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- the battle of the parties for control of public offices
- ups and downs of the two major parties are one of the most important elements in American politics
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| according to Anthony Downs, a "team of men [and women] seeking to control the governing apparatus by gaining office in a duly constituted election" |
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- the channels through which people's concerns become political issues on the government's policy agenda
- include elections, political parties, interest groups, and the media
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- a popular theory in political science to explain the actions of voters as well as politicians
- assumes that individuals act in their own best interest, carefully weighing the costs and benefits of possible alternatives
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| the voter's perception of what the Republicans or Democrats stand for |
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| a citizen's self-proclaimed preference for one party or the other |
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- voting with one party for one office and with another party for other offices
- the norm for American voting behavior
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| a type of political party organization that relies heavily o material inducements, such as patronage, to win votes and to govern |
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- one of the key iducements used by party machines
- a patronage job, promotion, or contract is one that is given for political reasons rather than for merit or competence alone
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| elections to select party nominees in which only people who have registered in advance with the party can vote for that party's candidates, thus encouraging greater party loyalty |
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| electoins to select part nominees in which voters can decide on Election Day whether they want to participate in the Democratic or Republican contests |
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- elections to select party nominees in which voters are presented with a list of candidates from all the parties
- voters can select some Democrats and some Republicans
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| the meeting of party delegates every four years to choose a presidential ticket and write the party's platform |
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- one of the institutions that keeps the party operating between conventions
- composed of representatives from the states and territories
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| person responsible for the day-to-day activities of the party and is usually handpicked by the presidential nominee |
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| a group of individuals with a common interest on which every political party depends |
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| historical periods in which a majority of voters cling to the party in power, which tends to win a majority of the elections |
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- an electoral "earthquake" where new issues emerge, new coalitions replace old ones, and the majority party is often displaced by the minority party
- sometimes marked by a national crisis and may require more than one election to bring about a new party era
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| the displacement of the majority party by the minority party, usually during a critical election period |
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- a coalition formed by the Democrats, who dominated American politics from the 1930s to the 1960s
- basic elements were the urban working class, ethnic groups, Catholics and Jews, the poor, Southerners, African Americans, and intellectuals
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| the gradual disengagement of people and politicans from the parties, as seen in party by shrinking party identification |
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- electoral contenders other than the two major parties
- not unusual but rarely win elections in America
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- an electoral system in which legislative seats are awarded only to the candidates who come in first in their constituencies
- in American presidential elections, the system in which the winner of the popular vote in a state receives all the electoral votes of that state
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| proportional representation |
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| an electoral system used throughout most of Europe that awards legislative seats to political parties in proportion to the number of votes won in an election |
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| when two or more parties join together to form a majority in a national legislature |
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- a view favored by some political scientists about how parties should work
- according to the model, parties should offer clear choices to the voters, who can then use those choices as cues to their own preferences of candidates
- once in office, parties would carry out their campaign promises
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