General Government Terms

  1. authority
  2. bureaucrats
  3. democracy
  4. direct democracy
  5. elite (class) theory
  6. hyperpluralism
  7. legitimacy
  8. majority rule
  9. Marxists
  10. pluralism (pluralist theory)
  11. power
  12. representative democracy
  13. republic
  14. sovereignty
  15. unitary

Constitutional Underpinnings and Federalism

  1. amendment
  2. Amendments 1-27
  3. anti-federalists
  4. Articles of Confederation
  5. bill of attainder
  6. bill of rights
  7. block grants
  8. categorical grants
  9. checks and balances
  10. conditions of aid
  11. confederal system
  12. Constitutional Convention
  13. cooperative federalism
  14. Declaration of Independence
  15. devolution
  16. dual federalism
  17. elastic clause
  18. enumerated powers
  19. ex post facto law
  20. extradition
  21. factions
  22. federal budget
  23. Federalist Papers
  24. federalists
  25. formula grants
  26. full faith and credit
  27. grants-in-aid
  28. implied powers
  29. Connecticut (Great) Compromise
  30. limited government
  31. mandates
  32. natural rights
  33. necessary and proper clause
  34. New Jersey Plan
  35. nullification
  36. privileges and immunities
  37. project grants
  38. revenue sharing
  39. separation of powers
  40. Shays’ Rebellion
  41. supremacy clause
  42. unitary system
  43. Virginia Plan
  44. writ of habeas corpus

Institutions of Government and Public Policy

  1. activist
  2. ad hoc structure
  3. amicus curiae
  4. annual authorization
  5. appellate jurisdiction
  6. appropriation legislation
  7. authorization legislation
  8. benefit
  9. bicameral legislature
  10. brief
  11. budget (deficit/surplus)
  12. budget resolution
  13. bureaucracy
  14. cabinet
  15. Christmas tree bill
  16. circular structure
  17. civil law
  18. civil service
  19. class action lawsuit
  20. client politics
  21. closed rule
  22. cloture rule
  23. committee clearance
  24. competitive service
  25. concurrent resolution
  26. concurring opinion
  27. conference committees
  28. Congressional Budget Office
  29. congressional caucus
  30. conservative coalition
  31. constitutional court
  32. continuing resolution
  33. Council of Economic Advisers
  34. courts of appeals
  35. criminal law
  36. deregulation
  37. descriptive representation
  38. discharge petition
  39. discretionary authority
  40. dissenting opinion
  41. district court
  42. diversity cases
  43. divided government
  44. division vote
  45. double tracking
  46. earmark
  47. entitlements
  48. entrepreneurial politics
  49. executive order
  50. Federal Reserve System
  51. federal-question cases
  52. fee shifting
  53. filibuster
  54. fiscal policy
  55. fiscal year
  56. franking privilege
  57. gerrymandering
  58. gridlock
  59. Hatch Act
  60. impeachment
  61. in forma pauperis
  62. income tax
  63. interest group politics
  64. iron triangle
  65. issue network
  66. Joint Chiefs of Staff
  67. joint committees
  68. joint resolution
  69. judicial activism
  70. judicial restraint
  71. judicial review
  72. laissez-faire
  73. lame duck
  74. legislative court
  75. legislative veto
  76. line-item veto
  77. litmus test
  78. majoritarian politics
  79. majority leader
  80. malapportionment
  81. Marbury v. Madison
  82. marginal district
  83. McCulloch v. Maryland
  84. Medicare and Medicaid
  85. merit principle
  86. minority leader
  87. monetary policy
  88. multiple referrals
  89. name-request job
  90. National Security Council
  91. Office of Management and Budget
  92. Office of Personnel Management
  93. open rule
  94. opinion of the court
  95. original intent
  96. original jurisdiction
  97. party unity vote
  98. Pendelton Act
  99. per curiam opinion
  100. perks
  101. plaintiff
  102. pocket veto
  103. political question
  104. pork-barrel legislation
  105. precedent
  106. private bill
  107. progressive tax
  108. proportional tax
  109. public bill
  110. public goods
  111. pyramid structure
  112. quorum
  113. reconciliation (budget)
  114. red tape
  115. regulation
  116. regulatory agency
  117. remedy
  118. restrictive rule
  119. rider
  120. roll-call vote
  121. safe district
  122. select committees
  123. senatorial courtesy
  124. seniority system
  125. sequential referral
  126. simple resolution
  127. Social Security
  128. sophomore surge
  129. sovereign immunity
  130. spoils system
  131. standing
  132. standing committees
  133. stare decisis
  134. strict-constructionist
  135. substantive representation
  136. tax revenue
  137. teller vote
  138. trust funds
  139. unified government
  140. veto message
  141. voice vote
  142. War Powers Resolution
  143. Watergate scandal
  144. Ways and Means Committee
  145. whip
  146. writ of certiorari

Civil Rights/Civil Liberties

  1. affirmative action
  2. Americans with Disabilities act
  3. Brown v. Board of Ed
  4. civil liberties
  5. civil rights
  6. Civil Rights Act of 1964
  7. clear and present danger
  8. de facto segregation
  9. de jure segregation
  10. due-process clause
  11. equal protection of the law
  12. equality of opportunity
  13. establishment clause
  14. exclusionary rule
  15. free-exercise clause
  16. incorporation
  17. libel
  18. plea bargain
  19. poll tax
  20. prior restraint
  21. probable cause
  22. self-incrimination
  23. strict scrutiny
  24. suffrage
  25. suspect classifications
  26. symbolic speech
  27. Voting Rights Act of 1965
  28. wall of separation principle
  29. white primary

Political Beliefs and Behaviors

(Political Parties, Interest Groups, Mass Media, Elections)

  1. adversarial press
  2. Australian ballot
  3. blanket primary
  4. casework
  5. caucus
  6. census
  7. civic competence
  8. civic duty
  9. civil disobedience
  10. class consciousness
  11. closed primary
  12. coalition
  13. coattails
  14. collective good
  15. congressional campaign committee
  16. conservative
  17. critical (realigning) election
  18. Democrats
  19. demographics (demography)
  20. direct mail
  21. electioneering
  22. electoral college
  23. equal time rule
  24. exit poll
  25. external efficacy
  26. fairness doctrine
  27. feature stories
  28. Federal Election Commission
  29. free-rider problem
  30. frontloading
  31. gender gap
  32. general election
  33. grandfather clause
  34. ideological party
  35. incentive
  36. incumbent
  37. insider stories
  38. interest group
  39. internal efficacy
  40. investigative journalism
  41. liberal
  42. libertarian
  43. linkage institution
  44. literacy test
  45. loaded language
  46. lobby/lobbyist
  47. majority-minority district
  48. mass media
  49. matching funds
  50. material incentive
  51. melting pot
  52. motor-voter bill
  53. muckraker
  54. mugwumps
  55. narrowcasting
  56. national chairman
  57. national committee
  58. national conventions
  59. nomination
  60. norm
  61. office-bloc ballot
  62. open primary
  63. orthodox
  64. party column ballot
  65. party machine
  66. party platform
  67. patronage
  68. personal following
  69. political action committee
  70. political cue
  71. political culture
  72. political editorializing
  73. political efficacy
  74. political elite
  75. political ideology
  76. political machine
  77. political party
  78. poll
  79. populists
  80. position issue
  81. presidential primary
  82. press conference
  83. primary election
  84. progressive
  85. proportional representation
  86. prospective voting
  87. protest
  88. public-interest lobby
  89. purposive incentive
  90. random sample
  91. rational-choice theory
  92. reapportionment
  93. referendums
  94. registered voters
  95. Republicans
  96. retrospective voting
  97. right of reply rule
  98. routine stories
  99. runoff primary
  100. sampling error
  101. single-issue groups
  102. social movement
  103. soft money
  104. solidary incentives
  105. sound bite
  106. split ticket
  107. sponsored party
  108. straight ticket
  109. superdelegates
  110. talking head
  111. television market
  112. third party
  113. trial balloon
  114. two-party system
  115. valence issue
  116. voting-age population
  117. winner-take all system