Unit 4 Study Guide –
Political parties, interest
groups and mass media
By: Lexi Bartlett, Alexis
McNeff, Aminata Ka
Period 5
Vocabulary
• Amicus Curiae Briefs- legal briefs submitted by a “friend of the court” for
the purpose of raising additional points of view and presenting info not
contained in the briefs of the formal parties
• Buckley v. Valeo- the court ruled that giving money to a political campaign
was a form of free speech and threw out some stringent federal
regulations on fundraising and election spending in 1976
• Campaign Contributions- advantages of working together in an organized
way in hope to achieve a particular goal
• Caucus (state party)- a meeting of all state party leaders for selecting
delegates to the national party convention, usually organized as a pyramid
• Closed Primary- a type of direct primary limited to registered party
members, who must declare their party affiliation in order to vote
Vocabulary
• Coalition Building- the process by which parties come together to form a
coalition or a temporary alliance in order to achieve a common purpose
• Federal Elections Commission- an independent regulatory agency,
founded in 1975 by the United States Congress to regulate the campaign
finance legislation in the United States
• Gerrymandering- redistrict in a way to make it beneficial for your specific
party or manipulate the boundaries of (an electoral constituency) so as to
favor one party or class
• Grassroots Mobilization- influencing the direction of law and policy by
mobilizing others to join them in strategic actions
• Incumbency Advantage- an advantage gained by someone who was
already in a position especially over someone who has not been in office
Vocabulary
• Litigation- any lawsuit or other resort to the courts to determine a legal
matter or question
• Lobbying- seeking to make influence on an issue
• Open Primary- a primary election in which voters are not required to
declare party affiliation
• Plurality Election- an election contested by more than 2 candidates,
occurs when neither candidate wins the majority but the person with the
most votes wins
• Political Action Committee (PAC)- an organization that raises money
privately to influence elections or legislation, especially at the federal level
• Political Culture- an overall set of values widely shared within a society
Vocabulary
• Political Efficacy- the belief that one’s political participation really
matters; that one’s vote can actually make a difference
• Political Ideology- a coherent set of beliefs about politics, public
policy and public purpose
• Political Party- a “team of men and women seeking to control the
governing apparatus by gaining office in a duly constituted election”
• Soft Money- political contributions earmarked for party-building
expenses at the grass-roots level, are not subject to contribution
limits
• Superdelegates- national party leaders who automatically get a
delegate slot at the Democratic national party convention
• Winner-take-all Electoral College- the legislative seats are awarded
only to the candidates who come in first in their constituencies
Composition of Democratic
and Republican Parties
Key Factors
Democrats
Republicans
Family
Non-traditional
Traditional
Age
Young
Old
Gender
Female
Male
*Class
*Poor
*Rich
Education
Less
More
Race
Minorities
Caucasian
Religion
Catholic/Jews
Protestant
Region
Urban
Rural
* Republicans tend to be the upper-middle class so a the majority
of them are well educated. Lower-middle class tend to fall under
the Democratic category but the most educated people of the
United States tend to be Democrats.
Primaries vs Caucuses
• Primaries are a state-level
election where party
members vote to choose a
candidate affiliated with
their political party. Party
candidates selected in a
primary then run against
each other in a general
election.
Examples: closed, semi-closed,
open, semi-open
Primaries vs Caucuses
• A caucus is a local meeting where registered
members of a political party in a city, town, or
county gather to vote for their preferred party
candidate and conduct other party business.
Pros and Cons of Third Party
Voting
• Cons1. Splits the vote
for either the
Republican or
Democrat
2. Most of the time
the 3rd party
leans strongly in
one direction
3. Steals votes
• Pros1. Introduces
new ideas
2. Goes against
status quo
3. Challenges
the major
parties
Functions and Procedures of
Party Conventions
• Conventions offer party members a
chance to gather and discuss the
party platform.
• It is a place for political debate.
• Conventions have been
streamlined, with important events
and speeches scheduled for primetime television hours.
• They serve to unify the party and
party pride.
• The “advertisements for the party”
have become the primary function
of political conventions today.
Problems That A Divided
Government Creates
• Empowers the congressional party to launch
investigations of the administration, which
deepens partisan rancor and creates
legislative gridlock
• Will not solve the big problems facing the
nation
Provisions of the Bill of Rights
that Protect Rights to Political
Participation
• Civil and political rights are a
class of rights that protect
individual’s freedom from
violation of the government,
social organizations, and
private individuals
• Ensure one’s ability to
participate in the civil and
political life of the society and
state without discrimination
or repression
Campaign Finance Reform
• It is the political effort in the United States to
change the involvement of money in politics,
primarily in political campaigns
Consequences of the WinnerTake-All Primaries
• Same two party system
• Majorities within legislature are formed easily
• Makes process for voting on legislation less
complicated
• Simplifies the elections
Pros and Cons of Winner-TakeAll Primaries
Pros
Cons
Government system tends to be more
stable
Fewer perspectives represented in
government
Radical minor parties are discouraged
Less candidate choices creates apathetic
voters
Small number of parties simplifies voters
choices
Candidate can gain plurality and not be
eliminated from government causing
them to be able to moderate policy
Critical Elections
• Critical elections describe dramatic
change in the political system.
• The coming of power for several
decades of a new coalition replacing an
old dominant coalition of the other
party
• Sharp changes in issues, party leaders,
the regional to demographic bases in
power of the two parties and structures
or rules of the political system resulting
in a new political power structure that
lasts for decades
Limiting Factors on Interest
Groups Influence
• Limits Effectiveness: assets, alliances
(cooperation with other groups) and
the visibility of its involvement in
policy decisions
• Media’s depiction of it
• Members: status and distribution of
an interest groups members
contribute to success
• Money: allows groups to contribute
to political campaign through PAC’s
(Political Action Committees)
Goals Between Interest
Groups and Political Parties
• They both have a central goal which is to achieve
change in the government.
-Interest Groups: focus on specific issues and
specific area of politics
Ex: Farmers Groups – try to influence legislation
about farming laws
- Political Parties: try for more broad change in
many different sectors, such as the economy and social
life
Similarities and Differences
Between Interest Groups and
Political Parties
• They both use different methods.
- Interest groups influence political parties through
external methods such as lobbying to legislatures or
creating bonds with agencies
- Political parties influence legislation through
internal methods. They try to get as many people elected
as possible that have views similar to the party to help
change legislation to their beliefs.
Difference Between
Congressional and
Presidential Elections
Congressional Elections
Presidential Elections
Held every two years
Held every four years
Elections for 1/3 of the Senate and all of
the House
Election of future president and vice
president
Held midway through a president’s term
in office
Electoral college
Used to indicate what the electoral think
about the president’s performance
Indirect vote in which citizens cast ballots
Techniques Used by Interest
Groups to Influence Elections
• Lobbying
• Informing people
• Forming alliances with other
groups in the iron triangle
• Run ads
• Give money to candidates
through political donations
• Engaging in election activities
Why has the electoral
college not been abolished?
• It’s part of the United
States’ history and
tradition
• Abolishing the electoral
college would require a
constitutional
amendment.
• It favors small states
because each elector
represents fewer
people than electors in
larger states.
Difference Between
Strategies to Win General
Elections vs the Nominations
• In a nomination, the party is the audience
• In an election, the country is the audience
• Richard Nixon’s advice is in a general election,
lean towards the middle but in a nomination
lean strongly one direction.
Influence Superdelegates
Have on the Democratic
Nominating Process
• Superdelegates are
unpledged so they
can change their
mind on candidates
as the process
unfolds
• Their votes can
basically be bought