AP Government
2016 - 17
GPHS
STUDY GUIDE #3
Politics & Elections
POLITICAL IDEOLOGY & SOCIALIZATION
How/who socializes us?
Liberals [aka “Progressives”]
Fiscal, social, foreign policy
John Rawls & social justice
Conservatives
Fiscal, social, foreign policy
Edmund Burke
States rights
Culture war
[“old” ]Populists [social con, fiscal lib]
Tea Party
Libertarian [social lib, fiscal con]
Blue Dog Democrats
RINOs
ELECTIONS
Plurality [vs. “majority”]
FEC
Process of getting elected
General election
Primary election FIRST: NH
Network
Straw Polls
Announce
JAN to JUNE {Pres}
Primary (or caucus)
If Pres x50+
PRES ONLY
JULY or AUG
Convention
Delegates Vote
Platform
Running Mate
SUMMER-NOV
General
Election
(1st Tues in
Nov…usually)
Debates
open primary
closed primary
precinct
caucuses [FIRST: Iowa]
Why primaries skew toward the “purest” ideologues in a party
Playing to the base
“ticket splitting”
running mate
incumbents
campaign strategy: THEME, TONE, TARGET[s]
Split ticket voting
Superdelegates [Dems]
PRES ONLY
DEC Electoral
College
JAN swearing
in
Super Tuesday
national convention
Position issue
Valence issue
coattail effect
gerrymandering
the Electoral College
formula for # of electors
rules and issues
winner take all [except 2]
tie breaker
Demographics most likely vote Republican
Demographics most likely vote Democrat
characteristics of non-voters
voter turnout
groups LEAST likely to vote?
POLITICAL PARTIES
FUNCTIONS of political parties
Decentralized nature
TYPES…
Big Tent vs Ideological [European]
Single Issue parties
Splinter parties
Economic protest parties
Factional parties
Growth of independents
Partisanship
HISTORY OF PARTIES
REALIGNMENTS
The development of political parties in the early republic
Federalist & Democratic Republican [1790s-1815]
Democratic Dominance [1815-1860]
Whigs
Republican Dominance [1860-1932]
Bull Moose
Split Parties [old guards vs progressive reformers]
“Solid South” / Dixiecrats
New Deal Coalition [1932-1980]
FDR’s realignment
Conservative [Reagan] Era [1980-2008]
Goldwater and new conservatives
MEDIA, POLLS, and SPECIAL INTERESTS
Lobbying / lobbyists
Special Interest groups
Types
Tactics
PACs - Political Action Committee
Soft money
superPACs
lobbyists
527 Organization
Public opinion polls
representative [random] sample
margin of error
K Street [not literally!]
Public Interest Law Firm
Think Tank
Grassroots lobbying
Money restrictions
Buckley v Valeo 1976
McCain-Feingold Campaign Reform Act 2002
Citizens United v FEC 2008
press as gatekeeper, scorekeeper and watchdog
“new” media / social media
SHORT ANSWERS may deal with
DEMOGRAPHICS
CONSERVATISM and LIBERALISM [general theory]
CONSERVATISM and LIBERALISM [modern in USA],
POLITICAL PARTY HISTORY and TRENDS
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION PROCESS
SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS