US-2 Class Terminology Notes
Government and Political Structure
ENGP9/A15 U.S. Institutions Survey (Hopkins)

See also the US-4 Reference Files and General Web Links, as well as the
English-Finnish Glossary of United States Political Terms.

Foundation of Federal Government Structure (PDF) (Washington, District of Columbia, [DC])

  1. U.S. Constitution dating from 1787, with 27 "amendments" (the 27th in 1992)
  2. The Bill of Rights (1791), first 10 amendments added together
  3. Separation of Powers into Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches representing different constituencies in different ways
  4. Each branch has certain "checks and balances" over the others (Montesquieu)
  5. "Bills" becoming Law must be agreed by the Executive branch and both chambers of the Legislative Branch. After enactment they are subject to Review by the Judicial Branch

The Executive Branch

  1. President and Vice-President, elected together on the same ticket
  2. Must be at least 35 years old, natural-born citizens
  3. Elected by an Electoral College, based on voting within the individual States
  4. Four-year term, can be re-elected once (maximum of 8 normal-term years)
  5. The Executive "Cabinet" (equivalent of Ministries, Ministers), consisting of 15 Departments [State, Treasury, Defense, Justice, Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, Labor, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, Energy, Education, Veterans Affairs, and Homeland Security (2003)] headed by a "Secretary of xxx", with the exception of the Department of Justice and its "Attorney General"
  6. Federal elections are held every second year, on the "first Tuesday after the first Monday in the month of November in even-numbered years". Each time, all 435 Representatives and one-third of the 100 Senators are elected. Presidents are elected in every second Federal election.

The (Bicameral) Legislative Branch: the U.S. Congress

  1. The United States Senate
    • Represents the interests of the States; there are 100 Senators, 2 from each state
    • Six-year term of office, staggered over 2-year periods, no term limits
    • Must be at least 30 years old, citizen, resident of the state
    • Senate is the "upper chamber", powerful, "advice and consent" needed for Executive appointments, ratification of treaties, etc.
  2. The House of Representatives
    • Represents the people on a proportional basis by State; there are 435 Representatives from the 50 states
    • Each state must have at least one Representative, but can have more in proportion to the state's population
    • Two-year term of office, all re-elected each Federal election
    • No term limits, must be at least 25 years old, citizen, live within the Congressional Election District of the State which he/she represents
    • District boundaries may be redrawn [by the State governments] following each U.S. Census
  3. Seniority brings power to Senators and Representatives through becoming Chairs of key legislative committees, and building contacts and influence "inside the Beltway"
  4. Chair positions are held by the majority party following each federal election, usually by the most senior member of that party on that committee.
  5. Senators and Representatives both should "represent the views of their constituents." Aspects of this include: contact between constituents and their representatives, public nature of their voting, recall threats, occasional conflict between voting as the merits seem to indicate vs voting the views of one's constituents, lobbying and special-interest influences, etc.

The Electoral College (only used for electing Presidents)

  1. 538 members (=100 Senators and 435 Representatives, plus 3 from the District of Columbia — see Political Demography maps)
  2. Each state has electoral votes totalling the number of senators (2) and representatives (minimum 1, but variable in proportion to population) in that state.
  3. Most state electoral votes are decided on an "all or nothing" basis; results are not proportional to the votes received by each candidate, but rather by who "won" in each state (Maine and Nebraska differ)

The United States Supreme Court (cf. State Supreme Courts)

  1. Nine justices; one Chief Justice and 8 Associate Justices
  2. Nominated by President, confirmed by Senate, for "duration of good behavior"
  3. Highest court of appeal in the Federal Court System (cf. State Court Systems), original jurisdiction in some instances
  4. "Judicial Review" and the formation of "Constitutional Law"
    • Chooses ca. 80 cases per term of over 10,000 which are appealed to it
    • Decisions of the court are final in deciding on the "Constitutionality" of a law
  5. Appointments to the court, and decisions of the court, are frequently controversial due to differing interpretations of the "strict constructionist" vs. "implied powers" approaches to the Constitution
  6. Recent additional need for racial, ethnic and gender "balancing" of justices and potential long-term influence has made the nomination and confirmation process lengthy and heated

Election Dates and Types, Voting Terminology

  1. Federal elections are held every two years, Presidential elections are every second federal election (every four years); distinct from state, county, and municipal elections
  2. Number of elective offices (federal, state, county, municipal) and "issues" on the ballot,
  3. Differences in number of parties, types of choices, among the states
  4. Polls, polling station, a ballot, proposition, initiative, amendment, statutory measure, referendum, recall, partisan & non-partisan politics
  5. In some states, the option to vote a "straight" or "split ticket" for candidates in elections, as well as the option of write-in votes (applies only to candidates running for office, and not to the numerous initiatives, propositions, referenda, etc., which may also be on an election ballot)
  6. Primary elections, open and closed primaries, "crossover voting", aim of primaries is to make selection of candidates more democratic, avoid "smoke-filled back rooms"
  7. The electorate, a constituency, the incumbent, "mandate" from the voters

Political Parties

  1. Republicans (conservative) and Democrats (liberal) best-known, but many other parties
  2. Comparatively little party discipline (cf. Europe) in elections, general Congressional voting (cf. partisan voting on procedural issues)
  3. Votes often go to "individuals" rather than to "parties" (cf. split-ticket inferences from State election results); "individualism" often prevails over party or ideology
  4. Political party conventions, a party platform, "planks" in the party platform

Sample General Election (Absentee) Voting Ballots from Missouri, Kentucky and Ohio

State and Local Government and Elections

  1. All state legislatures are bicameral except Nebraska (unicameral)
  2. State laws are based on English Common Law except for Louisiana (Napoleonic Code)
  3. Most states are divided into "counties", but Louisiana into "parishes"
  4. State Governors, Lt. Governors, Cabinet positions, etc. often elected individually
  5. "States" may have different official names; eg. the "Commonwealth of Massachusetts"
  6. Municipal elections; cities are divided into "precincts" and "wards"

Law Enforcement, Policing and Investigation

  1. Hierarchical (decentralized) structure; jurisdiction may overlap
  2. Federal level: FBI, U.S. Customs, Federal Marshals, etc.
  3. State level: State Police (Highway Patrol, State Troopers)
  4. County Level: Sheriffs (usually elected by popular vote)
  5. City level: City police, widely-varying training and specializations
  6. Courts: Municipal, county, state district, state Supreme, federal district, federal appeals, U.S. Supreme; plus tax courts, customs courts, etc.

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Last Updated 03 April 2013