AP Gov Vocab Sheet #5 – Flashcards
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Leadership PAC
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A PAC formed by an officeholder that collects contributions from individuals and other PAC's and then makes contributions to other candidates and political parties
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Bundling (Super PACs)
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A tactic in which PACs collect contributions from like-minded individuals (each limited to $2000) and present them to a candidate or political party as a "bundle", thus increasing the PAC's influence
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Soft Money
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Unlimited amounts of money that political parties previously could raise for party-building purposes. Now largely illegal except for limited contributions to state and local parties for voter registration and got-out-the-vote efforts. (McCain-Feingold/Bipartisan Campaign and Reform Act)
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Independent Expenditures
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The Supreme Court has ruled that individuals, groups and parties can spend unlimited amounts in campaigns for or against candidates as long as they operate independently from the candidates.
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Issue Advocacy
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Unlimited and undisclosed spending by an individual or group on communications that do not use words like "vote for" or "vote against", although much of this activity is actually about electing or defeating candidates
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527 organization
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A political group organized under section 527 of the IRS code that may accept and spend unlimited amounts of money on election activities so long as they are not spent on broadcast ads run in the last 30 days before a primary or 60 days before a general election in which clearly identified candidate is referred to and a relevant electorate is targeted
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Political Party
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An organization that seeks political power by electing people to office so that its positions and philosophy become public policy
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Nonpartisan election
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A local or judicial election in which candidates are not selected or endorsed by political parties and party affiliation is not listed on the ballot. (judges)
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Patronage
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The dispensing of government jobs to persons who belong to the winning political party
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Hard Money
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Political contributions given to a party, candidate or interest group that are limited in amounts and fully disclosed. Raising such limited funds is harder than raising unlimited funds, hence the term "hard money"
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Honeymoon
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Period at the beginning of the new president's term durning which the president enjoys generally positive relations with the press and Congress, usually lasting about 6 months (100 days)
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Caucus
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A meeting of local party members to choose party officials or candidates for public office and to decide the platform
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Party Convention
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A meeting of party delegates to vote on matters of policy and in some cases to select party candidates for public office
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Direct primary
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Election in which voters choose party nominees
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Open primary
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primary election in which any voter, regardless of party, may vote
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Crossover voting
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voting by member of one party for a candidate of another party
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Proportional representation
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Primary election in which each party running receives the proportion of legislative seats corresponding to its proportion of the vote
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Closed primary
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Primary election in which only persons registered in the party holding the primary may vote
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Winner-take-all system
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Election system in which the candidate with the most votes wins
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Minor Party
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A small political party that rises and falls with a charismatic candidate or, if composed of ideologies on the right or left, usually persists over time; also called a third party
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Libertarian Party
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A minor party that believes in extremely limited government. This party calls for a free market system, expanded individual liberties such as drug legalization, and a foreign policy of nonintervention, free trade, and open immigration
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Green Party
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A minor party dedicated to the environment, social justice, nonviolence, and the foreign policy of nonintervention. Ralph Nader ran as the Green Party's nomination in 2000.
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Reform Party
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A minor party founded by Ross Perot in 1995. It focuses on national government reform, fiscal responsibility, and political accountability. It has recently struggled with internal strife and criticism that it lacks an identity.
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Realigning Election
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An election during periods of expanded suffrage and change in the economy and society that proves to be a turning point, redefining the agenda of politics and the alignment of voters within parties
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Divided Government
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Governance divided between the parties, as when one holds the presidency and the other controls one or both houses of Congress
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National Party convention
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A national meeting of delegates elected in primaries, caucuses, or state conventions who assemble once every four years to nominate candidates for president and vice president, ratify the party platform, elect officers and adopt rules
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Party registration
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The act of declaring party affiliation; required by some states when one registers to vote
