AP Gov Study Guide Ch 1-10

Assigning meaning to messages in selective ways

Voters base their decisions on the state of current events and hold those in power accountable

Political participation based on a conscious decision to break a law thought to be unjust

Brief snippets of information that stress a short, catchy statement over substantive analysis

Surveys should be conducted so that everyone has an equal probability of being selected

Non-profit, tax-exempt interest groups that can engage in varying levels of political activity

Political decision making where policies are decided on the basis of what the majority want

A conservative caucus within the traditionally liberal democratic party

Media programming intended for a particular audience

An overall set of values and ideas widely shared within a society about politics

Issues that attract the serious attention of public officials and others involved in politics

Goods that must be shared by everyone (Water and Air)

Procedure enabling voters to reject or approve a measure proposed by the legislature

Condition that occurs when no coalition is strong enough to form a majority & establish policy

Supporting candidates in different parties in the same election

Individual who serves as a political party’s administrative head at the national level

Television, radio, and the internet, now the principal source of information for Americans

Political spending that influences elections but is not subject to contribution limits

Electoral choices made on the basis of where the candidates stand on policy issues

A party meeting held every four years to nominate a president & vice pres, & adopting platform

All social interests compete with one another for influence over the gov't’s policy decisions

Political parties win parliamentary seats equal to the percentage of the vote the party gets

The use of in-depth reporting to unearth scandals, scams, and schemes

Voters may put proposed changes in the state law to vote if sufficient signatures are obtained

State’s voters go to the polls to express their preference for a party’s nominee for president

The right to vote

Citizens enroll themselves with the government to gain permission to vote in an election

Political groups that aren't subject to contribution restrictions, don't work with candidates

The tendency for states to hold primaries early in the year to capitalize on media attention

The level of confidence in the accuracy of a poll

Television, radio, newspapers, the internet, and all other means of communication

Any registered voter can vote in either party’s primary (only one, not both)

An issue that arises when people disagree about a problem and a public choice

Newspapers and Magazines

Groups are so strong that government, which gives into the many groups, is weakened

Primary elections where voters must cast a ballot in only their own party’s primary election

Citizens have an obligation to participate in political affairs, as a duty of citizenship

The sum of a population’s beliefs about politics and policy issues

The process by which we develop our political attitudes, values, and beliefs

Parties other than one of the two major parties

An American institution: the selection of the president by electors chosen by the state parties

The institutions through which public policies are made for a society

The regular pattern in which women are more likely to support Democratic candidates

Federal law that provided opportunity to register through driver’s license agencies

One of the institutions that keeps the party operating between conventions

Specialized organizations for raising & spending campaign funds, & connected to interest groups

An alliance of several groups who come together to form a working majority & to control a gov't

Local meeting during primary season in which party members select a party’s nominee

Emergence of a non-Caucasian majority

Organized party systems at state & local level that keep control of voters by granting benefits

Involvement in activities intended to influence public policy and leadership

Television media pundits who give their opinion on world events in an authoritative matter

The displacement of the majority party by the minority

Lawfulness by virtue of being authorized or in accordance with the law

Guarantees rights to those who do not belong to the majority

Created the FEC, provided public financing, limited spending, and required donor disclosure

The self-proclaimed preference for one or the other party

A government plan of action to solve a problem that people share collectively

Newspapers published by media conglomerates that account for much of the nation’s daily news

An electoral system in which legislative seats are awarded to the candidate who comes in first

The winning candidate has an obligation from the people to carry out their platforms & politics

The science of population changes

The gradual disengagement of people and politicians from a political party

Official endorsement of a candidate for office by a political party

Channels through which people’s concerns become political issues on the government’s agenda

An overall set of values shared with society

Events staged for the media’s benefit

An actual enumeration of the population, which the constitution requires every 10 years

A type of government in which control lies in with the people

Created because of the 1968 Democratic Convention. Open Delegates, superdelegates

A six member bipartisan agency created by the federal election campaign act of 1974

Belief that you can participate in politics or that the government will respond to the citizens

All societies are divided into the few who govern (elites) and the many who do not (masses)

Selective leaks aimed at testing the political waters

Survey used by pollsters to predict winners by asking people leaving polls how they voted

A set of beliefs about politics, public policy, and purpose of government

The branches of government charged with taking action on political issues

The “master game plan” of candidates

Historical periods in which majority of voter cling to the party in power