Political Vocabulary The Benchmark Political Spectrum Political Spectrum

Political Vocabulary: The Benchmark

Political Spectrum

Political Spectrum Liberal Conservative

Conservative • A political ideology that believes change should happen slowly overtime • Conservatives believe in less government regulation and laws • Conservatives fall on the RIGHT side of the political spectrum • In America, the Republican Party is the more conservative party

Liberal • A political ideology that believes change should happen quicker • Liberals believe in more government regulation and laws • Liberals fall on the LEFT side of the political spectrum • In America, the Democratic Party is the more liberal party

Political Parties • An organization of individuals that have similar political beliefs; they nominate candidates to run in elections. • There are two major political parties in the US, Republican and Democrat. • Something or someone that supports one party is called partisan; something that has the support of both parties is called bipartisan.

Elections • Events in which the public vote for candidates to decide which one will serve in public office. • Candidates are elected by a majority vote of eligible voters. • Sometimes candidates run for re-election; these candidates are known as the incumbent. An individual running against an incumbent is known as the challenger.