Linkage Institutions

Flashcard deck · A.P. U.S. Government · Linkage Institutions · Social Studies

Flashcards covering electoral processes, interest groups, media roles, and campaign finance terms like Citizens United, dark money, the FEC, and the Electoral College.

Terms in this deck

527 organization

Tax-exempt political organization under IRS code that can raise unlimited funds to influence elections.

absentee ballot

One that allows a person to vote without going to the polls on Election Day.

agenda setting

Determining which public-policy questions will be debated or considered.

amicus curiae brief

Literally, a friend of the court brief, filed by an individual or organization to present arguments in addition to those presented by the immediate parties to a case.

battleground states

The key states that presidential campaigns focus on because they are most likely to decide the outcome of the Electoral College vote.

Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA)

2002 law that banned soft money donations to national parties and regulated electioneering communications.

broadcast media

Television and radio, as compared with print media.

candidate-centered campaigns

Election campaigns and other political processes in which candidates, not political parties, have most of the initiative and influence.

caucus

A meeting of local party members to choose party officials or candidates for public office and to decide the platform.

Citizens United v. FEC

2010 Supreme Court ruling that corporations and unions can spend unlimited money on independent political expenditures as free speech.

civil disobedience

A form of political participation that reflects a conscious decision to break a law believed to be immoral and to suffer the consequences.

closed primary

A primary in which only registered members of a particular political party can vote.

collective action

How groups form and organize to pursue their goals or objectives, including how to get individuals and groups to participate and to cooperate.

collective good

Something of value that cannot be withheld from a potential group member.

critical election

An election when significant groups of voters change their traditional patterns of party loyalty.

dark money

Political spending by nonprofit organizations that are not required to disclose their donors.

dealignment

Weakening of party loyalty among voters, leading to increased independence and ticket-splitting.

delegate

A person appointed or elected to represent others.

demographic characteristics

Physical and observable characteristics of individuals, including gender, ethnicity, and age.

economic interest groups

Groups that organize to influence government policy for the economic benefit of their members.

Electoral College

A group of people named by each state legislature to select the president and vice president.

electoral mandate

The perceived public approval a winning candidate claims to enact their proposed agenda after a decisive victory.

elitist theory

A theory that a few top leaders make the key decisions without reference to popular desires.

Era of Divided Government

Since 1969, typically one party controls the White House while the other parties control Congress.

Federal Election Commission (FEC)

Independent federal agency that enforces campaign finance laws and discloses campaign finance information.

Fifteenth Amendment

Constitutional amendment ratified in 1870 prohibiting denial of voting rights based on race or color.

framing

The way media presents information shapes how the public interprets and evaluates political issues and leaders.

franchise (or suffrage)

The right to vote.

free rider

A person who receives the benefit of a good but avoids paying for it.

front-loading

The recent tendency of states to hold primaries early in the calendar in order to capitalize on media attention.

gatekeeping

The media's power to decide which stories get covered and which are ignored, influencing the public agenda.

get-out-the-vote (GOTV)

A push at the end of a political campaign to encourage supporters to go to the polls.

government interest groups

Groups that organize to represent foreign or domestic governments, and to lobby Congress and the president on their behalf.

grandfather clause

Provisions that exempted whites from literacy tests if their ancestors voted before the Civil War, disenfranchising Black voters.

grassroots lobbying

Indirect lobbying efforts that spring from widespread public concern.

hard money

Regulated campaign contributions given directly to candidates, subject to legal limits set by the FEC.

horse race journalism

News coverage that focuses on who is ahead rather than on the issues.

incumbency advantage

The electoral edge held by current officeholders seeking reelection due to name recognition and resources.

independent expenditure

Spending by individuals or groups on political communications not coordinated with any candidate or campaign.

interest group

An organization of people sharing a common interest or goal that seeks to influence the making of public policy.

interest group liberalism

A system in which government policy is largely shaped by the demands of organized interest groups rather than the public good.

investigative journalism

The use of in-depth reporting to unearth scandals, scams, and schemes, at times putting reporters in adversarial relationships with political leaders.

iron triangle

A close relationship between an agency, a congressional committee, and an interest group.

issue network

Relationships among interest groups, congressional committees and subcommittees, and the government agencies that share a common policy concern.

likely voters

Polling category identifying survey respondents with high probability of actually casting a ballot in an election.

linkage institutions

The channels through which people's concerns become political issues on the government's policy agenda. In the United States, linkage institutions include elections, political parties, interest groups, and the media.

literacy test

A now-banned requirement that voters demonstrate reading ability, historically used to disenfranchise Black voters.

lobbying

Engaging in activities aimed at influencing public officials, especially legislators, and the policies they enact.

mass media

Forms of communication, such as newspapers and radio, that reach millions of people.

media bias

The perception that news coverage systematically favors one political perspective over another.

media consolidation

The trend toward a few large corporations owning most of the media outlets in the country.

Motor Voter Act

1993 law requiring states to offer voter registration at DMVs and public assistance agencies to increase turnout.

national convention

The meeting of party delegates every four years to choose a presidential ticket and write the party's platform.

negative advertising

Campaign ads that attack an opponent's character or record rather than promoting the sponsoring candidate.

news media

Media providing the public with new information about subjects of public interest.

Nineteenth Amendment

Constitutional amendment ratified in 1920 granting women the right to vote.

nomination

The official endorsement of a candidate for office by a political party. Generally, success in the nomination game requires momentum, money, and media attention.

open primary

A primary election in which voters may choose in which party to vote as they enter the polling place.

oppo research

Research conducted by campaigns to uncover damaging information about political opponents.

partisan bias

A cause is deliberately promoted.

party coalitions

The groups that identify with a political party, usually described in demographic terms such as African American Democrats or evangelical Republicans.

party eras

Historical periods in which a majority of voters cling to the party in power, which tends to win a majority of the elections.

party identification

A citizen's self-proclaimed preference for one party or the other.

party platform

A document drawn up at each national convention, outlining the policies, positions, and principles of the party.

party-line voting

Process in which voters select candidates by their party affiliation.

pluralist theory

A theory of government and politics emphasizing that politics is mainly a competition among groups, each one pressing for its own preferred policies.

policy agenda

The issues that attract the serious attention of public officials and other people actively involved in politics at the time.

Political Action Committee (PAC)

A committee set up by a corporation, labor union, or interest group that raises and spends campaign money from voluntary donations.

political efficacy

The belief that one's political participation really matters — that one's vote can actually make a difference.

political mobilization

Efforts to encourage people to engage in the public sphere: to vote for a particular candidate (and donate money, work on the campaign, etc.) or to get involved in specific issues.

political participation

All the activities used by citizens to influence the selection of political leaders or the policies they pursue.

political party

A group that seeks to elect candidates to public office.

political socialization

The process by which people form their political values, beliefs, and party identification through family, school, and media.

poll tax

A requirement that citizens pay a tax in order to register to vote.

primary election

An election held to choose candidates for office.

priming

Media's role in shaping which issues the public uses to evaluate political leaders and government performance.

proportional representation

An election system in which each party running receives the proportion of legislative seats corresponding to its proportion of the vote.

prospective voting

Voting for a candidate because you favor his or her ideas for handling issues.

protest

A form of political participation designed to achieve policy change through dramatic and unconventional tactics.

public interest group

An organization that seeks a collective good that will not selectively and materially benefit group members.

push poll

A political campaign technique disguised as a poll that attempts to influence respondents' views rather than measure them.

rational choice theory

A popular theory in political science to explain the actions of voters as well as politicians. It assumes that individuals act in their own best interest, carefully weighing the costs and benefits of possible alternatives.

realignment

A process in which a substantial group of voters switches party allegiance, producing a long-term change in the political landscape.

recruitment

The process through which a political party seeks potential nominees for office.

registration requirements

Legal barriers enforced on all potential voters.

retrospective voting

Voting for a candidate because you like his or her past actions in office.

revolving door

Employment cycle in which individuals who work for governmental agencies that regulate interests eventually end up working for interest groups or businesses with the same policy concern.

selective benefits

Goods that a group can restrict to those who actually join.

single-member plurality system

Electoral system that assigns one seat in a legislative body to represent citizens who live in a defined area based on which candidate wins the most votes.

single-issue groups

Groups that have a narrow interest, tend to dislike compromise, and often draw membership from people new to politics.

social media

Any tool or service that uses the internet to facilitate conversations.

social movement

A widely shared demand for change in some aspect of the social or political order.

socioeconomic status (SES)

A division of population based on occupation, income, and education.

soft money

Money donated to political parties for party-building activities, not subject to federal campaign contribution limits before BCRA.

sound bite

A short clip of a politician's speech used by media, often replacing fuller context in news coverage.

spin

The deliberate attempt by political actors or their advisers to control or influence media narratives favorably.

straight-ticket voting

Practice of voting for candidates of only one party in an election.

Super PACs

Independent expenditure-only PACs are known as Super PACs because they may accept donations of any size and can endorse candidates. Their contributions and expenditures must be periodically reported to the FEC.

superdelegates

National party leaders who automatically get a delegate slot at the Democratic national party convention.

talking heads

TV commentators and pundits who discuss and analyze political events, often replacing in-depth reporting.

theory of participatory democracy

Emphasizes the broad participation of constituents in the direction and operation of a political system.

third party

A party that challenges the two major parties.

Twenty-Fourth Amendment

The constitutional amendment passed in 1964 that declared poll taxes void in federal elections.

Twenty-Sixth Amendment

Lowered the voting age to 18.

two-party system

An electoral system with two dominant parties that compete in national elections.

voter turnout

The percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

Federal law that banned discriminatory voting practices, especially literacy tests, protecting minority voting rights.

winner-take-all system

An election system in which the candidate with the most votes wins.

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