AP U.S. Government & Politics: Unit Three - Campaigns & Elections

AP U.S. Government & Politics – Block 2

UNIT THREE: CAMPAIGNS & ELECTIONS

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

  • 1. What rules govern elections in the United States, and how do these rules shape electoral outcomes?
  • 2. How has racial and partisan gerrymandering impacted the outcomes of congressional elections?
  • 3. What campaign strategies are commonly adopted by candidates seeking presidential office?
  • 4. How have the rules governing campaign finance evolved in the last fifty years?

DAILY PLAN

Thursday, 10/9: Winner-Take-All (FPTP) Elections
  • Activities: Ice Cream Elections
  • Homework:
    1. Read the Drutman article (#1)
    2. Read the Parks article (#2)
10/13 - 15: SCHOOL HOLIDAY + SATs
Thursday, 10/16: Congressional Redistricting
  • Activities: Seminar Discussion (Drutman & Parks)
  • Homework:
    1. Begin the podcast episode: “The Political Thicket” (#3)
    2. Complete the Redistricting Handout according to your assigned goal (save for next week!)
Friday, 10/17: Congressional Redistricting
  • Activities: Cases: Baker v. Carr & Shaw v. Reno
  • Homework:
    1. Finish “The Political Thicket” (#3)
    2. Complete Venn Diagram Handout
Monday, 10/20: Gerrymandering & Its Effects
  • DUE: Both Handouts (Minor Grade)
  • Activities: Seminar Discussion (“The Political Thicket”)
  • Homework:
    1. Read the Bazelon article (#4)
    2. Watch the Wall Street Journal video (#5)
Wednesday, 10/22: Presidential Nominations
  • Activities: Seminar Discussion (Bazelon & WSJ Video), Video clips
  • Homework:
    1. Review for Unit 3 Quiz (know the key terms, thus far!)
    2. Read more about Presidential campaign trends in LOGIC textbook
    • Take notes on key strategies!
    • pgs. 449-456 (12th ed.)
    • pgs. 491-499 (11th ed.)
    • pgs. 486-494 (10th ed.)
Friday, 10/24: Presidential Campaigns
  • DUE: Textbook Notes (Minor Grade)
  • QUIZ: Unit 3 Key Concepts (Minor Grade)
  • Activities: More video clips
  • Homework:
    1. Watch the episode “Examining the Electoral College” from PBS’s Firing Line with Margaret Hoover (#6)
Tuesday, 10/28: The Electoral College
  • Activities: Seminar Discussion (Electoral College)
  • Homework:
    1. Listen to the full “Citizens United” podcast episode (#7)
Thursday, 10/30: Campaign Finance Reform
  • Activities: Seminar Discussion (Citizens United v. FEC)
  • Homework:
    1. Study for Unit 3 Test… Students with accommodations should make plans in advance of test time!
    2. Finish Unit 3 Study Guide, Tutorial, & Supplemental
Monday, 11/3: Unit 3 Test
  • DUE: Unit 3 Study Guide (Major Grade), Notes, Tutorial, & Supplemental Homework TBD

UNIT 3 SOURCES

  1. The Case for Proportional Voting (Lee Drutman for National Review… 8 pages)
  2. Ranked Choice Voting is “the Hot Reform” in Democracy: Here’s What You Should Know About It (Miles Parks for NPR)
  3. The New Front in the Gerrymandering Wars: Democracy vs. Math (Emily Bazelon for The New York Times)
  4. CA vs. TX: The Redistricting Arms Race to Control Congress (The Wall Street Journal)
  5. The Political Thicket (More Perfect podcast series… approx. 45 mins.)
  6. Examining the Electoral College (PBS’s Firing Line with Margaret Hoover… approx. 27 mins.)
  7. Citizens United (More Perfect podcast series… approx. 60 mins.)

UNIT 3 FLASHCARDS

  • Successful flashcards must discuss more than base definitions (i.e.: details, examples, context, significance). No generative AI.
  • Key Concepts:
    • Alternatives to FPTP
    • Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (2002)
    • Baker v. Carr
    • Buckley v. Valeo (not required!)
    • Candidate-Centered Campaigns
    • Citizens United v. FEC
    • Electoral College
    • Federal Election Campaign Act (1974)
    • Front-Loading
    • Gerrymandering
    • Hard Money vs. Soft Money vs. “Outside Spending”
    • Majority-Minority Districts
    • Open Primary vs. Closed Primary vs. Caucus
    • Presidential Nominating Conventions
    • Primary-to-General “Pivot”
    • Reapportionment
    • Shaw v. Reno
    • Super-Delegates (Democratic Presidential Primary only)
    • Traditional PACs vs. Super PACs
    • Winner-Take-All Elections (aka FPTP)

UNIT 3 SHORT ANSWERS

  • Note: Three of these will randomly appear on the unit test (choice of two); handwritten only. Successful answers must be thoroughly developed and reflect class material. No generative AI.
  1. Compare the strengths & weaknesses of winner-take-all/FPTP elections.
  2. Compare how the Supreme Court applied the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause to Congressional redistricting in the cases below:
    a. Baker v. Carr
    b. Shaw v. Reno
  3. Explain how each of the following electoral rules affects the outcomes of Congressional elections in the United States:
    a. Closed primaries
    b. Gerrymandering
  4. Compare the Supreme Court’s position on racial and partisan gerrymandering.
  5. Explain why a candidate’s strategy to win the presidential nominating primary is often different from their strategy to win the general election.
  6. Describe the trend of “candidate-centered campaigns” in the modern era.
  7. Describe three key characteristics of modern Presidential campaigns.
  8. Explain the significance of the presidential nominating convention and how this aspect of the presidential campaign has evolved over time.
  9. Describe the impact of the Electoral College’s winner-take-all rules on:
    a. How Presidential candidates run their campaigns
    b. Likelihood of success for third-party candidates
  10. Compare the democratic values at stake in debates about whether/how to regulate campaign finance.

AP TUTORIAL

  • Asynchronous (complete at any time)… due before the Unit 3 Test
  • Required: Complete the Unit 3 Progress Check in AP Classroom (multiple-choice practice)
  • Optional: Draft the Unit 3 Practice FRQ 3