Vocab: Ch. 4-5, 7-9

  1. political culture
    the widely shared beliefs, values, and norms about how citizens relate to gov and to one another
  2. suffrage
    right to vote
  3. social capital
    democratic and civic habits of discussion, compromise, and respect for differences, which grow out of participation in voluntary organizations
  4. natural rights
    • rights of all people to dignity and worth
    • aka. human rights
    • gov must be limited to protect these
  5. democratic consensus
    widespread agreement on fundamental principles of democratic governance and the values that undergird them
  6. majority rule
    governance according to the expressed preferences of the majority
  7. popular sovereignty
    a belief that ultimate power resides in the people
  8. nationalism
    • an enduring sense of national identity or consciousness that derives from cultural, historic, linguistic, or political forces
    • (patriotism/optimism/idealism)
  9. American Dream
    the widespread belief that the US is a land of opportunity and that indiv initiative and hard work can bring economic success
  10. capitalism
    economic system characterized by private property, competitive markets, economic incentives, and limited gov involvement in the production, distribution, and pricing of goods and services
  11. political ideology
    a consistent pattern of beliefs about political values and the role of gov
  12. liberalism
    a belief that gov can and should achieve justice and equality of opportunity
  13. conservatism
    belief that limited gov ensures order, competitive markets, and person opportunity
  14. socialism
    economic and governmental system based on public owenership of the means of production and exchange
  15. libertarianism
    ideology that cherishes indiv liberty and insists on minimal gov, promoting a free market econ, a noninterventionist foreign policy, and no regulation in moral, econ, and social life
  16. ethnocentrism
    belief in the uperiority of one's nation or ethnic group
  17. political socialization
    process by which we develop our political values, attitudes, and beliefs
  18. demography
    study of the characteristics of populations
  19. political predisposition
    characteristics of indiv that is predictive of political behavior
  20. reinforcing cleavages
    divisions within society that reinforce on another, making groups more homogenous or similar (differences that agree)
  21. cross-cutting cleavages
    divisions within society that cut across demographic categories to produce groups that are more heterogeneous or different
  22. manifest destiny
    notion held by 19th c. Americans that the US was destined to rule the continent, from the Atlantic to the Pacific
  23. race
    a grouping of human being with distinctive characteristics determind ed genetic inheritance
  24. ethnicity
    social division based on national origin, religion, language, and often race
  25. gender gap
    diff btwn the political opinions or political behavior of men and women
  26. gross domestic product (GDP)
    total output of all econ activity in the nation, including goods and services
  27. socioeconomic status (SES)
    a division of population based on occupation, income, and education
  28. fundamentalists
    conservative Christians who as a group have become more active in politics in the last two decades and were esp influential in the 2000 and 2004 prez elections
  29. honeymoon
    period at the beginning of a new prez term during with the prez enjoys generally positive relations with the press and Congress, usually lasting about 6 months
  30. caucus
    meeting of local party members to choose party officials or candidates for public office and to decide the platform
  31. party convention
    meeting of party delegates to vote on matters of policy and in some cases to sele ct party candidates for public office
  32. direct primary
    election in which voters choose party nominees
  33. open primary
    primary election in which any voter, regard-less of party, may vote
  34. crossover voting
    voting by a member of one party for a candidate of another party
  35. closed primary
    primary election in which only persons registered in the party holding the primary may vote
  36. political party
    organization that seeks political power by electing people to office so that its positions and philosphy become public policy
  37. nonpartisan election
    election in which candidates are not selecte or endorsed by political parites and party affiliation is not listed on ballots
  38. patronage
    • dispensing of gov jobs to persons who belong to the wnning political party
    • aka spoils system
  39. minor party
    small political party that persists over time, is often composed of ideologies on the rt or left, or that is centered on a charismatic candidate. aka THRID PARTY
  40. proportional representation
    election system in which each party running receives the proportion of legislative seats corresponding to its proportion of the votes
  41. winner-take-all system
    election system in which candidate with the most votes wins (all)
  42. realigning election
    an elecion during periods of expanded suffrage and change in the econ and society that proves to be a turning pt, redefining the agenda of politics and the alignment of voters within parties
  43. divided gov
    governance divided btwn the parties, as when one holds the presidency and the other controls on or both houses of Congress
  44. national party convention
    national meeting of delegates elected in primaries, caucuses, or state conventions who assemble once every four years to nominate candidates for prez and VP, ratify the party platform, elect officers, and adopt rules
  45. party registration
    act of declaring party affiliation; required by some states when one registers to vote
  46. party identification
    an affiliation with a political party that most ppl acquire in childhood
  47. dealignment
    weakiening of partisan preferences that points to a rejection of both major parties and a rise in # of independents
  48. soft money
    • money raised in unlimited amts by political parties for party-building purposes. Now largely illegal except for limited contributions to state or local parties for voter registration and get-out-the-vote efforts
    • limited by Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA)
  49. hard money
    political contributions given to a party, candidate, or interest group that are limited in amt and fully disclosed. Raising such limited funds was harder than raising unlimited soft money --> "hard" money
  50. single-member district
    an electoral district in which voters choose ONE rep or official
  51. electoral college
    election system used in electing the prez the VP, in which voters vote for electors pledged to cast their ballots for a particular party's candidate
  52. safe seat
    an elected office that is predictably won by one by one party or he other, so the success of that party's candidate is almost taken for granted
  53. coattail effect
    the boost that candidates may get in an election bc of the popularity of candidates above them on the ballot, esp the prez (house and senate elections during popular prez of same party)
  54. candidate appeal
    the tendency in elections to focus on the personal attibutes of a candidate, such as his or her strengths, weaknesses, background, experience, and visibility
  55. national tide
    inclination to focus on national issues, rather than local issues, in an election campaign. The impact of a national tide can be reduced by the nation of the candidates on the ballot who may have differentiated themselves from their party or its leader if the tide is negative, as well as competition in the election
  56. name recognition
    imcumbents have an advantage over challengers in election campaigns bc voters are more familiar with them ,and incumbents are more recognizable
  57. Federal Election Commission (FEC)
    a commission created by the 1974 amendments to the Federal Election Campaign Act to administer election reform laws. It consists of six commissioners appointed by the prez and confirmed by the Senate. Its duties include overseeing disclosure of campaign finance info, public funding of prez elections, and enforcing contribution limits
  58. Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA)
    Largely banned party soft money, restored a long-standing prohibition on corporations and labor unions for using general treasury funds for electoral purposes, and narrowed the definition of issue advocacy
  59. issue advocacy
    promoting a particular position or an issue paid for by interest groups or indivs but not candidates. Much issue advocacy is often electioneering for or against a candidate, avoiding words like "vote for" and until 2004 had not been subject to any regulation
  60. 527 organizations
    interest groups organized under Section 527 of the Internal Revenue Code may advertise for or against candidates. If their source of funding is corporations or unions, they have some restrictions on broadcast advertising
  61. independent expenditures
    money spent by indivs or groups not associated with candidates to elect or defeat candidates for office
  62. public opinion
    the distribution of indiv preferences for or evaluations of a given issue, candidate, or institution within a specific population
  63. random sample
    sample in which every indiv has a known and equal chance of being selected
  64. consensus
    when a substantial percentage of a sample agree on an issue
  65. polarized
    when two opposing sides feel intensely about an issue and the diff between the major alternatives is wide
  66. universe
    population to whom the question is asked
  67. intensity
    degree to which ppl feel strongly about their opinion
  68. latency
    political opinions ppl may hold but have not fully expressed
  69. salience
    measures the extent to which ppl believe issues are relevant to them
  70. distribution
    proportion of the population that holds a particular opinion
  71. sample
    small number of ppl that can accurately represent the opinion of the larger population
  72. margin of error
    the sample accuracy in reflecting the population within a certain range
  73. manifest opinion
    • widely shared and consciously held view
    • ex. support for abortion rights; homeland security
  74. attitudes
    shapes opinions
  75. selective exposure
    indiv choosing to access media with which they agree or avoiding media with which they disagree
  76. attentive public
    • citizens who follow public affairs carefully
    • part-time public pays less attention but knows some stuff
  77. voter registration
    system designed to reduce voter fraud by limiting voting to those who have established eligibility to vote by submitting the proper docs including proof of residency
  78. absentee voting
    • don't vote locally on election day
    • early by mail
  79. special elections
    replace members of HoR who have died or left office
  80. midterm election
    elections held midway btwn presidential elections
  81. turnout
    proportion of the voting-age public that votes, sometimes defined as the number of registered voters that vote
  82. canvass
    interviews campaigners use to learn which issues matter to potential voters and which candidates they prefer
  83. prospective issue voting
    voting based on what a candidate pledges to do in the future about issues if elected
  84. retrospective issue voting
    • holdin incumbants, usually the president's party, responsible for their records on issues
    • such as economy or foreign policy
Author
basav21
ID
119964
Card Set
Vocab: Ch. 4-5, 7-9
Description
Political Culture and Ideology; Political landscape; Parties; Elections
Updated