1. -a group of people with similar beliefs and ideas about government
Political Parties
-political party
-a group of people with similar beliefs and ideas about government
-what are their beliefs???

2. Kinds of Party Systems
-One Party system – oppressive systems with one group control.
-usually, they’re communist (former Soviet Union, China, Cuba, etc
-Two Party system – system with two major choices
America today is a two party system (Democrats and Republicans
-Multi-Party System – three or more major parties
Most Western European countries are multi party

3. RECOMMENDED! DRAW A GIANT T- CHART ON YOUR NOTES FOR THIS SECTION!
Two Party System
RECOMMENDED! DRAW A GIANT T- CHART ON YOUR NOTES FOR THIS SECTION!
-Democrats –
more government regulation
More likely to support various firearm restrictions
More likely to support environmental law or laws to limit wall street
more individual freedom
Support of gay marriage
More likely to support legalizing marijuana
Pro-Choice
Feel school prayer violates Establishment clause
Feel freedom of speech cannot be limited (flag burning)
Prefer a “loose interpretation” of the Constitution
Meaning – they use the necessary and proper clause more (i.e., Obamacare)

4. Party Differences
-Democrats:
Favor taxation of wealthy more
“Make the rich pay their fair share”
Democrats believe that economic growth stems from middle class spending, this encourages business growth to serve this need and thus leads to hiring of more poor people.
Favor better public education and social programs
Democrats feel the best way to stop crime is prevent unemployment and get a better education
Democrats often support lower tuition or even free college tuition.
Support free trade deals like NAFTA and TPP, and being a member of the UN
-Republicans: freedom for business, less gun control, private education more restrictions on individual liberties, let others help the poor, etc.

5. The Two Party System -Republicans – less regulation of business
Republicans often believe in “Trickle Down Economics”, which means wealth stems from the upper class expanding business, spending more, and hiring more.
Republicans want to cut regulations (like minimum wage) because they feel they lead to jobs going to countries that won’t have them
less individual freedom
Pro-life
Want to defend marriage (i.e., between a man and a woman)
Oppose legalization of recreational drugs

6. Party Differences
-Republicans
Prefer a “strict interpretation” of the US Constitution
Republicans favor the 10th amendment and leaving things like education and health care to the states
Favor “School choice” and being tough on crime
Republicans favor getting criminals off the street as the best way to fight crime and support the death penalty
Republicans feel charter schools, competing with public schools, will make all schools better.
Oppose free college
Prefer “national sovereignty” to free trade
Oppose reducing tariffs on other nations, oppose acting in conjunction with other nations like in NATO or UN
-Republicans: freedom for business, less gun control, private education more restrictions on individual liberties, let others help the poor, etc.

7. -demographics of Republicans White Male Protestant/Christians
Middle Class, Business owners
Older
Rural areas

8. -demographic features of Democrats
Young
Minoriites
Female
Less religious
College educated
Lower class and higher class
Urban populations

9. -lack of political choices
Fears of Our System
-lack of political choices
-fear that parties would divide the nation
-”dangers of factions”, George Washington’s warning
-more and more voters identify as “independent” and don’t like being grouped into one side or another.
“false dichotomy”
-minority may be ignored by majority

10. Advantages / Disadvantages
stability in government while maintaining choices
experienced leaders
-Disadvantages
political minorities ignored
little change in government

11. -single party majorities rare
Multi-Party System
-3 or more parties
-lots of choices
-single party majorities rare
-coalitions
coalitions control most multi-party systems
-can be unstable

12. -little political freedom
One Party System
-only one political party
-usually a dictatorship or communist system
-competition from other parties usually not allowed
-little political freedom

13. History of Our Parties
-the first parties: Federalist & Democratic-Republicans (DR’s preferred less government, and dominated for 20 years
-Democrats / Whigs
-Democrats / Republicans (since 1860)– main parties today
-Political Machines – one party takes control of government through good organization… usually, they are corrupt and use bribes and extortion

14. Formation of Third Parties
-3rd parties form to bring out specific issues ignored by the major parties
-3rd Parties are formed in one of the following ways
-issues based party – similar to Dems and Reps, but much smaller (Libertarians, Constitution, Communists)
-single idea – have one cause (Environment, remind me to show you the one from New York)
-single person – a group that forms to support one person, usually for President (Ross Perot)

15. Today’s Parties
Democrats/Republicans (already gone into so we’re not going to worry about them now)
-Green Party – dedicated to protecting the environment
-American Socialist Party – , a third party with about 40,000 national members
-Libertarian Party – a party that believes in drastically reducing the role of the government. It is the most common third party today

16. Membership
-anyone who can vote can be a member of a party
-usually, you join a party when you register to vote
-What Party Members Do?
-nominate members for positions
-campaign
-vote!!

17. -Moderates –believe in a “middle of the road’ approach,
Political Philosophy
-Conservatives – believe in less government, but also tend to believe that law and order is more important, similar to Republicans
-Liberals – believe in more freedom, choices, assistance and regulations, similar to Democrats
-Moderates –believe in a “middle of the road’ approach,
-hence, there are “conservative Democarts” and “moderate Republicans”

18. -state –organizations of precincts and wards make up the state party
-local
-local is divided up into precincts and wards
-state –organizations of precincts and wards make up the state party
-national the states together make up the national level of the party

19. -all voting takes place here
Local Level
-most important level
-all voting takes place here
-most volunteers work at this level
-elections here affect people the most

20. -party goals developed at this level
State, National Level
-Focuses on several elections
-Lots of funds spent at this level
-party goals developed at this level

21. -statement of a party’s beliefs and goals
Party Platform
-statement of a party’s beliefs and goals
-made up of “planks”
-developed at National Party Conventions
not representative of all party members

22. Select and Support
-Selecting Candidates – parties chose their members to run for offices
-Supporting Candidates – parties support nominees for office
-Patronage – loyal supporters are often the ones to get the nomination

23. -idea that people have the right to rule themselves
People’s Beliefs
-Grassroots Movement
-term applied to a political idea or movement that starts with citizen organization
-Popular Sovereignty
-idea that people have the right to rule themselves
-more involved citizens

24. -Political Parties keep watch over each other
Watch Dogs
-Political Parties keep watch over each other
-why???
-insures good government
-alerts citizens to corruption

25. -Parties help connect the different levels of government
Linking Government
-Parties help connect the different levels of government
-President
-Congress
-Governors
-National, State Legislatures, Local Governments

26. -Parties are weaker today than in the past
Party Roles Today
-Parties are weaker today than in the past
-less party loyalty, more moderates
-less people vote “Straight ticket” than in years past, and more people register as independent (this year, the straight ticket option was not on the ballot in NC)
-more media influences
-non-partisan elections are becoming more common

27. Public Opinion
-Public Opinion – derived from studies, and reflects what people want. Often, political parties and other groups focus on this.
-Often misleading – questions can be asked in a tricky manner or numbers can be skewed.

28. -Many Factors Influence Opinions
Forming Opinions
-Many Factors Influence Opinions
-Mass Media – TV news, major web sites
-Public Officials – President, governor, for example
-Special Interest Groups – such as the NRA and others

29. -Public Opinion Polls -Random Samples
Measuring Opinion
-Public Opinion Polls
-Random Samples
-poll methods where attempts are made to include a wide segment of the population in the poll
-Effects of Polls – sometimes, officials may make policies based on what polling data shows.

30. Interest Groups
-Interest Groups
-a group of people who have similar beliefs on an issue
-Bias
-term that refers to a one-sided opinion on an issue
-Impartial
-having no opinion on an issue

31. Types of Groups -Economic Groups Business Organizations
Professional Associations
Labor Unions
-Particular Groups of People
Ethnic
Age
Sex
-Particular Causes (NRA)

32. -the act of trying to influence people on behalf of an interest group
Lobbying
-Lobbying
-the act of trying to influence people on behalf of an interest group
-Lobbyist’s have some influence on elections, (generally), but the main thing is they try to control who you elect when they’re in office
-Functions of Interest Groups
Information
Represent their members
support certain candidates
-Lobbyists work at all levels of government

33. Regulation of Lobbying
-Past activities of lobbyists have been questionable
-government regulation has been proposed to stop bribery
-special interest groups
-reporting lobbying activities

34. -Elections have two important parts
Winning Office
-Elections have two important parts
-Nomination Process (you campaign to get the parties nomination)
-Campaigning (you campaign for the office you seek against the other parties candidate)

35. -a meeting of party leaders to name candidates
Nominating Process
-Caucus
-a meeting of party leaders to name candidates
-Convention
-meeting of party representatives (delegates) to name candidates
-Primary Elections
-special election held by party members to determine candidates

36. -primary where any voter can help chose candidates
Primary Elections
-Open Primary
-primary where any voter can help chose candidates
-Closed Primary
-primary where only party members are allowed to vote
-Closed are most often used to protect the party’s nominees

37. Presidential Candidates
-selected by a combination of three nominating processes
-caucuses
-primaries
-National convention

38. -private funding is limited in most cases
-candidate can spend any amount of their own money
-anyone (corporation, individual) can spend all the money they want as long as they aren’t actually giving the money to the campaign (Citizens United case)
-individuals can donate $1,000
-PAC-$5,000
-campaign finance reform?

39. -using the media to campaign
Advertising
-using the media to campaign
-primary method of campaigning
-positive and negative advertising

40. Canvassing -person to person campaigning, usually door to door
-”campaign trail”

41. Endorsements
-using a famous person to support a candidate (this is almost always positive)
-Mud slinging – when you publish negative images, statistics, and facts about your opponent. Often called “attack ads” and always negative. Other methods are usually in the same ad.
Name Calling – when a candidate accuses another and calls them a name. It doesn’t have to necessarily be one word, it could be a phrase or statement about the person. Almost always negative!
Card stacking – positive or negative, but is when only one side of an issue is presented. It has to omit important information

42. Other Methods
-symbolism/transfer – using American flags or other things to symbolize a Candidates patriotism. It’s generally positive, although you can use it negatively
– “gliterring generality” general things like “Hope”, “Change”, “Make America Great Again.” (always positive, and to be good, it has to be a statement ANYONE would agree with!)
-bandwagon – “Everyone else is doing it, you should to”
-“plain folks” – attempt to show a candidate as a more “real person”

43. Who can Vote?
-3 Requirements (write them down if you need to)
-be 18 years old
-U.S. Citizen
-Resident of the community where you vote

44. Preparing to Vote
-Must be registered to vote
-be informed about the election
-know who is running, know what the issues are, and know what you believe before you go vote

45. Who Votes?
-Electorate
-all the people who are eligible to vote
-Elderly are most likely
-Youngest are least likely to vote

46. Why People Don’t Vote?
-Some people have lost voting privileges
-Some didn’t register
-some moved recently
-apathy - a lack of interest

47. Obstacles to Voting
-apathy – some people don’t care about politics or voting
-registering process – some people don’t have time or don’t want the hassle of registering to vote
- at one time, the voter registration was used for jury selection
-voting times – some people can’t vote due to jobs or timing -early voting attempts to fix this problem

48. -participate in government
Why Should You Vote?
-opportunity to choose our leaders
-participate in government
-voice opinions about certain issues

49. -Usually in schools, town halls, public places
Polling Places
-Polling Places
-precinct based
-Usually in schools, town halls, public places
-open early and close late

50. General Elections
-Elections are controlled by the local Board of Elections
-General Election held November--1st Tuesday after 1st Monday
-Plurality---winning the most votes
-majority---getting more than half of the votes
-most popular votes (plurality) wins most elections
-majority of electoral votes determine the winner of the Presidency

51. Voting on Issues
-Initiatives
-method where citizens propose a bill through a petition and place it on the ballot for a general election vote (We don’t have this in NC)
-Referendums
-method of public approval for a proposed bill where the legislature temporarily passes a bill until the public is given a chance to approve or disapprove the bill (we have this in NC)

52. -Name is checked against list of registered voters
Casting Your Vote
-you must go to the polling place
-Name is checked against list of registered voters
-cast your vote
paper ballots
lever machines
punch cards
computer
-you may encounter an exit poll

53. -voting for candidates from either party
Types of Votes
-Straight Ticket
-voting only for one political party (not an option on the ballot in NC anymore
-Split Ticket
-voting for candidates from either party
-Absentee Ballot – mail in a ballot if you can’t be there on election day
-Early voting – same as regular voting, but done at an earlier time at any location in your county
-Write-In Votes (not counted in NC)

54. Special Kinds of Elections
--Recounts – re count the ballots to make sure it’s right
-Run-Offs – an election to determine a winner if it’s close
-Recalls – some states allow voters to kick out an official and elect a new one (not in NC)