60 Glossary
What Are Parties and How Did They Form?
party platform the collection of a party’s positions on issues it considers politically important
personal politics a political style that focuses on building direct relationships with voters rather than on promoting specific issues
political machine an organization that secures votes for a party’s candidates or supports the party in other ways, usually in exchange for political favors such as a job in government
political parties organizations made up of groups of people with similar interests that try to directly influence public policy through their members who seek and hold public office
third parties political parties formed as an alternative to the Republican and Democratic parties, also known as minor parties
The Two-Party System
critical election an election that represents a sudden, clear, and long-term shift in voter allegiances
first-past-the-post a system in which the winner of an election is the candidate who wins the greatest number of votes cast, also known as plurality voting
majoritarian voting a type of election in which the winning candidate must receive at least 50 percent of the votes, even if a run-off election is required
party realignment a shifting of party alliances within the electorate
plurality voting the election rule by which the candidate with the most votes wins, regardless of vote share
proportional representation a party-based election rule in which the number of seats a party receives is a function of the share of votes it receives in an election
two-party system a system in which two major parties win all or almost all elections
The Shape of Modern Political Parties
majority party the legislative party with over half the seats in a legislative body, and thus significant power to control the agenda
minority party the legislative party with less than half the seats in a legislative body
party identifiers individuals who represent themselves in public as being part of a party
party-in-government party identifiers who have been elected to office and are responsible for fulfilling the party’s promises
party-in-the-electorate members of the voting public who consider themselves part of a political party or who consistently prefer the candidates of one party over the other
party organization the formal structure of the political party and the active members responsible for coordinating party behavior and supporting party candidates
precinct the lowest level of party organization, usually organized around neighborhoods
Divided Government and Partisan Polarization
bipartisanship a process of cooperation through compromise
divided government a condition in which one or more houses of the legislature is controlled by the party in opposition to the executive
gerrymandering the manipulation of legislative districts in an attempt to favor a particular candidate
moderate an individual who falls in the middle of the ideological spectrum
party polarization the shift of party positions from moderate towards ideological extremes
reapportionment the reallocation of House seats between the states to account for population changes
redistricting the redrawing of electoral maps
safe seat a district drawn so members of a party can be assured of winning by a comfortable margin
sorting the process in which voters change party allegiances in response to shifts in party position