free speech rights
2004 Election
o George bush elected to a second term, defeating John Kerry. Incumbency advantage divided government and partisanship, moral values and social issues, gorgeousness policy and national security, electoral vilest and winner-take-all system, campaign finance, and voter turnout were all themes and outcomes.
Critical Realigning Elections
o Election that causes major and enduring shift in the party system, often due to a crisis or major event.
2000 Election
o George Bush won against Al Gore, despite Gore winning the national popular vote. Defined b the controversial vote vote in florida, which was decided by the US supreme court case of Bush v. Gore
Coattail Effect
o When a politics leader is able to attract votes for other candidates in their party.
Election Structure of Original Constitution
o Electoral college elects the president ad vice president. Each state’s electors are equal to the number of its reps and senators, cast two votes for prez and vp, with the tibet-up becoming vp. If no candidate secured a majority, the house of reps would choose from the top five vote-getters, with each state delegation receiving one vote.
Open/Closed/Blanket Primaries
o Open: primary election where voters are not required to declare party affiliation
o Closed: primary election where only voters who are registered members of a particular political party may vote for that party’s candidates
o Blanket: primary election that allows voters to choose one candidate per office abyss any and all politics party lines, regardless of their own registered political affiliation. All candidates appear on one ballot.
Initiative v. Referendum
o Initiative: empowers citizens to propose new laws or constitutional amendments
o Referendum: shows voters to approve or reject an act of the legislature
1800 Election
o Resulted in tie between two Democratic-Republican candidates, leading to a constitutional crisis and the first peaceful transfer of power between opposing political parties
1896 Election
o Centered on economic issues following the Panic of 1893. Republican Wilson McKinley won against Democratic/populist nominee William Jennings Bryan.
2000 Election (Supreme Court)
o Stopped manual recounts in Florida, effectively awarding the state’s 25 electoral votes and the presidency to Republican candidate George W. Bush
Downs Theory of Rational Voting
o Voters and political parties act as self-interested, rational actors who seek to maximize their personal welfare.
Voter Turnout Statistics
o Recent US elections have had some of the highest voter turnout in recent decades
Motor Voter Act
o Enhanced voting opportunities and increase voter participation by making it easier for citizens to register to vote
Mandate Theory of Elections
o Idea that winning candidates hav a special authorization or “mandate” from the people to implement his or her specific policy platforms an political agenda. Politicians often use this theory to claim broad public support for their proposed acting and to justify their legislative priorities.
Elements of Voter’s decisions
o Influenced by long term social and psychological factors, and short term political and economic issues such as demographic, sociological, psychological, attitudinal, and performance-based factors.
Frontloading
o Practice of US states moving their presidential primary levering or caucuses earlier in the calendar year to increase their influence in the presidential nomination process. By holding early contests, a state can attract greater media attention, draw more candidate visits, and have a disproportionate impact on candidate momentum and fundraising.
Pluralist/Elite/Hyperpluralists
o Pluralist: power in a democrat is dispersed among many diverse, competing groups and interests
o Elite: small, privileged group of people working larger organization or society who have a disproportionate amount of auditory influence, wealth, or power.
o Hyperpluralist: contends that the existence of too many powerful interest groups or factions can lead to the government becoming weak, fragmented, and ultimately unable to function effectively.
Ralph Nader (Interest Groups)
o Established/inspired interest groups that continue o be active in government. These group lobby Congress, petition regulatory agencies, and engage in public education to promote consumer, environmental, and government reforms.
Federalist Paper #10 (Interest Groups)
o James Madision addresses dangers of “factions” and argues that the structure of the proposed US constitution provides the best means to control their harmful effects
Different between Parties/Interest Groups
o Political parties aim to win elections and control the government, while interest groups aim to influence specific policies from outside the government structure.
Interest Group Liberalism
o Describes condition where government policies are predominantly the result of negotiations and compromises among various interest groups, rather than being driven by a coherent vision of the public interest.
Olson’s Theory of Large Groups
o Large groups of people are generally inane to voluntarily act in their common interest to provide public goods, even when it would be beneficial for all members.
Functions of Interest Groups
o Representing members’ interests, facilitating political participation, educating the public and government, and engaging in program monitoring.
PACS
o Groups organized to collect and pool campaign contributions from its members, then uses those funds to support or oppose political candidates, major intestines, or legislation.
Amicus Curiae Briefs
o “friend of the court.” Filed to present specific arguments, information, and policy preferences that align with their organizational goals r ideological viewpoints.
Class Action lawsuits
o Powerful tool in the US leaks system that allow slathered group of individuals, who have suffered a common injury due to a single defendant’s conduct (including the government), to sue as a single entity
Right to Work
o State-level statutes that guarantee no person can be compelled, as a condition of employment, to join or not to join a labor union, nor to pay union dues or agency fees.
Union Shop
o Workplace arrangement in which an employer is are to hire any qualified person, but that employee is required to fit the union and pay dues (or their equivalent) within a specified period of time after being hired, typically 0 to 90 days, as a condition of continued employment.
Public Interest Lobbies
o Organizations that advocate for policies and issues they believe will benefit the general public or society as a whole, rather than ailey the private or commercial interests of their own members.