How do interest groups influence public policy?
What is a collective action problem; free rider problem?
What are selective benefits?
Interest groups and their representation/mediation roles
What are the different types of interests groups and what are examples of each: Public interest groups; economic interest groups, ideological groups, issue interest groups
What is Grassroots lobbying? Astroturf lobbying? Indirect lobbying?
Iron triangles
How lobbying congress differs from lobbying executive branch
Corporate welfare including corporate tax breaks, tariffs and trade barriers, subsidies
What are professional associations?
Federalist Paper #10 and factions
What are the difficulties facing 3rd parties in the US electoral system?
What do 3rd parties do in the US and why do people support them?
What do libertarians, populists, liberals and conservatives believe in?
What is Duverger's Law?
Proportional representation system
Winner take all system
Median voter
When is voter turnout highest? What sorts of elections?
What are political parties and what do they do?
Voter party identification - how do people acquire their party identification?
What is the Responsible party model?
What are political party machines?
What were the progressive era reforms and what did they come in response to?
Party platform
Party conventions
What is divided government and why does divided government exist?
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission
What determines presidential election outcomes?
What is public financing of presidential campaigns; how does it work and do presidential candidates use it anymore?
What are the battleground states and why?
Stump speeches
Negative campaign ads
What are open and closed primaries? What are caucuses?
Individual donations to campaigns - how big are they?
Super PACs
527 Groups and 501(c)(4) groups - key differences and similarities
What does the Federal Elections Commission do?
Gerrymandering
Packing and cracking and redistricting
What is incumbency?
Texas primary system
Voter turnout in Texas
Cost of election campaigns in Texas