Campaign Finance
These groups collect money from donors to support political candidates or causes, but they are subject to specific limits based on which type of this group they are.
What are PACs (political action committees)?
This 1965 law aimed to eliminate discriminatory practices in voting, particularly in Southern states, and provided federal oversight in regions with a history of voting discrimination.
What is the Voting Rights Act?
Ashlee consistently votes for and writes in Green Party candidates in races across the ballot, which means she is engaging in this type of voting behavior.
What is party-line voting?
This term refers to the total percentage of eligible voters who actually cast a ballot in an election.
What is voter turnout?
These documents outline a political party’s official policies and goals, shaping their identity and campaign messages.
What is a party platform?
Passed in 2002, this law tried to clean up campaign finance by limiting "soft money" contributions to political parties.
What is BCRA (the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act)?
This law, passed in 1993, allows you to register to vote while you’re renewing your driver’s license, making the process more convenient.
What is the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, aka the "Motor Voter" law?
Ivette decides who to vote for by looking into the candidates' voting records and other past actions, which means she is engaging in this type of voting behavior.
What is retrospective voting?
This type of election occurs halfway through a president's term and is primarily held to elect members of Congress.
What are midterm elections?
This system ensures that the candidate with the most votes wins the election, even if they don’t get a majority, making it tough for third parties.
What is the winner-take-all system?
These PACs, with no contribution limits, cannot coordinate with candidates directly but can spend unlimited funds on their behalf.
What are Super PACs?
The 26th Amendment, ratified in 1971, changed this requirement for voting.
What is the voting age?
Melissa believes that the political system is trustworthy and therefore individual votes make a difference, which means that she has a high level of this political characteristic.
What is political efficacy?
These organizations, such as political parties, interest groups, and media, connect citizens to the political process, helping them influence policy.
What are linkage institutions?
This phenomena occurs when a major political event or election causes a large group of voters to shift their loyalty to a different party.
What is realignment?
This Supreme Court case in 2010 dramatically changed campaign finance rules, allowing corporations and unions to spend unlimited amounts of money on political advertising.
What is Citizens United v. FEC?
This amendment, ratified in 1870, granted voting rights to all male citizens, regardless of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.
What is the 15th Amendment?
Nneoma always votes for the candidates who best represent her own self-interest, which makes her this kind of voter.
What is a rational choice voter?
Examples of this issue include strict voter ID laws, long waiting times at polling places, and limited polling stations.
What are structural barriers to voting?
These events allow political parties to officially nominate their presidential candidate and set the party’s platform for the general election.
What are party conventions?
This provision of a larger campaign law requires candidates to endorse their advertisements, saying, “I approve this message.”
What is the "stand by your ad" provision?
This amendment allowed for the direct election of U.S. Senators, instead of being chosen by state legislatures.
What is the 17th amendment?
Rafiat is extremely interested in politics and takes every opportunity to interact with the political system, which means that she has a high level of this voter characteristic.
Political engagement
In states like Iowa, voters don’t head to the polls to vote in primaries; they attend these local meetings to choose their candidate.
What are caucuses?
A major focus of this campaign strategy is tailoring political messages to very specific groups of voters using data analytics.
What is micro-targeting?