txgov ch3 + ch4 vocab

general public acceptance of government's "right to govern", and also, the legality of a government's existence conferred by a constitution.

an owner-occupied property protected from forced sale under most circumstances.

property acquired during marriage and owned equally by both spouses.

the process under which law is developed based on judicial rulings and customs over time.

a ballot that results from the independent election of a large number of executive and judicial officers; giving the chief executive the power to appoint most executive and judicial officers results in a short ballot.

law passed by legislatures and written into books of code.

a court order requiring that an individual be presented in person and that legal cause be shown for confinement; it may result in release from unlawful detention.

the principle behind the concept of a government where power is distributed among at least three different branches—legislative, executive, and judicial.

the concept that each branch of government is assigned power to limit abuses by the others.

consisting of two houses or chambers; applied to a legislative body with two parts, such as a senate and a house of representatives (or assembly).

in texas, regular legislative sessions are scheduled by the constitution. they are held once every two years and, hence, are referred to as biennial regular sessions.

a legislative session called by the texas governor, who also sets its agenda.

an extended discussion by a legislator on the floor with the goal of delaying or blocking a final vote on a bill.

inoperable constitutional provisions that have been either voided by a conflicting u.s. constitutional or statutory law or made irrelevant by changing circumstances and contexts.

an executive branch where power is divided among several independently elected officials, thereby weakening the power of the chief executive, which, in texas, is the governor.

texas governor's authority to appoint supervisory boards but not the operational directors for most state agencies.

the authority to fire appointed officials.

the power to issue binding orders to state agencies.

the power to recommend to the legislature how much it should appropriate for various executive agencies.

the power to strike out sections of a bill without vetoing the entire bill

the power to reduce amounts in an appropriations bill without striking them out altogether; this power is not available to texas's governor

the power to kill legislation by simply ignoring it after the end of the legislative session; this power is not available to texas's governor

general elections where the candidates are nominated by the political parties and their respective party labels appear on the ballot.

the legal right to vote

an election method that empowers citizens to place a proposal on the ballot for voter approval. if the measure passes, it becomes law (permitted in some texas cities but not at the state level).

an election that permits voters to determine if an ordinance or statute will go into effect (permitted in some texas cities but not at the state level).

a special election to remove an official before the end of his or her term, initiated by citizen petition (permitted in some texas cities but not at the state level).

in texas, the proposal of a constitutional amendment must be supported by two-thirds of the total membership of each house of the legislature (at least 21 senators and 100 representatives).

approval by a majority of those persons voting on the amendment in either a general or a special election.

the fact that citizens vote even though a single vote rarely decides an election.

the proportion of eligible americans who actually vote.

the total number of persons in the united states who are 18 years of age or older.

a method of selecting party nominees in which party members participate directly in the selection of a candidate to represent them in the general election.

a second primary election that pits the two top vote-getters from the first primary, where the winner in that primary did not receive a majority. the runoff primary is used in states such as tx that have a majority election rule in party primaries

a type of primary where a voter can choose on election day which primary they will participate.

a type of primary where a voter is required to specify a party preference when registering to vote.

when members of one political party vote in the other party's primary to influence the nominee that is selected.

an election rule in which the candidate with the most votes wins regardless of whether it is a majority.

a type of ballot used in a general election where all of the candidates from each party are listed in parallel columns under the party label.

a voter selecting candidates from one party for some offices and candidates from the other party for other offices.

selecting all of the candidates of one particular party.

a type of ballot used in a general election where the names of the parties' candidates are randomly listed in under each office.

a ballot printed by the government (as opposed to the political parties) that allows people to vote in secret.

the practice of voting before election day at traditional voting locations, such as schools, and other locations, such as grocery and convenience stores.

the small pieces of paper produced when voting with punch-card ballots.

voting by using touch screens.

a strategy used in election campaigns in which candidates attack opponents' issue positions or character.

organizations that raise and then contribute money to political candidates.

money spent by political parties on behalf of political candidates, especially for the purposes of increasing voter registration and turnout.

money individuals and organizations spend to promote a candidate without working or communicating directly with the candidate's campaign organization.