Who Are We Voting For?
What type of democracy does the United States use?
Representative Democracy
Describe gerrymandering.
The manipulation of boundaries of an electoral constituency so as to favor one party or class.
What is the difference between a primary and a caucus?
A primary is what you think of when you think of typical voting - you get a ballot and bubble in your preferred nominee
A caucus is a communal gathering of citizens to talk, discuss, and deliberate their nominee together in a specified location like a YMCA, library, high school gym, etc.
Name 2 policies the Democratic Party would support.
Progressive taxes
Stronger environmental policies
Less military intervention
Support social safety net spending
What is political ideology?
If I were elected to represent a state, what role am I serving in?
Senator
Describe a swing state.
A state that could either vote for a Democrat or Republican. It does not politically lean a certain way.
What is Super Tuesday?
It is a Tuesday in which over 1/3 of delegates in the primary are decided. If a candidate does really well on Super Tuesday, they have a very good chance of winning the nomination.
Name 2 policies supported by the Republican Party.
Individualism/traditionalist values
Lower taxes except for military spending
States get to decide policies
Business friendly/oriented policies
Deregulation
What is political socialization?
the process by which people learn about their government and acquire the beliefs, attitudes, values, and behaviors associated with good citizenship.
If I were elected to represent a district, what role am I serving in Congress?
House of Representative
What are two methods used in gerrymandering?
Cracking and packing
Why would a state want to go first in the primary elections?
Their vote has more weight and is meaningful; media attention is drawn to the state; candidates have to come to the state in order to get people to want to vote for them
What is one role a party plays during an election cycle?
Create party platform
Get out the vote
Fundraise
Set up nominating process
How many electoral votes do you need to win the electoral college?
270 out of 538
What is the major difference between representative and direct democracy?
Direct - people vote directly for something
Representative - people vote for a person to do the voting for them
What is the least amount of states a candidate needs to win in order to win the electoral college.
12
Why might people not want to partake in a caucus?
Caucuses are time consuming, in public, and requires individuals to be very knowledgeable about most, or all, of the candidates.
How do parties create their platform? What do they consider?
What the party stands for
Changing public opinion
Current events
Describe federalism.
States and the federal government working together in one single political system
If I were 34 years old, what positions could I run for?
Senate
House of Representatives
How do swing states make an election unequal?
Candidates spend more time in swing states, and they try harder to get their vote than other states
Which method - primary or caucus - would likely get more people to participate? Why?
Primary - it is easier, simpler, requires less time and effort, and it is in secret
Are people more likely to vote during a presidential election or during a midterm election?
Presidential election
What day of the week do we vote on?
Tuesday