| A | B |
|---|
| incumbent | the person who is already holding office |
| gerrymandering | the re-drawing of election districts to favor a certain party (Illegal) |
| apportionment | the redrawing of election districts to reflect state population changes (legal) |
| primary | the election held by the party to choose the candidate to run in the election |
| competitive election | a race without an incumbent |
| safe seats | name for those offices that have a strong incumbent who is unlikely to lose |
| soft money | money provided by the party and used by the incumbent to seek re-election |
| hard money | money contributed directly to the candidate ($2000 limit per individual contribution) |
