POLSC237

a few top leaders form a power structure that dominates decision making.

views power as being shared by a variety of competing groups with no single group dominating on every issue.

communicates specific policy goals to legislators.

frequently sponsored by interest groups, are created specifically to raise and distribute money to candidates running for political office.

a cohesive and unified party organization led by a strong leader usually called the boss.

• also called goo goos.
• advocated and eventually won structural reforms of local government.

the smallest unit for voting in elections and usually contains up to 1,000 people and one polling place.

• precincts joined together to elect members of city council.
• Election districts.

candidates are prohobited from listing their party affiliation on the ballot. The machine cannot officially select or formally endorse a candidate.

an election in which voters decide the parties' nominees for the general election. Voters are fully involved in party member selections.

voters declare a party preference in advance and can vote only in that party's primary.

voters do not delcare a party preference in advance and choose either a republican or a democratic ballot, that is, vote in either party's primary.

gives registered voters maximum choice in selecting candidates.

generally oppose government acting on economic issues and assisting minority groups but favor government action on many moral and social issues.

more reformminded, more interested in advocating certain issue positions and supporting candidates who take the same positions.

a meeting of party leaders to select candidates.

generally believe the governmentshould act to assist in economically disadvantaged and minority groups by are less willing than conservatives to have government intervene on moral and social issues.

more interested in winning elections and are therefore more willing to compromise issue positions if that is what it takes to win.

having two branches, chambers, or houses, as a legislative body.

• when being a legislator is considered less than full time, legislators
• receive a lower salary and have a small staff.

call for the termination of executive branch agencies unless the legislature formally reviews and extends their programs.

force counsils to have open meetings on nearly all matters.

members of a political party get together and elect committees.

• refers to how the number of seats in a legislative body is distributed within a
• state’s boundaries.

is the process of drawing boundaries on a map that delineates the geographic areas- the districts- from which representative will be elected

process of drawing district lines togain as many legislative seats for a particular political party as possible.

• 1962-
• malapportionment could violate equal protection law 14th amendment.

both houses of the state legislaturees must be apportioned on the basis of population “one person one vote”

• Voters who consistently supported the dominant party begin to split their tickets and
• vote for some minority party candidates in national and state elections.

• Voters(especially younger persons) begin to shift their party identification, perhaps first to independent and then to the
• minority party.

Voters shift their party registration.

• 1. the population of American cities experienced dramatic growth as the
• nations economy shifted from agriculture to industry. In 1850, only one
• American city had a population over 250,000: in 1890 eleven cities had more
• than 250,000 and 3 had over a million.

• 2. The structure of city government, marked by mayors with little power
• and many elected officials, made it almost impossible t manage the challenges
• of urban growth.

• 3. More than 25 million immigrants came to the US, and most of them
• settled in cities. They were an important source of cheap labor for American
• industry. Local governments, however, were ill-equiped to aid in their
• transition to a new culture.

• 4. Businesses increasingly needed services from government in the form of
• a construction permits, roads paved, and water and sewage services, among
• others. Aso utility producers and transit companies were interested in
• obtaining city franchises that gave them the exclusive right to provide a
• service within the cities boundaries.

refers to the distribution of material rewards, especially public jobs, to the politically faithful.

Not in my backyard syndrome

• Business and economic interests- groups are organized on the basis of common economic interests. EX: boards of realtors, downtown merchants associations, and local manufacturing
• associations.

• Neighborhood interests- a neighborhood is usually thought of as the houses in the immediate vicinity of one’s own house. At a more general level, a neighborhood can bethought of as an
• area where housing is of a similar type and market value.

• Good-government interests- as noted, the municipal reform movement that started in the late nineteenth century was aided by a number of so called good government groups. EX: the
• league of Women Voters, is active in many cities and towns and emphasizes
• contemporary reforms such as ethics in public service, campaign financing, and
• opening government meetings to the public.

• 1. in-house- employees of organizations who have titles such as vice
• president of public affairs or director of government relations and as part of
• their job devote at least some of their time to lobbying.

• 2. Government or legislative liaisons- Employees of state, local, and
• federal agencies that, as part of their job, represent their agencies to the
• legislature.

• 3. Contract- also known as independent lobbyists or “hired guns”. They are
• hired for a fee to lobby and will represent a number of clients, ranging from
• fewer than ten to 30 or 40.

• 4. Citizen, cause, or volunteer- these lobbyists represent citizen or
• community organizations on a part time and volunteer basis.

• 5. “hobbyists”- these are self-styled lobbyist, private individuals, who
• act on their own behalf to support pet projects and are not designated to act
• on the behalf of any organization.

Public Relations campaigns, electioneering, and lobbying.

• they do this to help create a favorable image of themselves and to generate support on specific issues. EX: Press conferences, advertising, radio and television interviews, and news
• releases.

• interest groups may participate in political campaigns by providing assistance to political or
• individual candidates.
• Examples:

• forming alliaces,
• Friendships=votes,
• staff assistance,
• Money,

• communicates specific policy goals directly to legislators. Communication may be in the form of testimony before legislative committees or, more indirectly, by establishing
• contacts in a social setting.

Political parties are Vote maximizers; their primary concern is to win elections so that their candidates can control important positions in state and local governments.

Interest groups are policy maximizers; they offer citizens “a direct focused, and undiluted way of supporting advocacy on the issue they care most about."

• Interest groups are concerned about a single policy or at most a very limited nmber of policy
• areas, whereas the Democratic and Republican parties take position on a large
• number of social and economic issues.

1. No regulation beginning-1880’s

2. Progressive movement 1900-1920’s

3. 1970’s – now, deregualtion

Donation of money to campaigns.