Part 1
• What are the functions of political parties in the United States?
• Why is 1968 considered a watershed year for American political parties?
• What are the primary differences between the American two-party system and the multi-party systems found in many European countries?
• How do interest groups differ from political parties?
• How does Madison's dilemma help us to understand interest groups as a system of countervailing forces?
• Why might one join an interest group?
• What is the role of money in politics?
• Do interest groups distort the democratic process? Why or why not?
Part 2
• Why do we have elections?
• Why are elections critical to the peaceful transfer of power?
• What demographic factors are most likely to predict whether an individual votes?
• Why do some people choose not to participate in the political process?
• What does V. O. Key's typology of elections tell us about the nature of American politics?
• How does public opinion relate to values and political ideology?
• What are some of the sources of the opinions that we have and what are the bases for cleavages in public opinion?
• What role does the press play in measuring public opinion?
• Given Key's definition of a critical election, can we say that the 1994 election was an example of one? Why or why not?