Franchise/suffrage
Right to vote
Rational-choice voting
assumes that political actors will make decisions based on their own benefit, carefully weighing all choices
Retrospective voting
occurs when the voter looks at the candidate’s past actions and the past economic climate and makes a decision only using these factors.
Prospective voting
Voting based on what a candidate pledges to do in the future about an issue if elected
Party-line voting
process in which voters select candidates by their party affiliation
Demographics
the study of a population based on factors such as age, race and sex
General election
Elections in which voters elect officeholders
Midterm elections
the congressional elections that occur in the even-numbered years between presidential election years, in the middle of the president’s term
Linkage institutions
Groups that connect citizens to the government and facilitate turning popular concerns into issues on the government’s policy agenda.
Critical election
An electoral “earthquake” where new issues and new coalitions emerge, beginning a new party era.
Realignment
the shifting of groups in a coalition, usually before a critical election. Groups leave one party and support the other party.
Winner-take-all system
all electoral votes for a state are given to the candidate who wins the most votes in that state
Party coalition
When two or more parties join together to form a majority in a national legislature.
Bipartisan
Legislation or policy that has the support of both major political parties.
Open primary
an election in which any registered voter may vote in any party’s primary or caucus
Closed primary
an election in which only voters registered with a party may vote for that party’s candidates
Party caucus
a form of candidate nomination that occurs in a town-hall style format rather than a day-long election; usually reserved for presidential elections
Incumbency advantage
the advantage held by officeholders that allows them to often win reelection
Political Action Committee (PAC)
organizations created to raise money for political campaigns and spend money to influence policy and politics
Super PAC
officially known as Independent Expenditure-Only Committees; organizations that can fundraise and spend as they please to support or attack a candidate but not contribute directly to a candidate or strategize with a candidate’s campaign
Independent expenditure
Spending by political action committees, corporations, or labor unions that is done to help a party or candidate but is done independently of them
Horse race journalism
Journalism that focuses on -who is winning or ahead in the polls rather than on candidates' policy agenda or debates.
Proportional representation
An electoral system in which legislative seats are awarded in proportion to the percentage of votes garnered by a party in an election. This system is common in Europe and benefits minor political parties, who may win a small number of legislative seats even if a mainstream party wins most seats.
Electoral College
the constitutionally created group of individuals, chosen by the states, with the responsibility of formally selecting the next U.S. president
Legitimacy
The people’s belief that the government has the right to rule