Fast, plain-English definitions for political terms, government concepts, election language, and the phrases voters are seeing in live surveys.
Legal immigration refers to the lawful entry and residence of foreign nationals in the United States through pathways established by federal statute. Major categories include family sponsorship, employment-based visas, refugee and asylum protections, and the diversity visa lottery.
Legal immigration refers to the lawful entry and residence of foreign nationals in the United States through pathways established by federal statute. Major categories include family sponsorship, employment-based visas, refugee and asylum protections, and the diversity visa lottery.
Content moderation is the process by which online platforms review, label, restrict, or remove user-generated posts based on their own published rules. It is conducted by private companies and is not directly governed by the First Amendment, though it intersects with free-speech debates.
Title IX is a federal civil rights law enacted in 1972 that prohibits sex-based discrimination in any education program or activity receiving federal funding. It applies to admissions, athletics, employment and other aspects of schooling at covered institutions.
Election administration is the system by which federal, state, and local officials run elections, including registering voters, operating polling places, counting ballots, certifying results, and conducting audits or recounts. In the U.S., it is decentralized across states and thousands of local jurisdictions.
Mandatory detention refers to the legal requirement under Section 1226(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act that certain noncitizens, particularly those with specified criminal convictions, be held in custody without the possibility of release on bond while their removal proceedings are pending. The provision removes the discretion immigration judges typically have to consider release.
A bond hearing is a court proceeding in which a judge decides whether a detained individual can be released from custody, often after posting a sum of money, while their case is pending. In the immigration context, an immigration judge weighs whether the detainee is a flight risk or a danger to the community before setting release conditions.
A constitutional amendment is a formal change or addition to the U.S. Constitution made through the process outlined in Article V. It is the only way to directly alter or abolish constitutional provisions such as the Electoral College.