AP Gov Ch 5 Political Parties Flashcards

2952958868	caucus	A meeting of local party members to choose party officials or candidates for public office and to decide the platform.	0
2952958869	coalition	A temporary alliance of several groups who come together to form a working majority and so to control a government	1
2952958870	critical election	An election when significant groups of voters change their traditional patterns of party loyalty.	2
2952960488	dealighnment	citizens abandon allegiance to a political party and become independent voters	3
2952962674	Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC)	is the Democratic Hill committee for the United States House of Representatives, working to elect Democrats to that body.	4
2952962745	Democratic National Committee (DNC)	is the principal organization governing the United States Democratic Party on a day-to-day basis.	5
2952972988	Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC)	is the Democratic Hill committee for the United States Senate. It is the only organization solely dedicated to electing Democrats to the United States Senate.	6
2952987653	Democrat-Republicans	of or relating to a major American political party of the early 19th century favoring a strict interpretation of the Constitution to restrict the powers of the federal government and emphasizing states' rights.	7
2952987654	divided government	describes a situation in which one party controls the White House and another party controls one or both houses of the United States Congress. Divided government is suggested by some to be an undesirable product of the separation of powers in the United States' political system.	8
2952990498	economic protest parties	a party that emerges in times of economic recession to express discontent with the ruling party.	9
2952992056	elites	In the beginning the laws of America seemed to favor those few elites who owned property. Voting in our 13 original colonies was reserved for the "best and the brightest." Many safeguards were put in place to protect the new government from a passionate mob. A republican form of government was established so that the privileged class would oversee a commonwealth of the people. As time evolved, however, more and more citizens began to demand greater rights and privileges. Equality was meant to be more than mere words. Nevertheless even today most would agree that certain elites continue to play a disproportionate role in guiding our public debate. Those elites tend to be wealthy, highly educated and often famous. Collectively we wonder who knows best?	10
2952992057	Free Soil Party	Formed in 1847 - 1848, dedicated to opposing slavery in newly acquired territories such as Oregon and ceded Mexican territory.	11
2952994988	Grand Old Party (GOP)	The Republican Party, commonly referred to as GOP (abbreviation for Grand Old Party), is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States.	12
2952996756	H. Ross Perot	rose as a significant third party candidate. A tech-company billionaire who spent his own money campaigning, he ran on one main issue: the U.S. must get the debt under control--he caused the split votes letting Democrats win.	13
2952996757	Ideological party	"Ideological parties hold major programmatic goals (e.g., egalitarianism, ethnic solidarity, Islamic fundamentalism) and are deeply committed to the implementation of these goals to achieve comprehensive changes in the sociopolitical order. Ideological parties are usually extreme within the context of their particular political culture." Examples include the American Libertarian Party, North Korean Communist Party, and the German Green Party.	14
2952998248	Know-Nothings	a member of a political party (American party or Know-Nothing party) prominent from 1853 to 1856, whose aim was to keep control of the government in the hands of native-born citizens: so called because members originally professed ignorance of the party's activities.	15
2952999709	McGovern-Frasier Commission	A commission formed at the 1968 Democratic convention in response to demands for reform by minority groups and others who sought better representation.	16
2952999710	minor parties	AKA third parties; typically do not win major elections but often bring more voters into the electorate; often spoil elections for a major party; may bring issues that the major parties will adopt	17
2953003425	National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC)	is the Republican Hill committee which works to elect Republicans to the United States House of Representatives. The NRCC was formed in 1866, when the Republican caucuses of the House and Senate formed a "Congressional Committee".	18
2953010753	National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC)	is the Republican Hill committee for the United States Senate, working to elect Republicans to that body. The NRSC was founded in 1916 as the Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee.	19
2953014160	New Deal Coalition	A coalition forged by the Democrats, who dominated American politics from the 1930s to the 1960s. Its basic elements were the urban working class, ethnic groups, Catholics and Jews, the poor, Southerners, African Americans, and intellectuals.	20
2953014161	party chairperson	the chairman of the national committee of the political party who usually acts as the head of the party's permanent organization and has general direction of party strategy especially during election campaigns.	21
2953015852	party convention	A meeting of party delegates to vote on matters of policy and in some cases to select party candidates for public office.	22
2953015853	platform	a series of statements expressing the party's principles, beliefs, and positions on election issues	23
2953017443	popular sovereignty	leaving the ultimate authority with the people through a popular vote.	24
2953017444	rank and file	the great mass or majority of any group or organization, as opposed to the leadership	25
2953017445	realignment	A process in which a substantial group of voters switches party allegiance, producing a long-term change in the political landscape.	26
2953019289	Reform Party	A minor party founded by Ross Perot in 1995. It focuses on national government reform, fiscal responsibility, and political accountability. It has recently struggled with internal strife and criticism that it lacks an identity.	27
2953022174	Republican National Committee (RNC)	is a U.S. political committee that provides national leadership for the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican political platform, as well as coordinating fundraising and election strategy.	28
2953022175	Republicans	A political party that began in 1854 and is today one of the two major political parties in the United States. Originally, it was composed mainly of northerners from both major parties of the time, the Democrats and the Whigs, with some former Know-Nothings as well.	29
2953023465	single-issue parties	Parties that concentrate on only one public policy matter	30
2953023466	single-member district	An electoral district from which one person is chosen by the voters for each elected office. This type of electoral system typically leads to legislatures dominated by two political parties.	31
2953026632	splinter/bolter parties	parties that broke off of a larger existing party due to an ideology differing from that of party leaders.	32
2953026633	spoiler	A losing candidate who costs another candidate the election.	33
2953026634	superdelegates	"Unpledged Delegates" (usually important party members) at national party convention (about 20% of total delegates) who, unlike "pledged delegates" selected in primaries or caucuses, are not committed to a particular candidate. Used by party leaders to retain some control over candidate selection. Can be important in close races (like Obama vs. Hillary Clinton in 2008)	34
2953029126	Theodore Roosevelt	26th president, known for: conservationism, trust-busting, Hepburn Act, safe food regulations, "Square Deal," Panama Canal, Great White Fleet, Nobel Peace Prize for negotiation of peace in Russo-Japanese War	35
2953029127	ticket splitting	Voting with one party for one office and with another party for other offices. It has become the norm in American voting behavior.	36
2953031482	two-party system	An electoral system with two dominant parties that compete in national elections.	37
2953031483	United We Stand America	was the name selected by Texas businessman H. Ross Perot for his citizen action organization after his 1992 independent political campaign for President of the United States. Perot's 19% showing in the 1992 election was sufficient to entitle him to federal matching funds for the 1996 campaign. After the campaign, Perot announced, on January 11, 1993, the formation of a non-profit watchdog organization named United We Stand America.	38
2953034227	Whigs	conservatives and popular with pro-Bank people and plantation owners. They mainly came from the National Republican Party, which was once largely Federalists. They took their name from the British political party that had opposed King George during the American Revolution. Their policies included support of industry, protective tariffs, and Clay's American System. They were generally upper class in origin. Included Clay and Webster	39
2953041204	white primary	One of the means used to discourage African-American voting that permitted political parties in the heavily Democratic South to exclude African Americans from primary elections, thus depriving them of a voice in the real contests. The Supreme Court declared them unconstitutional in 1944.	40