Government/Civics Chapter 5 Review

Nominating Candidates

-selecting candidates
-the activity that sets political parties apart from other political groups

Informing and activating supporters

-inform people and activate their interests in public affairs
-Parties share this function with news media and interest groups.

Bonding agent

-Tries to choose candidates who are qualified and of good character
-After candidates are elected the party prods them to do well or suffer in the next elections

Governing

-Helps legislative and executive branches work together
-most appointments to executive branch are made on basis of partisanship, or allegiance to a political party.

Acting as watchdog

-party that is out of power criticizes the party that controls the government
-the loyal opposition urges votes to oppose to the party in power but be loyal to the people and the nation

All______can be defined as groups of persons who join together because they want to gain control of the government through winning elections.

political parties

Allegiance to a political party is known as_______.

partisanship

In the United States, the major_____ are the Democrats and the Republicans.

parties

The party that controls the executive branch is known as the_________.

party in power

The two major parties in the United States are election-oriented rather than issue-oriented.

True

Once its candidates are elected, a political party has no interest in whether they perform well in office.

false

The function that most clearly sets political parties apart from other political groups operating in the United States is the nomination of candidates for elective office.

True

Most federal appointments to executive offices are made on a partisan basis.

True

One of the most important functions of the party in power is the "watchdog" function.

False

A political party is a group of persons who join together in order to

gain control of the government through the electoral process.

The function of informing the public and stimulating political debate is performed by

all of the above (the news media, political parties, and interest groups)

Broadly based parties like those in the United States tend to reduce and moderate political conflict by

encouraging conflicting groups to agree to compromise solutions.

Under the system of separation of powers, political parties are usually the agents that prompt cooperation between

the legislative and executive branches

The function of the "loyal opposition" is to

criticize the policies of the party in power.

Historical Basis:

2-party system rooted in the beginnings of the nation itself-Anti-Federalists and Federalists; disunity and divisiveness-he American party system began as a 2 party system.

Tradition:

The fact that the nation began a 2-party system has been a leading reasons for the retention of it.

Electoral system:

The basic shape, and many of the details, of the election process work in the direction of promoting the existence of but 2 major parties

Ideological Consensus:

The realities of American societies and politics simply don't permit more than 2 major parties

minor party

one of the political parties without wide support

two-party system

2 major parties dominate politics (in America)

single-member district

Electoral district from which one person is chosen by the voters for each elected offie

plurality

largest number of votes cast for the office

pluralistic society

society consisting of several distinct cultures and groups.

consensus

a general agreement among various groups

multiparty

system in which several major and many lesser parties exist, seriously compete for, and actually win, public offices.

one-party system

("no-party" system) A political system in which only one party exists.

institution that promotes continuation of the two-party system

single-member districts

a union of many persons of diverse interests

coalition

general agreement

consensus

for example, the "Solid South

one-party system

culture composed of many distinct subgroups

pluralistic society

The two-party system in America goes back to the

ratification of the Constitution.

The fact that candidates for Congress do not need to win a majority of votes in order to win an election

discourages people from voting for minor-party candidates.

The statement that "Americans are an ideologically homogeneous people" refers to the fact that

Americans share basic political ideals.

Multiparty systems tend to produce

political instability

Which of the following groups would be most likely to support the Democratic party?

people whose parents supported the Democratic party

Federalists

-Strong before 1800
-"the rich and well-born"
-Alexander Hamilton

Jeffersonian Republicans

-1800-1820s
"common man" (people
-Thomas Jefferson
-James Madison

Jacksonian Democrats

-1820s-1830s
-small farmers, debtors, frontier pioneers, and slaveholders
-Andrew Jackson

Whigs

-1830s-1850s, never dominant
-eastern bankers, merchants, and industrialists, owners of large southern plantations/planters
-Henry Clay
-Daniel Webster
-William Henry Harrison
-Zachary Taylor

Republicans

-1860-1932
-business and financial interests, farmers, laborers, and newly freed blacks
-John C. Fremont
-Abraham Lincoln
-Faft
-T. Roosevelt
-McKinley

Post-Civil War Democrats

-never dominant outside the South
-"Solid South" (The South)
-William Jennings Bryan
-Wilson

New Deal Democrats

-1932-1968
-southerners, small farmers, organized labor, big-city political organizations, African Americans and other minorities
-Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR)
-Harry S. Truman
John F. Kennedy
-Lyndon B. Johnson

Era of the Democrats,1800-1860

conflicts over public lands
-second bank of the US
high tariffs
slavery

Era of the Republicans, 1860-1932

Civil War
-Reconstruction
-Great Depression

Return of the Democrats, 1932-1968

Great Depression
New Deal (1930s), Roosevelt's (FDR) social welfare programs
WWII
Kennedy Assassination

incumbent

current officeholder (going to be going for reelection)

faction

conflicting group (groups that dissent)

electorate

people eligible to vote

sectionalism

emphasizes a devotion to the interests of a particular region.

Thomas Jefferson and James Madison were leaders of the____

Democratic-Republican party

The party that developed in opposition to the Jacksonian Democrats was the______

Whig party

The Era of Good Feeling was a period of_____ rule.

one-party

In the 1996 presidential election, President Bill Clinton was the_____

incumbent

The_____expanded to include all white males during the Jacksonian era.

electorate

Policies designed to help farmers and planters

were supported by the Democratic-Republicans

During______ the Democratic party dominated the Federal Government.

1800-1860 and 1932-1968

Southerners

were NOT part of the coalition that backed the post-Civil War Republican party.

The critical election of 1896 was a _____ victory that signaled an end to divisive___conflicts.

Republican, sectional

Unlike previous periods, during the period from 1968 to the present,

one party has controlled the presidency while the other has controlled Congress.

Ideological Parties (marxist thought)

based on a particular set of beliefs-comprehensive view of social, economic, and political matters.
-socialist, Socialist Labor, Libertarian Party, Socialist Worker, Communist Parties

Single-Issue Parties

Concentrate on only one public-policy matter
-Free Soil Party, American Party/"Know Nothings", Right to Life Party

Economic Protest Parties

-Parties rooted in poor economic times, lacking a clear ideological base, dissatisfied with current conditions and demanding better times
-Greenback Party
The Populist Party

Splinter Parties

-split away from one of the major parties
"Bull Moose" rogressive Party-T. Roosevelt
-Progressive Party-La Follette
-Progressive Party-Henry Wallace
-States' Rights (Dixiecrat) Party
-American independent Party

Single issue parties tend to

fade into history if unsuccessful at attracting voters
if successful at attracting voters, policies adopted by 1 of 2 major parties

Minor party most successful in winning votes

splinter party

minor party longest lived

ideological parties

minor parties functions:

first used national convention to nominate presidential candidate
decisive role (often a "spoiler role") in an election
critic and innovator
many important issues brought to public attention

The "Free Choice" party is formed by people intent on legalizing the use of marijuana for medical purposes

single-issue party

A group of Democrats, dissatisfied with the party's moderate nominee, decides to form a new "People's Rights" party to back their more liberal leader, Henry J. Smith.

Splinter party

A group of angry Midwestern farmers and laborers forms the "Working People's" party, calling for higher tariffs, higher farm subsidies, and congressional term limitations

economic protest party

The "Socialist Justice" party calls for a complete overhaul of the American political, economic, and legal systems.

ideological party

The "Equity" party works for an end to affirmative action programs

Single-issue party

Libertarian Party

ideological party

Democratic Party

major party

Populist party

economic protest party

Bull Moose party

splinter party

Prohibition party

single-issue party

Although ideological parties have not____, they have____

won many elections, been long-lived

The Free Soil party, the "Know Nothing"party, and the Right to Life party are all examples of

single-issue parties

True statement about splinter parties

Most of the important minor parties in the nation's history have been splinter parties

Minor parties are able to play a "spoiler role" in an election by

taking enough votes away from one of the two major parties to cost its candidate the election

Unlike major parties, minor parties

take clear-cut stands on controversial issues.

National Convention

every 4th year in presidential election
-to nominate the party's presidential and vice-presidential candidates
-adoption of party's rules and the writing of its platform

National Committee

between conventions
handles party's affairs
staging party's national convention
prepares next national convention

National Chairperson

-4 year term
directs work of the party's headquarters and its small staff in Washington
-strengthen party and its fortunes
leader of national committee

Congressional Campaign

-2 years(term of Congress)
-reelect incumbents
-make sure that seats given up by retiring party members remain in the party
unseat incumbents in the other party

Two factors that contribute to the decentralization of parties

federalism
nominating powers

The party out of power operates at a disadvantage because it has no leader comparable to the

President

IN recent years, there has been a sharp rise in the number of voters who identify themselves as

independents

ward

a unit into which cities are often divided for the election of city council members

precinct

smallest unit of election administration; voters in each report to 1 polling place

split-ticket voting

voting for candidates of different parties for different offices at the same election

Split-ticket voting has increased in recent decades

true

wards are the units into which states are divided for the election of congressional representatives

false-city council members

the adoption of the direct primary in the early 1900s strengthened party unity

false-increased divisiveness

PACs have made candidates less dependent on party organizations

true

IN recent decades, there has been a sharp increase in the number of voters who regard themselves as independents

true

The automatic leader of the party in power is the

President

The two main reasons that the major political parties are decentralized are

the divisiveness of the nominating process and the impact of federalism

Between elections, the affairs of both major parties are handled by each party's

national committee

The party's media consultants

is NOT one of the tree main elements of the two major parties in terms of the roles of their members

Party organizations have declined in recent years as a result of

the use of television and direct-mail campaign