Introduction

Enduring Knowledge: Special interest groups and political action committees play an important financial role in successful campaigns and in our political system as a whole.

There are several well-known expressions about power, "There is power in numbers," "Money means power," and "Education is power," just to name a few. You may agree or disagree with these ideas, but when it comes to politics in America, they all seem to hold true. The fact is that in order to get elected in the United States, you have to run a campaign that will gain a majority support of the people. Moreover, you must achieve substantial financial support to run a successful campaign. Increasingly, large amounts of money are required for financing campaigns.

This lesson will explore how campaigns are financed and the rules regarding campaign finance. You will also learn about the role and functions of various types of special interest groups and how they impact political campaigns.

A candidate greets potential voters on the campaign trail.


Lesson Objectives

Following successful completion of this lesson, students will be able to:

  • define lobbying and identify the types of special interest groups.
  • describe the functions of interest groups and their importance in elections.
  • describe the costs of elections and how special interest groups and political action committees participate in the financial process of campaigns.
  • explain the importance of Buckley vs. Valeo on campaign finances in our election process.

The above objectives correspond with the Alabama Course of Study: Government objective(s): 8, 8.1.

This lesson incorporates the following Literacy Standards: R1, R2, R4, R7, W2, W4, and W9.
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