Political Parties
The act of redrawing district boundaries to favor a specific group or party.
Gerrymandering
What is soft and dark money?
Soft money is money that is not explicitly donated to a candidate, but a campaign. However, limits have been placed on it due to soft money being used to support candidate campaigns. Dark money is money the campaign doesn’t have to report the source of or amount donated.
Voting Rights Act of 1965
It prevents states from using legal barriers to prevent African Americans from voting. It enforced the 15th amendment.
What is the role of interest groups?
To influence public policy to favor in ways that influence the members in a beneficial way.
What is Horse Race Journalism?
The treatment of political campaigns, particularly elections, focusing primarily on who is ahead or behind in polls and predictions rather than on policy issues or candidate qualifications.
What is the ultimate goal of any political party?
All political parties are essentially just office seeking institutions.
The ruling in this case essentially allowed individuals to donate to and influence multiple campaigns across the country.
McCutcheon et al. v. FEC
17th Amendment
The 17th amendment allowed voters to directly elect senators. Previously they were selected by state legislatures.
Iron Triangle
The relationship between congressional committees, special interest groups, and regulatory agencies.
What is an echo chamber?
An environment in which a person encounters only beliefs or opinions that coincide with their own, hence, reinforcing one’s beliefs or opinions.
How do political parties benefit people
Political parties can act as linkage institutions, connecting people to the government. Specifically they can help educate the public about issues and elections.
What supreme court case ruled that a corporation’s support of political campaigns did fall under the freedom of speech?
Citizens United v. FEC
This amendment, ratified in 1964, abolished the practice of requiring voters to pay a fee in order to cast their ballots.
24th Amendment
What is coalition building in the context of interest groups?
When multiple interest groups collaborate in order to lobby a government institution (congress, president, executive branch).
What is agenda setting?
Media’s ability to influence public agenda/perception on important/unimportant issues.
This system of elections, where candidates run without formal party affiliations, is often seen in local elections.
Nonpartisan Elections
Soft money previously had no limit to how much could be donated. But what act diminished the role of soft money in campaigns?
Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act
What is the Australian ballot?
A ballot administered by the state instead of parties. Lists the names of all candidates from all parties running for office.
A common strategy used by interest groups to mobilize the public, urging them to contact legislators or participate in protests to support their cause.
Grassroots Lobbying
What landmark Supreme Court case upheld the principle that the government cannot censor the press before publication (prior restraint)?
New York Times Co. v. United States (1971)
What is the name of the political party that favors little to no government regulation in matters like the economy: advocates for a free market.
Libertarian Party
What supreme court case ruled there is no limit on the amount of personal money a candidate can spend on a campaign?
Buckley v. Valeo
What is the referendum system?
In the referendum system people directly vote on solutions to issues without government interference. However, said solutions can be reviewed by courts to see if they violate state or national law.
How does federalist 10 relate to interest groups?
Federalist 10 suggests that in a large diverse nation there will be many factions, or interest groups, representing different interests. With so many interest groups no single interest group will dominate over the others, thus ensuring a pluralist democracy.
This term describes the type of polling error that occurs when the sample does not accurately represent the broader population.
Sampling Error