VOTING BEHAVIOR & TURNOUT
This is the strongest long-term factor influencing how people vote.
What is party identification?
Organizations that run candidates and try to win elections.
What are political parties?
Groups that influence policy but do NOT run candidates.
What are interest groups?
The number of members in the House of Representatives.
What is 435?
The first step where a bill is introduced.
What is sponsorship?
A sense of responsibility that motivates people to vote.
What is civic duty?
This U.S. voting system makes it hard for third parties to win.
What is plurality voting / first-past-the-post?
Trying to influence government officials directly.
What is lobbying?
The number of U.S. Senators.
What is 100?
The stage where bills are reviewed and often die.
What are committees?
Younger, lower-income, and less educated citizens are less likely to do this.
What is vote (turnout)?
Elections where the top candidates compete again if no one wins a majority (used in Alabama).
What are runoff elections?
A problem where people benefit without contributing.
What is the free-rider problem
Redrawing district lines to benefit a political party.
What is gerrymandering?
Both chambers must pass this identical version of a bill.
What is the same bill?
This resource-based factor suggests that individuals with more financial stability are more likely to participate in elections.
What is income?
When parties become more ideologically divided over time.
What is polarization?
Legal briefs submitted to influence court decisions.
What are amicus curiae briefs?
The process of redistributing seats based on population.
What is reapportionment?
The president’s rejection of a bill.
What is a veto?
This factor gives current officeholders a major advantage in elections.
What is incumbency advantage?
A major shift in party support among voters.
What is realignment?
Mobilizing the public to pressure government from the outside.
What is grassroots lobbying?
Representing constituents’ interests through policy actions.
What is substantive representation?
The action Congress can take to override a veto.
What is a veto override?