American Government And Politics Today

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Presidential Primary

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A statewide primary election of delegates to a political party's national convention, held to determine a party's presidential nominee.

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Primary Election

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An election in which political parties choose their candidates for the general election.

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General Election

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An election, normally held on the first Tuesday in November, that determines who will fill various elected positions.

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Political Consultant

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A paid professional hired to devise a campaign strategy and manage a campaign.

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Focus Group

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A small group of individuals who are led in discussion by a professional consultant to gather opinions on, and responses to, candidates and issues.

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Hatch Act

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An act passed in 1939 that restricted the political activities of government employees. It also prohibited a political group from spending more than $3 million in any campaign and limited individual contributions to a campaign committee to $5,000.

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Federal Election Commission (FEC)

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The federal regulatory agency with the task of enforcing federal campaign laws. As a practical matter, the FEC's role is largely limited to collecting date on campaign contributions.

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Political Action Committee (PAC)

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A committee set up by and representing a corporation, labor union or special interest group. PACs raise campaign donations.

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Issue Advocacy Advertising

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Advertising paid for by interest groups that support or oppose a candidate's position on an issue without mentioning the candidate, voting, or elections.

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Soft Money

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Campaign contributions unregulated by federal or state, usually given to parties and party committee to help fund general party activities.

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Independent Expenditures

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Unregulated political expenditures by PACs, organizations, and individuals that are not coordinated with candidate campaigns or political parties.

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Super PAC

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A political organization that aggregates unlimited contributions by individuals and organizations to be spent independently of candidate committees.

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Superdelegate

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A party leader or elected official who is given the right to vote at the party's national convention. Super-delegates are not elected at the state level.

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Invisible Primary

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the pre-primary campaign to win supporters among elected officials, fund raisers,interest groups, and opinion leaders.

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Direct Primary

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A primary election in which voters decide party nominations by voting directly for candidates.

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Indirect primary

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A primary election in which voters choose convention delegates, and the delegates determine the party's candidate in the general election.

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Closed Primary

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A type of primary in which voter is limited to choosing candidates of the party of which he or she is a member.

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Open Primary

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A primary in which any voter can vote in either party primary ( but must vote for candidates of only one party).

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Caucus System

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A meeting of party members to select candidates and propose policies.

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Top two Primary

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Special type of primary for filling some offices. All candidates appear on a single ballot. Used in Louisiana.

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Front Runner

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The presidential candidate who appears to be ahead at a given time in the primary season.

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Front-Loading

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The practice of moving presidential primary elections to the early part of the campaign to maximize the impact of these primaries on the nomination.

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Credentials Committee

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A committee used by political parties at their national conventions to determine which delegates may participate. The committee inspects the claim of each prospective delegate to be seated as a legitimate representative of his or her state.

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Elector

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A member of the electoral college, which selects the president and vice president. Each state's electors are chosen in each presidential election year according to state laws. Total Number of electors is 538, equal to 100 senators, 435 members of the house, and 3 electors of Columbia.

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Australian Ballot

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A secret ballot prepared, distributed, and tabulated by government officials at public expense. Since 1888, all states have used the Australian ballot rather than an open, public ballot.

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Office-Block, or Massachusetts, Ballot

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A form of general election ballot in which candidates for elective office are grouped together under the title of each office. It emphasizes voting for the office and the individual candidate, rather than for the party.

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Party-Column, or Indiana, Ballot

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A form of general election ballot in which all of a party's candidates for elective office are arranged in one column under the party's label and symbol. It emphasizes voting for the party, rather than for the office or individual.

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Coattail Effect

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The influence of a popular candidate on the electoral success of other candidates on the same party ticket. The effect is increased by the party-column ballot, which encourages straight-ticket voting.

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Voter Turnout

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The percentage of citizens taking part in the election process; the number of eligible voters who actually "turn out" on Election Day to cast their ballots.

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Midterm Election

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National election in which candidates for the president are not on the ballot. In midterm elections, voters choose all members of the U.S. House of Representatives and one-third of the members of the U.S. Senate.

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Voting-Age Population

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The number of people of voting age living in the country at a given time, regardless of whether they have the right to vote.

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Vote-Eligible Population

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The number of people who, at a given time, enjoy the right to vote in national elections.

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Franchise

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The right to vote.

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Registration

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The entry of a person's name onto the list of registered voters for elections. To register, a person must meet certain legal requirements of age, citizenship, and residency.

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Socioeconomic Status

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The value assigned to a person due to occupation or income. A professional person with a substantial income, for example, has high socioeconomic status.