Political Terminology vocabulary

Republicans/GOP: “Grand Old Party” refers to the Republican Party Republicans/GOP: “Grand Old Party” refers to the Republican Party. One of the two major contemporary parties. Most recent president – George W. Bush. Democratic Party: One of two major contemporary parties. Most recent President – Barack Obama. Liberals: a political ideology that supports a standard set of social policies such as: Affirmitive action, increased spending on education, immigration reform and universal health care. Conservatives: a political ideology that supports preserving existing conditions, institutions, or to restore traditional ones and limit change. Historically associated with “RIGHT WING” politics. Reagan Democrats: Political term used to denote traditionally democratic voters, who defected from their party to support Republican President Ronald Reagan. Used to describe moderate democrats who are more conservative on issues such as national security and immigration.

Independents: those citizens who do not associate themselves with any major party. Tea Party: An American political movement that advocates strict adherence to the US Constitution, reducing government spending and taxes and a reduction of debt/deficit. White Collar: Refers to the “white dress shirts” of males who work in office jobs. Historically, vote republican and tend to be more conservative. Blue Collar: Refers to the “blue shirts, uniforms or coveralls” of males who work in manual labor jobs or the service industry. Low-Information Voters: People who may vote but are generally poorly informed about politics. Third Party: Any political party other than Republican and Democratic. Usually do not impact an election (i.e. Green Party)

Red States: refers to those states that tend to vote Republican. Blue States: refers to states that tend to vote Democrat. Swing State/Battleground State(Purple States): refers to a state in which no single party or candidate has overwhelming support in securing that state’s Electoral College Votes. Such states are targets of both major parties in presidential elections. (i.e. Iowa) Swing Voters: is a voter that can potentiallly go to any number of candidates in an election, or in a two-party system, may go to either party. Youth Vote: The 26th Amendment lowered the voting age to 18 in 1971, but 18-29 year olds have a spotty voting record. In the 2000 election their turnout was 40% - lowest of any group. In the 2008 election Obama was able to motivate the youth vote which is credited to helping him win he election (51%)

Soccer Moms: An American mother living in the suburbs whose time is often spent transporting her children from one activity to another. This group became a targeted group by politicians during the 1996 presidential election as a major voting block. Constituency: The body of voters or the residents of a district represented by an elected legislator or official. Platform: The aims and principles of a person or party. Their official position on the “issues.” Lobbyist: A group of persons engaged in trying to influence legislators or other public officials in favor of a specific cause. 527: U.S. Tax Exempt organization that is created to influence the selection, nomination, election appointment or defeat of candidates to federal, state or local public office. Soft Money: Money donated to political parties that leaves the contribution unregulated.

Base: A group of voters who almost always support a single party’s candidates for elected office. Grassroots: Involving the common people in politics as a fundamental political and economic group. Media: the means of communication that reach a large number of people, such as television, newspapers and radio. Sound Bite: A brief statement, as by a politician, taken from an audio/video source and broadcast during a news report. Spin: A political agenda, twisting truths or facts into something that “proves” your point of view. Mudslinging: Negative campaigning, trying to win advantage by referring to negative aspects of an opponent or of a policy.

Swiftboating: Term used to describe an unfair or untrue political attack. The term is derived from the Swift Vets and POWs for truth widely publicized, then discredited, campaign against 2004 US Presidential candidate John Kerry saying he lied about his service in battle in the Vietnam War. Polls: Record the opinions or votes of people, usually done to see who is winning a political race or to see where people stand on an issue. Popular Vote: An election is a formal decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold office. Electoral Vote: A body of people representing the states of the US, who formally cast votes for the election of President/VP in an election. Winner Take-All: In a Presidential election, the candidate who wins the popular vote will usually get all electoral votes for that state.

Stump Speech: The term is derived from the tradition of candidates campaigning from town to town and delivering speeches from a tree stump. Due to busy schedules candidates generally deliver a single speech repeatedly. Lame Ducks: Elected official who is approaching the end of their tenure, and who will not be returning to their position. They tend to have less political power but also do not have to face consequences for their actions in upcoming elections. PAC (Political Action Committee): Any organization that campaigns for or against political candidates, ballot initiatives or legislation. At the federal level an organization becomes a PAC when it receives or spends more than $1,000/$5000 for the purposes of influencing elections. Super PAC: A PAC that is not limited to the amount of money that it can contribute as a result of the Supreme Court decision in Citizens United vs. FEC based on 1st amendment rights.