The body that votes to select America's president and vice -president based on the popular vote in each state.
What is the electoral college?
100
The division of governmental power across the judicial, executive, and legislative branches.
What is separation of powers?
100
The idea that a popular president can generate additional support for candidates affiliated with his party.
What is coattails?
100
In a presidential election, highly competitive states in which both major party candidates stand a good chance of winning the state's electoral votes.
What is a swing state?
100
A voting system in which the candidate who receives the most votes within a geographic region wins the election, regardless of whether that candidate wins a majority of the votes.
What is plurality (voting)?
200
A primary election in which only registered members of a particular political party can vote.
What is a closed primary?
200
The division of power across local, state and national levels of government.
What is federalism?
200
A local meeting in which party members select a party's nominee for the general election.
What is a caucus?
200
The level of support for expanding the government's role in society; whether the public wants government action on a specific issue.
What is policy mood?
300
A politician running for re-election to the office he or she currently holds.
What is an incumbent?
300
A system in which each branch of government has some power over the others.
What is checks and balances?
300
A ballot on which a voter selects candidates from more than one political party.
What is a split ticket?
300
A simple two-person game that illustrates how actions that are in a player's individual self-interest may lead to outcomes that all players consider inferior.
What is a prisoners' dilemma?
400
A change in the number of seats held by Republicans and Democrats in the House or the Senate.
What is a seat shift?
400
The idea that many Americans acquire political information unintentionally rather than by seeking it out.
What is the by-product theory?
400
Donations that are used to help elect or defeat a specific candidate.
What is hard money?
400
An interest group or a division of an interest group that can raise money to contribute to campaigns or to spend on ads in support of candidates.
What is a political action committee (PAC)?
500
Contributions that can be used for voter mobilization or to promote a policy proposal or point of view as long as these efforts are not tied to supporting or opposing a particular candidate or politician's personality.
What is soft money?
500
Groups of like-minded people who try to influence the government.
What is a faction?
500
The proportions of seats in the House and Senate that are controlled by each major party.
What is party ratio?
500
Interest groups made up of several independent, local organizations that provide much of their funding and hold most of their power.