Chapter 8 – Political Parties

New Deal protrams, which were designed to address problems created by, _____ helped elect a number of 20th century Democratic presidents from Franklin Roosevelt to Jimmy Carter

the Great Depression

A voter or a candidate who dows not identify with a political party is called

independent

A political party is a group of individuals who

organize ot win elections and operate the government

A political party differs from an interst group in that

political parties want to operate the government and interst groups do not

Today a faction is

a subgroup within a party

Functions of political parties in the United States include all of the following except

signing up large numbers of committed members

If political parties in teh United States did not search out an encourage political hopefuls

voters would have limited choices

The political party "out of power" is

expected to force debate on policy alternatives

The _____ emerged in the 1850s as an antislavery party and consisted of former northern Whigs and antislavery Democrats

Republican Party

A political system in which only two parties have a reasonable chance of winning is called

a two-party system

The first partisan political division in the United States was between the

Federalists and the Anti-Federalists

All of the following statements about the Federalists are true except

they represented mostly artisans and farmers

George Washington viewed political parties as a

threat to national unity and popular government

All of the following statements about the early Republican Party are true except

its supporters referred to it as the Democratic-Republican Party

A major development resulting from the existence of the early political parties was

the peaceful transfer of power from one group to another

After a couple of decades of one-party dominance

organized two-party politics returned in 1824

All of the following statements about the Whig Party are true except

It was held together by hostility toward African Americans

All of the following statements about the early Democratic Party are true except

favored an active national government

The success of theDemocratic Party in teh 1820s

was in part a product of events like parades and rallies as well as lavishing food and drink on voters at polling places

In the years after the Civil War

the Republicans Supported business interests and evangelical Protestant cultural values

The populist movement

was largely absorbed by the Democratic Party in 1896

The Presidential election of 1912 was unique because

there were three significant contenders for the presidency

Under Woodrow Wilson the Democratic Party

endorsed the idea that government should become involved in the economy

Progressivism was

a belief that honest, impartial government could effectively curb the growing power of large corporations

The Great Depression resulted in the final transformation of the

Democrats from a party of limited government to a party of active government

Suring the late 1960s

urban riots and anti-Vietnam War protests pushed many voters towards conservatism

By the election of 2000

the country was closely divided between the two parties

During the last half-century, the Democrats have been known as the party of

the working class and racial and ethnic minorities

During the last half-century, the Republicans have been known as the party of

business

Republicans have emphasized

the importance of the marketplace and less emphasis on social programs

Democrats have emphasized

social welfare and protection of senior’s benefits

Recently, Republicans have been considered better able to handle the following issues

the war on terrorism

A paradox in Republican and Democratic policies over the last 25 years has been that

despite their support for tax cuts, the Republicans have sometimes outdonw the Democrats in voting for government spending

Budget deficits rose under

Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush but fell during the administration of Bill Clinton

In recent years, cultural issues have

become increasingly important in defining the differences between the parties

According to political observer Karl Zinsmeister

in the last two presidential elections less than ten percent of voters in pro-Bush counties earned over $100,000

The party-in-the-electorate is

the members of the general public who identify with a political party

The members of the general public who identify with a political party are known as

the party-in-the- electorate

The elected and appointed officials who identify with a political party are known as

the party-in-government

The leadership of a political party, including election committees; local, state, and national executives; and paid professional staff are part of

the party organization

A situation in which one major political party controls teh presidency and the other controls the chambers of Congress is known as

divided government

A situation in which one party controls a state governorship and the other controls the state

divided government

Voting for candidates of two or more parties for different offices is known as

ticket splitting

When a person votes for a Republican presidential candidate and for a Democratic congressional candidate, she is

ticket splitting

The party organization is

the formal structure and leadership of a political party

The party-in-government is

all of the elected and appointed officials who identify with a party

According to a series of studies done by the New York Times

delegates to national party conventions are more partisan than party identifiers

The Unit Rule says

that the electoral votes of a state are cast for the candidate with the largest number of popular votes

A major reason for the death of local party machines is

most social services are now controlled by state and national agencies

Local party organizations are stillimportant to local campaigns today because

they provide foot soldiers for political campaigns

The trend of voting for one party’s candidate for president and another party’s candidate for Congress has

increased sharply since 1952

An atmosphere of party polarization

is enhanced in Congress because of the creation of safe seats, in which winning candidates need only appeal to the members of their own party

Thw two-party system has dominated the American political landscape for all of the following reasons except

third parties are illegal in many jurisdictions

The group of people that officially elects the president and the vice president of the United States is known as the

Electoral Colleg

A major reason for the two-party system is the electoral system, which is based on

the winner-take-all, or plurality, system

In the winner-take-all system

whoever gets the most votes wins

Many political scientists contend that third parties

serve as a safety valve for dissident political groups, preventing major confrontations and political unrest

The Socialist Party was an example of a party with

strong ideological foundations and beliefs at odds with the majority of Americans

Third parties have influenced American politics by

determining whether the Republicans or Democrats win an election

Realignment

takes place when a substantial group of voters switches party allegiance

The process in which a substantial group of voters switches party allegiance, producing a long-term change in the political landscape is known as

realignment

One example of realignment was when

working-class voters abandoned the Republicans in 1932 as a result of the Great Depression

A problem with dealignment theory is that

many "independent" voters are not really all that independent

A decline in party loyalties that reduces long-term party commitment is known as a

dealignment

A dealignment is

a decline in party loyalties that reduces long-term party commitment

Tipping takes place

when a group that is becoming more numerous over time grows large enough to change the political balance in a state

Voters who frequently change their support from one party to another are known as

swing voters

When a group that is becoming more numerous over time grows large enough to change the political balance in a state, _____ occurs

tipping

Linking oneself to a particular political party is known as

party identification

Party identification is when a

person links herself to a particular political party

Voting exclusively for the candidates of one party is known as

straight-ticket voting

Straight-ticket voting is when a

person votes exclusively for the candidates of one party

If parties were supported solely by public funding, it is likely that

additional political parties would come ont the scene in America

In France there are parties that represent the

anti-immigrant fringe of the population, parties that advocate the interests of hunting and fishing, and parties that embrace Communist doctrine

In much of the country

there are more openings for district-level party convention delegates than there are people willing to serve