AP US Government UNIT III:
CAMPAIGNS, ELECTIONS, AND THE MEDIA
Reading: CHAPTERS 9, 10, & 7
Testing: Chapter 9, 10 and 7 Quizzes, Unit III Essays, Unit III Multiple Choice Exam
Assignments: Term Cards, Congressional Elections Simulation, Voting Web Exploration, Voting on the Real Ballot
KEY TERMS TO DEFINE AND REMEMBER: UNIT III
Directions: Define 15 terms from each lecture.
o Each term must be defined on its own note card.
o Each term must appear on 1 side of the card with the corresponding definition on the back.
o No points will be given for terms defined on anything other than note cards.
o No points will be given for Term Cards not in your own handwriting.
o Term Cards will always be due the day of the multiple-choice portion of the unit exam.
o Term Cards are worth 1 point a piece.
o For your own sanity’s sake, do not wait until the night before the exam to define all your terms!
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Chap. 9
527’s
Bi-partisan Campaign Reform Act
Buckley v. Valeo
Campaign manager
Campaign strategy
Caucus
Direct mail
Federal Election Campaign Act
Federal Election Commission (FEC)
Frontloading
General election
Hard money
Independent expenditures
Individual contributions
Image ad
Issue ad
McGovern-Fraser Commission
Media consultant
National party convention
National primary
Nomination
Party platform
Plurality
Political Action Committees (PAC’s)
Precinct
Presidential primaries
Press secretary
Public financing
Regional primaries
Selective perception
Soft money
Super Tuesday
Superdelegates
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Chap. 10
12th Amendment
Bandwagon propaganda
Bush v. Gore
Card-Stacking propaganda
Casework
Civic duty
Credit-claiming
Electoral College
Franking privilege
Glittering Generalities
propaganda
Incumbency advantage
Initiative petition
Legitimacy
Mandate Theory of Elections
Motor Voter Act
Name-Calling propaganda
Open seat
Plain Folks propaganda
Policy voting
Political efficacy
Political legitimacy
Plurality
Pork barrel
Recall
Redistricting
Referendum
Retrospective voting
Slippery Slope propaganda
Straw Man propaganda
Suffrage
Testimonial propaganda
Transfer propaganda
Voter registration
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Chap. 7
Beats
Broadcast media
Candidate-centered politics
Federal Communications
Commission
Fireside chats
High-tech politics
“Horse race” journalism
Investigative journalism
Mass media
Media chains
Media event
Narrowcasting
Policy agenda
Policy entrepreneurs
Press conference
Print media
Sound bites
Talking head
Trial balloons
UNIT III BRIDGE NOTES (better than Spark Notes)
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There are two types of campaigns in American politics: campaigns for party nominations (nomination campaigns) and
campaigns between nominees for public office (election campaigns).
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Nominations for offices are made via primaries and caucuses, which severely weaken party organizations’ control over
the nomination process and encourage candidates to rely on personal campaign organizations.
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Candidates need money to build a campaign organization and to get their message out. The Federal Election Campaign
Act of 1974, passed in the wake of the Watergate scandal, supposedly tightened reporting requirements and limiting
overall expenditures. It also allows for public funding for presidential candidates. The law's loopholes have been
exploited by both parties, causing a growing concern for campaign finance reform. These loopholes and the
skyrocketing costs of campaigning have given incumbents a major advantage.
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Research has shown that campaigns have three effects on voters: Reinforcement, Activation, and Conversion.
Campaigns mostly reinforce and activate, seldom do they convert.
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Elections are governed by both the federal and state governments. The federal government is engaged primarily in
protecting people from discrimination in their exercise of the right to vote, regulating campaign finance for federal
office, and setting uniform dates for federal elections.
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Elections socialize and institutionalize political activity, by providing a peaceful channel for participation.
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To be elected president, a candidate must win a majority of the electoral college vote. A state's electoral votes are
allocated to candidates on a winner-take-all basis. Because of this feature, candidates can concentrate their campaign
efforts on states with large blocs of electoral votes and on states where the race is tightly contested (battleground or
swing states).
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The turnout of eligible voters is approximately 50 percent in presidential elections and normally less than 40 percent in
midterm elections. Turnout is affected by such social characteristics as age and education, registration requirements,
the amount of publicity a campaign receives, the competitiveness of the election, and personal attitudes such as party
identification.
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Voter choice on Election Day is influenced by the interaction of party identification, candidate evaluations, and the
voter's policy positions matched with the candidate's.
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As a major source of political information, the media, particularly television, help shape the public's perceptions and
reality. As a vital linkage institution, the media is able to mobilize citizens to take political action and influence the
behavior of government officials.
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The media has a strong voice in deciding which issues will be placed on the public's agenda, but when they cover election
campaigns they tend to focus on the “horse race” aspects of the contest and not on substantive issues.
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Political leaders and news people are mutually dependent. Politicians rely on the media to provide them with information
and to convey their message to the public. The media in turn rely heavily on public officials for the information on
which to base their reporting. The relationship is characterized by tension; however, as politicians seek to use the
media to achieve their objectives and the media seek to perform their news-gathering functions.
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The vast majority of social science research has found that the media is not systematically biased toward a particular
ideology or party. Because news is a business, the overriding bias is toward stories that will draw the largest audience.
These tend to be stories focusing on conflict, violence, disaster, or scandal. Television is biased towards stories that
will generate good pictures as well.
AP RELEASE FRQ’s COVERED IN UNIT III
1.
1999: In recent decades presidential election campaigns have become more candidate centered and less focused on issues
and party labels. This change has been attributed both to how media cover presidential campaigns and to how candidates
use the media.
A. Identify and explain two ways in which the media have contributed to candidate-centered presidential campaigns.
B. Identify and explain two ways in which presidential candidates’ use of the media has contributed to candidatecentered campaigns.
2.
2000: Using your knowledge of United States voting behavior, perform the following tasks.
A. Identify one geographical region with strong support for the Democratic presidential candidate in recent elections
and explain two factors that contribute to that support.
B. Identify one geographical region with strong support for the Republican presidential candidate in recent elections
and explain two factors that contribute to that support.
3.
2000: The three obstacles listed below have made it difficult for Congress to enact significant campaign finance reform.
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Buckley v. Valeo (1976)
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Soft money
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Incumbency
Select two of the obstacles. For each obstacle, provide both of the following.
A. A brief description of the obstacle
B. An explanation of how the obstacle has made it difficult for Congress to enact significant campaign finance
reform.
4.
2001: From your knowledge of United States politics, perform the following tasks.
A. Identify two patterns related to the rate of Congressional incumbent reelection in recent decades.
B. Identify two factors that contribute to incumbency advantage. Explain how each factor contributes to incumbency
advantage.
C. Discuss one consequence of incumbency advantage for the United States political process.
5.
2002: In the last half of the twentieth century, voter turnout in federal elections has declined. During the same period
voter turnout has been higher in presidential elections than in midterm elections.
A. Identify two factors that have contributed to the overall decline in turnout in federal elections and explain how
each factor has contributed to the overall decline.
B. Identify and explain two reasons why voter turnout has been higher in presidential elections than in midterm
elections.
6.
2004: Trust and confidence in government have declined in recent decades.
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Explain how increased cost of election campaigns has contributed to the decline in trust and confidence in
government. Be sure to include a definition of divided government in your response.
7.
2005: The United States Congress has debated a variety of campaign finance reforms over the last decade. The proposals
debated have included the following:
Eliminating soft money
Limiting independent expenditures
Raising limits on individual contributions
A. Select one of the listed proposals and do all of the following:
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Define the proposal.
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Describe an argument that proponents make in favor of the proposal.
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Describe an argument that opponents make against the proposal.
B. Select a different listed proposal and do all of the following:
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Define the proposal.
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Describe an argument that proponents make in favor of the proposal.
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Describe an argument that opponents make against the proposal.
8.
2007: A significant feature of the Electoral College is that most states have a winner-take-all system.
A. Describe the winner-take-all system of the Electoral College.
B. Explain one way in which the winner-take-all feature of the Electoral College affects how presidential
candidates from the two major political parties run their campaigns.
C. Explain one way in which the winner-take-all feature of the Electoral College hinders third-party candidates.
D. Explain two reasons why the Electoral College has not been abolished.
9.
2009: In the United States political system, there are several linkage institutions that can connect citizens to government.
Elections constitute one such institution. Because of low voter turnout, elections represent an imperfect method of linking
citizens to their government. Even when there is low turnout, however, other linkage institutions can connect citizens to
government.
A. Describe how each of the following is related to the likelihood of voting.
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Age
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Education
B. Identify one current government electoral requirement that decreases voter turnout. Explain how it decreases
voter turnout.
C. Identify one linkage institution other than elections and explain two ways it connects citizens to government.
10. 2009: One of the most important ways news media influence politics is through agenda setting.
A. Define policy agenda
B. Explain how the national news media engage in agenda setting.
C. Explain the primary reason the president tends to have the advantage over Congress in gaining media attention.
D. Describe the differences in the TV nightly news viewing patterns of older and younger age groups.
E. Describe the change from 1974 to 2002 in view habits that exist for all age categories
F. Given the changes in nightly news viewing habits, describe one implication for presidents in their use of the media
to promote their political and policy objective to the American public.
11. 2010: Over the last several decades, the composition of the Democratic and Republican parties has changed in important
ways. A major partisan shift has occurred in the South, but other demographic changes have also been identified. Changes
in party composition are reflected at different rates in presidential elections than in congressional elections.
A. Choose two of the following and use each to explain why southern voters from 1948 to 2000 were electing Democratic
candidates to Congress more frequently than choosing Democratic candidates for the presidency.
 Incumbency advantage
 Gerrymandering
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Differences between state and national parties
B. Several other changes in party composition have emerged in the past few decades. Select three of the following groups
and for each explain how parties have changed in composition with respect to that group.
 Catholics
 Labor union members
 Women
 Social Conservatives
12. 2011: Nominees for the presidency of the two major parties are chosen by delegates at national conventions. How these
delegates are chosen varies across states and between the political parties.
A. Define each of the following methods used by states to choose delegates to party conventions
Open primary
Caucus
B. Republican Party rules permit winner-take-all primaries. Describe one consequence of this rule for the Republican
nomination process.
C. The Democratic Party has used superdelegates in the presidential nominating process since 1984. Explain why the use
of superdelegates increases the influences of party leaders in the Democratic nomination process.
Explain why a candidate’s strategy to win the nomination
is often different from the strategy developed to win
the general election.