Term
| How often are Presidential elections held? |
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Definition
| Presidential elections are held every 4 years (2012, 2016, 2020, etc.) |
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Term
| How often are Congressional elections held? |
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Definition
| Congressional elections are held every 2 years (2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022, etc.) |
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Term
| What is the meaning of the phrase "midterm elections" ? |
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Definition
| Midterm elections concern Congressional elections, and occur halfway (mid) through the President's term. That's why they are called "midterm" elections. We are currently in a Presidential election cycle in 2016. So, the next midterm election will occur in 2018, and the next Presidential election will occur in 2020. |
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Term
| According to the Constitution, who controls elections? |
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Definition
| The Constitution gives states control over elections within their borders. Localities (counties, towns and cities) typically administer the elections, which are overseen by state regulators. Because there is no federal control of elections, the rules can vary by state as to how they are conducted. |
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Term
| There are three key types of elections. What are they? |
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Definition
Three types of elections:
1) Primary (preliminary voting to determine who will represent a Party in the general election)
2) General (the election that actually decides who takes office)
3) Runoff (a special, rare form of election held to break a tie in either a Primary or General election) |
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Term
| Most states hold primaries, but some hold caucuses. What is the difference? |
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Definition
| Primary elections are typically conducted using secret ballots, but in caucuses, members meet and vote in the open |
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Term
| Which type of election typically draws the most voters? Primary or General elections? |
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Definition
| The General election tends to draw the most voters. |
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Term
| If a candidate does not win a majority in the general election, some states hold a special kind of election between the two highest vote-getters. What is this type of election called? |
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Definition
| A special kind of election to determine the winner between the two highest vote-getters is called a "runoff." |
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Term
| 24 of the 50 states allow citizens to vote on laws directly. What is it called when this is done? |
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Definition
| A referendum is when a state allows citizens to vote on law directly. Referenda are voted on at the same time as an election. |
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Term
| How does a majority vote differ from a plurality vote? |
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Definition
In a majority vote, to win, the candidate must receive at least 50% of the votes, plus one.
However, in a plurality vote (aka first-past-the-post), the candidate simply needs to get more votes than any opponent. |
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Term
| Every 10 years or so, Congressional and state legislative districts are redrawn in a process called redistricting. What is the term that describes the process of drawing these districts carefully to ensure they servea particular group's interests? |
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Definition
| Gerrymandering is the process of drawing districts carefully in order to ensure they serve a particular group's interests. |
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Term
| What are three techniques used in Gerrymandering? |
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Definition
Gerrymandering typically involves the use of three techniques:
1) Packing: Overloading one district with a lot of voters of one party to dilute the party's votes in other districts
2) Cracking: Tearing up dense pockets of party voters in order to dilute their votes in that specific district
3) Stacking: Merging two districts of the same party to force incumbents to run against each other, thereby guaranteeing the elimination of one of them. |
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Term
| What three C words describe how Congressional districts should be drawn? |
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Definition
Congressional districts should be:
1) Contiguous (connected, with no breaks or divisions)
2) Compact (relatively small rather than large)
3) Consistent with existing political subdivisions (redistricting should not usually flip a district from mostly Republican to mostly Democratic, for example) |
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Term
| Is it permissible to base a Congressional district on the racial makeup of a community? |
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Definition
| No, it is no longer permissible for race to be the deciding criterion in how a Congressional district is drawn. |
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Term
| Are ballots consistently organized throughout the country? |
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Definition
No, ballots can take many forms, and each state makes its own ballot. Techniques include:
1) Party line voting
2) Electors, not the candidates' names, listed first.
3) Party affiliations not listed.
4) Mechanical voting machines vs. paper ballots vs. punch cards vs. touch screens |
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Term
| Because the average citizen was not trusted to make the right decision in voting for President, the Founding Fathers created what institution? |
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Definition
| The Founding Fathers created the Electoral College, because they did not trust that the public could make the wisest choice when electing the President. |
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Term
| True or False: Whoever gets the vote of the most citizens in the general election becomes President. |
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Definition
| False. Whoever gets the vote of the most Electors becomes President. Citizens actually vote for Electors, not for the President directly. |
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Term
| How many Electors does each state get apportioned? |
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Definition
| The number of Electors each state receives is equal to the number of U.S. Senators and Congressional Representatives that state has. |
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Term
| True or False: Electors usually vote for the popular vote winner. |
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Definition
| True. With the exception of Maine, Massachusetts and Nebraska, all states allocate all of their Electors to vote for the popular winner. This means even if the popular race is close in a given state, every Elector that state has gets allocated to the winner only. So it is "winner take all" in 47 states, meaning coming in second or worse is a complete loss. That is the nature of "first-past-the-post" elections. |
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Term
| Where and when do Electors go to place their votes? |
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Definition
| Electors vote in their respective state capitols on the first Monday after the second Wednesday in December. |
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Term
| If the Electoral College votes result in no candidate earning a majority (50% plus one), how is the winner determined? |
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Definition
| If no candidate has a majority of the electoral votes, the House of Representatives decides the result, with each state getting one vote only. |
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Term
| Efforts by political candidates and their supporters to win the backing of donors, political activists, and voters in their quest for political office are called what? |
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Definition
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Term
| What two methods might a candidate use to begin raising funds for a campaign? |
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Definition
A candidate can use one of two methods to begin raising funds for a campaign:
1) Form an exploratory committee, to determine if there is support for the candidate running for the office in question
2) File papers to announce the person's candidacy |
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Term
| Who oversees the organization of various individuals in a political campaign on behalf of the candidate? |
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Definition
| The Campaign Manager oversees the organization of the campaign staff on behalf of the candidate. |
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Term
| What are the two aspects that differentiate candidates in a party's primary election? |
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Definition
The two aspects that differentiate candidates in a single party's primary election are typically:
1) Personality - While candidates policies are roughly the same, one candidate may be viewed more favorably than others by the party members.
2) Ideology - While the candidates may belong to the same party, their policy ideas may be very different, so the voters must decide whose ideology best represents their interests. |
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Term
| Which Party uses a Winner-Takes-All method of determining which candidate delegates pledge to vote for in the Party's national convention? |
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Definition
The Republican Party (aka the GOP) uses a winner-takes-all approach to selecting delegates in the Presidential primaries.
The Democrats select delegates in proportion to the share of the votes in the state. |
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Term
| Why does the primary season start earlier in each election cycle? |
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Definition
| The primary season starts earlier in each election cycle because states seek to be more influential on the outcome by moving their primary earlier, and others tend to move earlier still for the same reason. Some states with late primaries are debating abandoning them. |
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Term
| True or False. Primaries and caucuses have always been used to determine who would be the Party candidates in the general election. |
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Definition
| False. Early conventions selected the candidates themselves, often cutting deals in "smoke filled rooms," because Party leaders wanted to determine the candidates rather than let the public decide, even though non-binding primaries and caucuses were held. |
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Term
| What are the key functions of Party conventions today? |
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Definition
Party conventions have the following key functions:
1) Ratify the decisions made in primaries (meaning formally nominate the top vote-getters so they may compete in the general election)
2) Enact any new rules for future delegate selection
3) Draft party platforms
4) Present candidates and the party platforms to voters (these conventions are televised and heavily covered in the newspapers, etc.) |
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Term
| Campaigns are typically more labor-intensive or more media-intensive. What is the difference? |
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Definition
In a labor-intensive campaign, volunteer go door-to-door campaigning on behalf of the candidate.
In a media-intensive campaign, the goal is to get a lot of media attention, so fewer volunteers are needed, but lots of fundraising occurs to make it possibly to buy lots of advertising on television and in other media. |
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Term
| What is the distinction between free media and paid media coverage for a political campaign? |
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Definition
Free media coverage can be unpredictable, but includes press coverage and visits to various talk shows, etc. Typically, wide audiences are reached this way
Paid media coverage involves the placement of advertisements purchased by the campaigns. While it is expensive, it allows for tighter control of the candidate's message. |
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