Ap Gov Notes
Forms of Government
Terms:
Autocracy - A form of government where one person is in charge
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Monarchy is a type of autocracy where there is a king or queen and the power stays within the family
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Dictatorship is another form of autocracy where a single person is in control of everything
Democracy - A form of government where the power is spread amongst the people
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Representative democracy is where the citizens elect people to represent them
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Direct democracy is where every citizen works in making decisions for the government
Oligarchy - A form of government where a group of people holds the power
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A junta is an example of this as it is a small group of people in power
Theocracy - A form of government controlled by religious beliefs
Public Policy
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Goals and programs our government creates and implements for society(to create order and take care of people)
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Complicated process- involves various stages and “inputs”
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Inputs: voters, media, special interest groups, politicians
Role of Government
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What should the government do(National, state, and local)
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Answers vary. Ideas differ
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We do agree on some basic things- limited government, rule of law, democracy
Intro to Election Cycle
Voters/Decision Makers- NOT candidates
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Party Elite- former or current elected officials, who choose the parties nominees
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Party Leaders-focused on picking the winner, are generally more moderate
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Party activists- ideological
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The Base-reliable voters for a candidate or party
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Electorate- voters
Most Americans are moderate voters, that being said the more moderate candidate have a higher chance of being elected
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In 1972 McGovern lost by a landslide on the electoral vote because he was very left-leaning, Nixon ended up getting 520 out of 538 votes
Incumbent Advantage- candidates who already held office have a great advantage over their opponent
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The average voter will likely choose the name they recognize on the ballot
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Candidates who already held office already have staff in place
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They already had a prior run where they gained support from voters
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Previous candidates also have the most money to advertise themsleves from donations and previous campaign, also called a war chest