Chapter 9B: Campaigns

• Nomination - a political party’s official endorsement of a candidate for office (usually for the presidency)
• Requirements of the “nomination game” include: 1) money 2) media attention 3) public favor 4) majority delegate support 5) momentum
• The nomination process is important because it determines who will be on the ballot, which candidates have access to funds, and how much time they get to campaign.
• Campaign strategy - the master plan candidates lay out to guide their electoral campaigns to win office
• Superdelegates - delegates that are automatically given a seat in choosing the presidential nominee. often given to those of high political positions, such as members of congress or those in the national party committee.
• McGovernor-Fraser Commission - a commission formed at 1968 Democratic Party Convention which responded to demands to progressively reform the corrupt presidential primary process.
• Primary elections - an election held by one political party to select its candidate(s). Primaries can take place within states or nationally.
• Caucuses - a gathering of voters where they can openly discuss issues and select presidential candidates to run for office. Normally used in smaller states and a form of direct democracy
• Invisible primary - the period before any votes are cast when candidates compete to win early support from the elite and public. To do this, they must craft a good public image.
• Iowa and New Hampshire are the first two states to hold their caucus and primary (respectively). The media takes advantage of this information and informs the public of inaccurate winners and losers. This causes some candidates to lose and others gain popularity.
• Money matters because it determines who gets to be on TV and radio ads, print advertisements, billboards, etc. Money also helps fund campaigns and pay staff salaries.
• Linkage Institutions - catalysts which connect people to their political officials. The 4 main examples of linkage institutions are: media, elections, interest groups, and political parties
• Campaign Finance: The amount of money spent on political campaigns by individuals, corporations, and unions
• Campaign Contributions - donations from individuals that can be used directly to fund a candidate’s campaign. There is a limit on how many campaign contributions one donates, of which is moderated by the Federal Election Committee.
• Soft Money - donations made to national party committees or state-level party organizations. These funds cannot be used to influence federal elections but can be used to promote issues and candidates at the local level. Soft money has been banned since 2002 due to corruption scandals.
• Independent Expenditures - spending done by outside groups to advocate for or against a particular candidate. Independent expenditures have no limits on them as long as they are not coordinated with the candidate's campaign.
• Independent Expenditures - donations from individuals, interest groups, and/or companies that cannot be used directly to fund a candidate’s campaign but still supports the candidate (ex: anti-advertisements for the opposing candidate). There is no limit to these donations.
• PACs - Political Action Committees. PACs are organized around specific causes such as labor unions, business associations, ideological groups, etc. They raise money from members and use it to support candidates who share their views.
• Super PACS - Super Political Action Committees. Super PACs were created following Citizens United v FEC. Super PACs can accept unlimited amounts of money from individuals, corporations, and other entities. However, they must remain independent from the candidate's campaign.
• PACs (Political Action Committee) - a group of individuals (interest group) which raise money individually to donate campaign contributions to a candidate. The donations of PACs are monitored by the FEC.
• FEC (Federal Election Committee) - Established by the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, it is a committee comprised of 3 democratic and 3 republican members who create and regulate campaign finance law
• McCain-Feingold Act - A federal law passed in 2002 that prohibited soft money donations to national political parties and restricted corporate and union donations to state and local elections.
• Hard Money - Regulated funds raised by candidates and parties for election purposes. Hard money has strict contribution limits and reporting requirements.
• Soft Money - Unregulated funds raised by political parties for party building activities like voter registration drives, get out the vote campaigns, and issue advocacy ads. Soft money was banned in 2002 due to McCain Feingold Act.
• Independent Expenditure - An expenditure made independently of any candidate’s campaign but still intended to influence an election outcome.
• 527 Organizations - Nonprofit organizations that engage in political activity but do not have tax exempt status under section 527 of the Internal Revenue Code. They may receive unlimited contributions from individuals or groups.
• Dark Money - Donations given to nonprofits that do not disclose their donors, making it difficult to track where the money came from.
• 501© groups - non-profit organizations that are tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. They fund/support candidates without limit of the FEC through independent expenditures
• 527 vs 501(c)(3) groups - 527 groups are required by law to disclose their donations and donate through campaign contributions, while also directly coordinating with the candidate. 501(c)(3) groups do NOT directly coordinate with candidates and can donate through dark money without limit by the FEC.