Parties 1/2
What is one Progressive Reform that led to the decline of parties in the era of 1900-1976?
Adoption of Australian (secret) ballot, rise of primary elections, replace patronage with merit system
Do Americans have a constitutional right to a secret ballot?
No
Do individual members of Congress or the entire body tend to poll better?
Individual members
Is Congress a they or an it?
They
What is the theory that elected officials, as strategic actors mainly focused on re-election, organize their actions in office mainly around the goal of being re-elected?
David Mayhew's Electoral Connection
What is ticket splitting?
When a voter votes for candidates of different parties, for different offices, on the same ballot
Until 1968, did presidential candidates rely more on primary voters/elections or insider support to win primary elections?
Insider support. Think smoke-filled rooms where party bosses are dealmaking and picking candidates.
Until the Democrats adopt the Frazer-Mcgovern Reforms, which democratized the primary process. Republicans then mostly implement the same reforms to their primary process.
DAILY DOUBLE: Is turnout generally higher in Presidential or midterm elections?
Presidential elections
Does the incumbent president's party tend to lose or gain seats in the House during midterms?
Lose
Which has a higher vote threshold: filibuster, or veto override?
The veto override
What were the two main parties during the First Party System?
Name one way in which parties promote collective action within government
They maintain stable legislative majorities that allow them to pass legislation, namely through coordination and discipline
Why did only around 20% of voters believe that the Affordable Care Act was "about right?"
Most believed that the bill either did not go far enough or went too far in changing healthcare policy
Lean towards one of the two parties
What are the three strategies used by politicians to win re-election, according to Mayhew's Electoral Connection?
Credit claiming, advertising, and position taking
What is the theory that party elites coordinate to anoint candidates through endorsements, money, and media coverage and that primary voters then go along with the elites' choice?
"The Party Decides"
How did ticket splitting and partisan identification change from the 1950s to the 1970s? Why?
Ticket splitting increased and partisan ID decreased. These changes can be attributed to candidate-centered politics, ideological diversity within the parties, and disillusionment with parties due to tumultuous events like the Vietnam War
What percentage of House and Senate members win re-election?
What is the incumbency advantage? Has it increased or decreased in the past few decades?
Incumbency advantage is the additional vote share that current seat-holder can expect in re-election due to being a member of Congress. It has decreased over the past few decades.
According to Krehbiel, these are two major pivot points in determining whether legislation will change the status quo. I.e, these are the supermajoritarian barriers that need to be overcome for a law to pass
Filibuster and veto
Describe either the significance of Andrew Jackson, the Election of 1824, or the Election of 1828 to the Second Party System.
In the 1824 election, Andrew Jackson wins the popular vote but no candidate wins the majority of electoral voters. The House then chooses John Quincy Adams to be the President. This sets up the Second Party System starting in 1828: the rise of Jackson's Democratic Party, which wins across regions through mass mobilization. The party then institutes the spoils system (overcoming collective action problems faced by parties by handing out jobs to supporters).
Describe one feature of the Third Party System
The Third Party System lasted from pre-Civil War to end of 19th century. It can be characterized by high levels of voter mobilization and patronage. This era also saw the development of machine politics in cities.
What are the primary and secondary goals of Members of Congress?
Primary: to get re-elected
Secondary: to wield power and shape policy
Kevin Mccarthy, Mike Johnson, AOC, etc.
According to Mayhew, one role of congressional committees (which decentralize power within Congress) is to _____________
To allow individual members of Congress to specialize in and influence policy, thereby allowing them to claim credit for delivering earmarks/funds to their district