Unit 3 Gov Notes PDF

Unit 3 Gov Notes ​ Political parties- Organized group w/ shared beliefs with purpose to elect like-minded individuals ​ Era of good feelings- time of political unity and economic prosperity ​ In 1824, there became a corrupt bargain ○​ Lack of trust and support in the establ...

Unit 3 Gov Notes ​ Political parties- Organized group w/ shared beliefs with purpose to elect like-minded individuals ​ Era of good feelings- time of political unity and economic prosperity ​ In 1824, there became a corrupt bargain ○​ Lack of trust and support in the establishment ​ This creates the democratic party ​ In 1828, Jackson wins (there are more voters during this election) ​ 1828 → Democrats vs Whigs ○​ Democrats ​ Begin to grow ​ Support in south ​ Pro-slavery ○​ Whigs ​ Collapsed under competing industries of slavery and business ​ 1852→ Republicans created ​ 1860→ Civil war ​ 1860-1932 → Party politics ○​ Candidate is whatever ​ The party is most important ○​ There were clear lines: ○​ North is republican ○​ South is democratic ○​ Stability in parties due to political machines ​ Builds loyalty and support through jobs ​ The Modern Era (1932-present) ○​ Political process controlled by government → Referendum, recall, direct election of senators ○​ Candidate-led elections ​ Allow the candidate to direct the party ​ Voters tend to ignore issues if they like the candidate ​ Growth of suburbs ​ Party realignment ○​ Dramatic shifts in voting patterns and preferences ○​ Critical elections ​ 1800 → one-party politics ​ 1828 → Rise of populism ​ 1860 → Civil War/sectionalism ​ 1932 → Depression/rise of “big” government ​ 1968 → The Southern Strategy ​ 2012 → Tea Party politics ○​ Secular realignment ​ Smaller → Local changes ​ Organization of political parties ○​ National Party ​ Chairperson → primary spokesperson for party ​ Committee →DNC and RNC, oversee convention, distribute funds ​ National Convention →Happens every four years to select presidents and VP →Sets party platform ​ Delegates →Support the candidate who won primary ​ Superdelegate → Free agent ○​ State and local levels ​ State central committees ​ Congressional district committees ​ City and county committees ​ Precinct and ward committees ​ Activists and volunteers ​ Voters ​ Activities of political parties ○​ Getting political power ​ Selecting candidates ​ Raising money ​ Mobilizing support ○​ Formulating policy →Happens every four years, what the party wants to accomplish ○​ Organizing of party 1)​ Congress 2)​ Presidency 3)​ Courts 4)​ States ​ Party identification ○​ Affiliation with a political party shown generally through voting ​ Political socialization ○​ The factors that influence and shape your beliefs ​ Parents, friends, marriage, children, job, economic status… ​ Group affiliations ○​ Geography (coasts more liberal, middle america more conservative) ○​ Gender ○​ Race/ethnicity ○​ Age ○​ Social and economic status ○​ Religion ○​ Marital status ​ Minor parties ○​ Focused on specific/key issues ○​ Proportional voting ○​ Ranked choice voting ​ Polarizatiom ○​ Division that drives political ideas apart ○​ No more liberal republicans and conservative democrats ○​ Caused by multiple areas of concern ​ Decline in good citizenship ​ 24 hour news cycle/social media ​ Homogenous communities ​ More polarized candidates ​ Clear articulation ○​ Consequences ​ Less productive government ​ Increase in biased info ​ Lack of government integrity ​ Lack of strong policy ​ Minor parties (third party candidates) → Struggle to get electoral traction, but will often steal votes from larger parties ○​ Usually have a more narrow focus ○​ Compelling candidates or ideas ○​ Libertarian Party → Individual liberty and limited government ​ Free market ​ Non-interference in private lives ​ Privatizing most services outside of foreign affairs ○​ Green Party → Major focus on environmental issues (green economy) ​ Renewable energy, living wage, affordable housing ​ Non-interventionist, demilitarize ​ Sustainable society ​ Public opinion →Thoughts on any key issues or policy ○​ Public opinion polls →Surverys or interviews aimed at determining public’s stance ○​ Straw poll → Informal survey to get quick feelings on issues ​ Misconstrue who is sampled ​ Timing of polls ​ Self-selection ​ How to create polls 1)​ Determine content and phrasing a)​ Questions can be created to form bias b)​ Push polls →Push people to feel a certain way 2)​ Selecting a sample a)​ Deciding who will be asked →Random sampling (may not reflect actual population) b)​ Stratified sampling →divide into subgroups & weigh against national averages 3)​ Constructing respondamts a)​ Phone calls→Basic, daily tracking, protected speech  b)​ In-person→Most accurate, detailed, hardest but create bias c)​ Internet→Most popular, easiest, can lead to extreme results, taken over by bots 4)​ Analyzing data → Break down info to inform decision making ​ Shortcomings of polling ○​ Survey error (aka margin of error) ○​ Limited response choices (a good poll has 5-7) ○​ Lack of info (no knowledge on the topic) ○​ Measure intensity ○​ Lack of interest ​ Why poll? ○​ There is still good polling → Random and diverse ○​ Influence policy & action ​ Competitive seats ○​ Can be used to overcome outside influences → Lobbying