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Pol Sci Ch 13 - Introduction to American Political Science Ch. 13 notes, detailed, labeled,
Introduction to American Politics (Pol 101)
University of Mississippi
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Pol Sci Ch 13
Interest Groups
Interest Group Resources:
- Money ● Staff ● Professional Assistance ● Campaign Contributions (don’t buy votes)
- Leadership
- Membership: Size and Intensity ● Must overcome collective action problem and freeriding
- Information - only as good as their knowledge
Collective Action Problem:
The difficulty in getting people to work together to achieve a common goal when the solution is costly and non one individual has an incentive to use resources to make it happen
Many interest groups form around some type of collective good
● A good or service that, by its very nature, can’t be denied to anyone who wants to consume it ● Ex: Clean Environment, protection of rights
- Groups often use selective incentives to overcome the free-rider problem
● Material ○ Convince people to join the group for a small material benefit
● Solidary ○ Convince people to join the group to share membership with people who think like them
● Expressive ○ Convince people to join the group so they can have their political voice heard
Citizens and Interest Groups:
Is the current lobbying system good or bad for our democracy?
Pluralists argue that interest groups are a great equalizing force in American politics
Elitists suggest interest groups resource advantages mean interest groups skew toward wealthy
Equalizing positions of groups depends on citizens being willing to participate (grassroots organizing)
Freeriding Problems:
- A recruiting difficulty groups face because potential members can gain the benefits of the group’s actions whether or not they join ● Free rider problem
Presidential Elections
Presidential Campaigns:
- Pre-Primary or Invisible Primary Season: raise money, raise credibility
- Primaries and Caucuses ● Party Caucus: Local gathering of party members to choose convention delegates ● Presidential Primary : an election by which voters choose convention delegates committed to voting for a certain candidate
- Open Primary vs. Closed Primary ● Open = Do not register with a party, can select party primary on election day ● Closed = Must register with a party, can only vote in that party’s primary on election day
Presidential Campaigns, Cont’d:
- Primaries and Caucuses, Cont’d ● Front-Loading ○ Scheduling Primaries Early
● Front-Runner ○ The perceived winner before the primaries start
● Momentum ○ The widely held public perspective thary at a candidate has gained electoral strength
● “There are four parts to any campaign. The candidate, the issues of the candidate
Regulating Campaign Financing:
- Important ● Difficult to regulate ● Regulations often changing ● “Money, like water, always finds a way in”
Electoral College:
The Basics ● 538 total electors ○ Each state receives electors based on their Congressional delegation ○ DC gets 3 from 23rd Amendment ● Need 270 to win ● “Faithless electors” ○ Those delegates who vote against the person who won the state
If no candidate receives the 270 votes: ● Goes to House of Representatives where each state delegation gets one vote ● Senate picks VP
Every state is winner take all except for Maine and Nebraska ● They use a congressional district + overall vote system
With the EC system, the winner of the popular vote can lose the electoral vote
- By giving each state at least 3 votes, this tends to over-represent small states
- Pros: ● Prevent urban dominance ● Promotes two-party stability ● Protects minority interests
- Cons: ● Discourages voter turnout and participation ● Swing states get most campaign attention ● Favors less populous states
● Disadvantages 3rd parties ● Fear of faithless electors ● Simply undemocratic
Functions of Elections:
Selection of leaders
Policy Direction
Citizen Development ● Political efficacy
Informing the Public
Containing Conflict
Legitimacy and System Stability
Who Votes (Usually):
- Older people (over 40) tend to vote more than younger people
- More income (over $50,000)
- More educated (college degree)
- White and Asians tend to vote more than Blacks and Hispanics
Why People Don’t Vote:
- Legal Obstacles ● Single day voting ● Registration laws
- Attitudes ● People don’t care
- Rational Non-Voting? ● Calculates that vote will not make a difference to outcome so the benefit does not outweigh the costs
- What does it matter if we vote? ● Outcomes ● Control over our democracy ○ Legitimacy of election can be questioned if so few vote ○ Many deepen loss of efficacy of those who don’t vote
Voter Decision Making:
○ Basing voting decisions on reactions to past performance; approving the status quo or signaling a desire for change
Exam 3 Questions and Answers:
Question 1: Countries such as Belgium and Australia have much higher voter turnout than the United States. One reason for this is:
A. Voting in those countries is done completely by mail B. Voting in those countries is done completely through government social media apps C. Those countries have compulsory civics education for all students D. Those countries have compulsory voting laws
Question 2: Which of the following is NOT an actual method that is currently used or has been used in the past for determining the winner in a tied election?
A. A high card draw B. Coin Flip C. Drawing Straws D. Thumb Wrestling
Question 3: Which scenario provides the best example of a wedge issue?
A. The debate over the Affordable Care Act became a wedge issue for the Republican Party since few REpublicans actively supported health care reform B. The implementation of the Trump Tax Cuts became a wedge issue for both parties since most Americans agreed on the policy and this allowed candidates from both parties to campaign on the issue C. During the 2004 presidential campaign, John Kerry used his flip-flopping of positions on the Iraq War as a wedge issue during the campaign D. The debate over the current social spending bill is potentially a wedge issue in the Democratic Party since liberal Democrats tend to support greater social spending and moderate and conservative Democrats do not.
Pol Sci Ch 13 - Introduction to American Political Science Ch. 13 notes, detailed, labeled,
Course: Introduction to American Politics (Pol 101)
University: University of Mississippi
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