SHORT ANSWER QUESTION

Unit 2

Identify and describe the three party eras. How is the current period of government different than these eras?

Democrats vs. Whigs Andrew Jackson appeals to the masses rather than the elite

Republicans vs. Democrats ½ Republican Party began with the anti-slavery movement 2/2 Period of Capitalism and Big Business

Democrats vs. Republicans FDR introduces the New Deal (government spending on social programs) JFK and LBJ continue spending on social programs

Identify and describe the three party eras. How is the current period of government different than these eras?

Current Period of government differs due the following:

No one party has been dominant through this era

Party Dealignment- voters are no longer clearly associated with a political party

Ticket splitting- voting for candidates from different political parties on the same ballot

Divided Government- president and the majority of congress are from different political parties

Identify and describe the two ways states nominate candidates to go to the national convention. How has this process changed?

Primary- voters directly nominate candidates Caucus- state party leaders work with voters to select

candidates

-Initially most states used a caucus as state party leaders nominated candidates in secret

-Riot @ the 1968 Democratic National Convention by women and minority groups that felt under represented by the process

-Led to the McGovern Frasier Commission which forbid party leaders from secretly selecting candidates. Most states switched to conduct primary elections

Identify and describe two pieces of legislation that have attempted to regulate campaign financing. (list specific provisions) Discuss their effectiveness.

1974 Federal Election Campaign Act Limited Individual Donations to $1000 Required candidates to disclose all donations and

expenses Created the FEC to enforce Campaign Laws Groups must register as PACs to donate to candidates

-LOOPHOLE- Soft money- money donated for generic party use

McCain Feingold Bill Attempted to limit soft money donations

Describe how the Electoral College works and list three criticisms of this system.

Electoral College Each state is given a number of electors equal to its

number of it’s representatives in the House and Senate The candidate that wins the popular vote in each state

receives all of that states electoral votes The candidate that wins the majority (270) of the

electoral votes wins the electionCriticisms

A candidate could win the popular vote but lose the election

System makes it difficult for third parties to gain significances

Swing states get most of the attention

What happens over the course of an election year (Election Time Table)

See Timeline Diagram

Identify two major differences between a political party and an interest group

Interest GroupsPolicy Specialist

Focus on a narrow range of issue

Influence Politics through: Lobbying- using expert

analysis to persuade and inform politicians

Electioneering- helping like minded candidates get elected by providing financial aid and campaign help

Litigation- challenge existing laws through the court system

Political PartiesPolicy Generalist

Focus on a wide range of issues

Influence Politics through attempting to win an election