The _____________ process is cricially important to democratic government.
nominating
There are ________ major nominating methods in American politics.
five
The most widely used nominating method is the _______________.
direct primary
The election process is regulated mostly by _________law.
State
Most ________ are cast at polling places in thousands of precincts around the country.
ballots
Name three methods that of voting that does not involve going to one's precinct.
absentee voting, early voting, vote-by-mail
Every state now uses the _____________ballot, which is of the party-column or the office-group type.
Australian
Various types of electronic voting and /or vote-counting devices are rapidly replacing both the ______________ voting machinesa nd the ___________ ballot devices in most States today.
lever-operated, punch-card
__________ plays a key role in politics but presents serious problems to democratic government.
money
Most campaign money comes from ____________ sources, including political actions committees (PACs).
private
Federal campaign laws are administered by the ____________________.
Federal Election Commission (FEC)
_____________ in campaign fiance laws allow candidates and contributors to evade some regulations.
loopholes
A group of like-minded people who meet to choose candidates for office
caucus
The political arm of a special interest group.
PAC (Policitcal Action Committee)
The election held within the political party at which the voters choose candidates who will appear on the ballot in an upcoming general election.
direct primary
The place where voters go to cast their ballots.
polling place
The device by which voters register their choices in an election.
ballot
In a _____________, voters must choose between the two top finishers in an earlier primary election.
runoff primary
Because of the ___________, candidates can benefit from the popularity of another candidate on the ballot from their party
coattail effect
_____________is given to State and local party organizations for "party-building activites.
soft money
One commonly heard criticism of the ____________ is that it encourages raiding.
open primary
Which method of nomination is most common in the United States today?
direct primary
What is the main argument in support of closed primaries?
They prevent one party from "raiding" the other's primary
Among those banned from making contributions to the campaigns of candidates running for federal office are
Federal Banks
Which type of primary specifically covers local elections in which candidates do not identify their party on the ballot?
nonpartisan primary
The smallest geographic unit for the conduct of elections is called a
precinct.
Absentee voting and early voting allow voters to
cast their ballots before election day.
__________ is NOT a method of casting one's ballot that is currently widely available in the United States
Online voting
A(n) __________ ballot is one on which candidates for an office are grouped together under the title of that office.
office-group
What is the process of narrowing the field of possible candidates for office called?
nomination
Why do bedsheet ballots often result in "ballot fatigue"?
because they are so long that voters get tired before they reach the end of the ballot
Punch-card ballots have been eliminated because
improperly punched cards produce "hanging chads" that are difficult for machines to read
What is the difference between a closed primary and an open primary?
Only registered party members may vote in a closed primary, whereas any qualified voter can vote in an open primary
What is the main argument in support of open primaries?
They do not exclude independent voters.
A runoff primary is necessary when
no one wins a majority in a primary race.
Hard money is money
raised and spent to elect candidates for Congress and the White House.
The __________ banned soft-money contributions to political parties, but had a loophole that allowed independent political groups to raise and spend money on behalf of candidates
Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA) of 2002
Soft money is money
given to a party organization for "party-building activities.