That's Your Opinion
The level of public support for expanding the government's role in society
The principal organization of each political party, comprised of party representatives from each state
national committee
People who are well informed about their own policy preferences and knowledgeable about the candidates, and who use all of this information when they decide how to vote.
issue voters
The term referring to efforts to influence public policy through contact with public officials on behalf of an interest group
lobbying
An opinion formed on the spot, when it is needed (as distinct from a deeply held opinion that is stable over time).
latent opinion
Interest groups that can raise money to contribute to campaigns or to spend on ads in support of candidates
Political action committees (PACs)
Individuals who attend their party’s national convention and vote to select their party’s nominee for the presidency
delegates
Interest groups that have a headquarters, usually in Washington, D.C., as well as members and field offices throughout the country
centralized group
The term for holding principles and preferences that are consistent with one another and stable over time.
high level of conceptualization
A change in the size or composition of the party coalitions or in the nature of the issues that divide the parties
realignment
The term referring to a second election, under a majority voting system, held only if no candidate wins a majority of the votes in the first general election
runoff election
The practice of relying on others to contribute to a collective effort while failing to participate on one’s own behalf, yet still benefiting from the group’s success
free riding
List two influences of political opinions as listed in the book.
political socialization, events, group identity, politicians
A set of objectives outlining the party’s issue positions and priorities.
party platform
A type of survey in which the questions are presented in a biased way in an attempt to influence the respondent
push polling
Benefits that can motivate participation in a group effort because they are available only to those who participate, such as member services offered by interest groups
selective incentives
Give two of the four problems with polling as listed in the book.
1) hard to build a random sample
2) question wording can sway survey results
3) people sometimes are not 100% transparent about their opinions
4) latent opinions are formed on the spot based on varying considerations, which could result in different opinions if surrounding circumstances change
The principle that in a democracy with single-member districts and plurality voting, only two parties’ candidates will have a realistic chance of winning political office.
Duverger's law
A citizen’s judgment of an officeholder’s job performance since the last election
retrospective evaluation
The level of familiarity with an interest group’s goals among the general population.
salience