usa government unit 6 political parties, elections, & voting vocabulary terms
TRANSCRIPT
IMPORTANT PEOPLE & $ IN VOTING
• Campaign Manager The head of the campaign organization.• bosses powerful party
leaders• soft money a contribution to a
political party that is not accounted as going to a particular candidate, thus avoiding various legal limitations
HOW PEOPLE VOTE & PRIMARIES
• Cross-Pressured Voter A voter who is caught between conflicting elements in his or her own life such as religion, income level, and peer group.
• Straight-Party Ticket When a voter selects the candidates of their party only.
• direct primary An election in which party members select people to run in the general election
• closed primary A primary in which only registered members of a particular political party can vote
• open primary A primary in which any registered voter can vote (but must vote for candidates of only one party).
CHOOSING SIDES IN AN ELECTION
• political party a group of people with broad common interests who organize to win elections, control government, and influence government policies.
• coalition government Several parties combine forces to obtain a majority
• third party A political party other than the two major political parties (Republican and Democratic).
• independent not supporting any particular party
• patronage Giving political jobs in exchange for political support.
GETTING OUT THE INFORMATION
• precinct captain a volunteer who organizes party workers to distribute information about the party and its candidates and to get the voters to the polls
• Issue Advocacy Campaigns Advertising paid for by interest groups that urges voters to support a particular position on issues such as gun control or health care.
THE TERRITORY INVOLVED
• single-member districts An electoral district in which voters choose one representative or official
• precinct A voting district
• ward A large district comprised of several adjoining precincts.
• proportional representation An electoral system in which members of legislatures are chosen in proportion to the numbers of votes their parties receive.
ORGANIZATIONS RUNNING THE MACHINE• Federal Election Commission (FEC) An independent
agency in the executive branch to administer federal election laws.
• Political Action Committees (PACs) Organizations established by interest groups to collect money and provide financial support to favored candidates or political parties.
• The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BRCA)• A bill that targeted the use of issue advocacy advertising
and the use of soft-money donations to national political parties.
• state central committee a committee usually composed largely of representatives from the party's county organizations
THROWING A PARTY TO GET A CANDIDATE
• national convention A gathering of delegates of a single political party from across the country to choose candidates for president and vice president and to adopt a party platform.
• national committee A standing committee of a national political party established to direct and coordinate party activities between national party conventions
• nominating convention An official public meeting of a party to choose candidates for office.
SOME HISTORY OF VOTING/ELECTIONS• Suffrage The right to vote.• Grandfather Clause Provided that only
voters whose grandfathers had voted before in 1867 were eligible to vote without paying a poll tax or passing a literacy test.
• Poll Tax An amount of money a citizen had to pay before he or she could vote.
• 1965 Voting Rights Act One of the most effective suffrage laws passed in United States history.
• theocracy A government ruled by religious leaders
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ELECTIONS
• Image The mental picture that voters have of a candidate.• ideologies Basic beliefs about
government.• planks An individual belief in
a platform• platform A statement of the
party's principles, beliefs, and positions on vital election issues.
MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS OF THOUGHT
• caucuses An informal gathering where voters express their preference for a candidate. It's a pyramid, starting from a local level, to a county then district then state level. 14 states use caucuses.
• plurality Candidate or party with the most votes cast in an election, not necessarily more than half.
• runoff primary A second primary election held when no candidate wins a majority of the votes in the first primary.
• ticket Candidates for president and vice president