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| coattails |
DEF: The idea that a popular president can generate additional support for candidates affiliated with his party.
EX: If a president is Democratic and is well-respected, he can easily sway people to vote for Democratic candidates.
SIG: Gets a majority of one party in the House and Senate. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 21:50:44 GMT |
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| voting cues |
DEF: Pieces of information about a candidate that are readily available, easy to interpret, and lead a citizen to decide to vote for a particular candidate.
EX: The candidate's political party.
SIG: Provides the citizen a simple way to have a preference to one candidate. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 21:50:44 GMT |
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| soft money |
DEF: Contributions that can be used for voter mobilization or to promote a policy proposal or point of view as long as these efforts are not tied to supporting or opposing a particular candidate.
EX: Funding for van service to the polls.
SIG: Provides funding for candidates to urge voters to vote and to promote their policies. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 21:44:09 GMT |
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| hard money |
DEF: Donations that are used to help elect or defeat a specific candidate.
EX: Funding for ads.
SIG: Provides funding for candidates for campaigning. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 21:44:09 GMT |
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| Federal Election Commission |
DEF: The government agency that enforces and regulates campaign finance laws.
EX: Made up of six presidential appointees, of whom no more than three can be members of the same party.
SIG: Controls financing of campaigning. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 21:44:09 GMT |
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| campaign platform |
DEF: A candidate's description of his or her issue positions and the kinds of policies he or she will seek to enact in office.
EX: Promising to lower taxes.
SIG: Tells the voters what they want to hear so they can get elected. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 21:44:09 GMT |
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| GOTV or the ground game |
DEF: A campaigns efforts to "get out the vote" or make sure their supporters vote on Election Day.
EX: Setting up a van service for voters.
SIG: Urges more citizens to vote and have their say in government. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 21:22:38 GMT |
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| mobilization |
DEF: Motivating supporters to vote in an election and, in some cases, helping them get to the polls on Election Day.
EX: Setting up a van service for voters.
SIG: Urges more citizens to vote and have their say in government. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 21:22:38 GMT |
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| retail politics |
DEF: A mode of campaigning in which a candidate or campaign staff contact citizens directly.
EX: A rally, a talk before a small group, or a one-on-one meeting.
SIG: Helps candidate get to a close and personal level with the voters. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 21:22:38 GMT |
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| wholesale politics |
DEF: A mode of campaigning that involves indirect contact with citizens.
EX: Running campaign ads.
SIG: Requires less effort and time on candidate's part. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 21:22:38 GMT |
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| election cycle |
DEF: The two-year period between general elections.
EX: Election period between 2008 and 2010.
SIG: Occurs every two years between elections. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 21:09:27 GMT |
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| electoral college |
DEF: The body that votes to select America's president and vice president based on the popular vote in each state.
EX: How the president is elected every four years.
SIG: Prevents the citizens from directly voting for the president. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 21:09:27 GMT |
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| winner-take-all |
DEF: During the presidential primaries, the practice of assigning all of a given states' delegates to the candidate who receives the most popular votes.
EX: If the Democratic nominee wins the primaries, he or she gets all the delegates from that area.
SIG: Gives the nominee a great advantage. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 21:09:27 GMT |
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| majority voting |
DEF: A voting system in which a candidate must win more than 50 percent of votes in order to win the election.
EX: If the Democratic candidate wins 48% of the vote, the Republican candidate wins 46% of the vote, and the independent candidate wins 6% of the vote then there must be a runoff election between the top two candidates.
SIG: Provides an accurate election. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 21:09:27 GMT |
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| plurality voting |
DEF: A voting system in which the candidate who receives the most votes within a geographic area wins the election regardless of whether or not he or she wins majority.
EX: If the Democratic candidate wins 48% of the vote, the Republican candidate wins 46% of the vote, and the independent candidate wins 6% of the vote then the Democratic candidate wins.
SIG: Calls for only one election as long as there is no tie. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 20:58:13 GMT |
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| absentee ballot |
DEF: A voting ballot submitted by mail before an election.
EX: Voting for a Democratic candidate a week before election and sending it in the mail.
SIG: Allows voters who will be unable to go to the polls on Election Day still vote. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 20:58:13 GMT |
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| general election |
DEF: The election in which voters cast ballots for House members, senators, and a president and vice president.
EX: Election for president every four years is a general election.
SIG: Allows citizens to vote for their preferred candidate. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 20:58:13 GMT |
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| incumbent |
DEF: A politician running for reelection to the office she currently holds.
EX: Bush in the 2004 election was an incumbent.
SIG: Represents an official who is currently in office and has been elected before. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 20:58:13 GMT |
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| nationalized election |
DEF: An atypical congressional election in which the reelection rate is relatively low for one's party's House and Senate incumbents and national-level issues exert more influence than usual on House and Senate races.
EX: Election of 2006 when the Democrats took over a lot of House and Senate seats.
SIG: Form a strong seat shift between parties. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 20:58:28 GMT |
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| normal election |
DEF: A typical congressional election in which the reelection rate is high, and the influences on the House and Senate contests are largely local.
EX: Seat shifts between the parties are small.
SIG: Most congressional elections are normal elections. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 20:48:02 GMT |
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| electoral vote |
DEF: Votes cast by members of the electoral college.
EX: After a presidential candidate wins the popular vote in a state, that candidate's slate of electors will cast electoral votes for the candidate on behalf of the state.
SIG: Citizens don't directly elect an official. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 20:48:02 GMT |
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| popular vote |
DEF: The votes cast by citizens in an election.
EX: Each vote is counted individually toward candidates.
SIG: Directly elects an official. |
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aaadd Mon, 11 Jan 2010 20:48:02 GMT |
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