Political Abbreviations
91 abbreviations · part of Government & Political Abbreviations
Abbreviations from American politics and elections: offices and titles (POTUS, AG), party organizations (GOP, DNC, RNC), campaign finance (PAC, Super PAC), congressional bill prefixes and procedures (H.R., S., CR), voting systems and polling terms. Party labels such as D, R and I appear after lawmakers' names in news copy, and bill numbers restart with each two-year Congress. Entries are neutral and note AP or official style where it differs.
| Abbreviation | Stands for | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 527 | 527 organization | Tax-exempt political group organized under section 527 of the Internal Revenue Code to influence elections or appointments. |
| AB | Assembly Bill | Prefix for bills introduced in a state assembly, the lower chamber's name in states such as California, Nevada and Wisconsin. |
| AG | Attorney General | Chief law officer of a government. |
| AOC | Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez | Democratic member of the US House of Representatives from New York, first elected in 2018 at age 29, then the youngest woman ever elected to Congress. |
| AVR | Automatic voter registration | Policy under which eligible citizens are registered to vote, or have their registration updated, when they interact with agencies such as the motor vehicle department… |
| BBB | Build Back Better | President Joe Biden's campaign agenda and the name of a large social spending and climate bill passed by the House in November 2021. |
| BOE | Board of Elections | Local or state body that administers elections in many US jurisdictions, maintaining voter rolls, recruiting poll workers, running polling places and certifying results. |
| CBC | Congressional Black Caucus | Caucus of Black members of the US Congress, nearly all Democrats, that works on civil rights, economic opportunity and other issues affecting Black Americans. |
| CPAC | Conservative Political Action Conference | Annual gathering of conservative activists, commentators and Republican politicians, organized by the group formerly called the American Conservative Union. |
| CPC | Congressional Progressive Caucus | Caucus of progressive Democrats in Congress that advocates policies such as expanded health coverage, a higher minimum wage and stronger labor protections. |
| CR | Continuing resolution | Temporary spending law that keeps federal agencies funded, usually at the previous year's levels, when Congress has not passed regular appropriations bills by the start… |
| D | Democrat (party label) | Single-letter label for the Democratic Party used after politicians' names in news copy, vote tallies and election results, usually combined with a state abbreviation… |
| DCCC | Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee | Party committee that works to elect Democrats to the US House of Representatives, recruiting candidates, raising money, conducting opposition research and buying… |
| DGA | Democratic Governors Association | Organization of Democratic governors that works to elect Democratic candidates for governor, raising money and running campaigns in gubernatorial races across the states. |
| DINO | Democrat in name only | Pejorative used mainly by progressive Democrats for party members they consider too conservative or too willing to side with Republicans. |
| DNC | Democratic National Committee | Governing body of the US Democratic Party, which organizes the national convention, sets presidential nominating rules and debate criteria, raises money and supports… |
| DNI | Director of National Intelligence | Cabinet-level official who heads the US Intelligence Community, oversees the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and serves as the President's principal… |
| DSA | Democratic Socialists of America | Membership organization, describing itself as the largest socialist group in the United States, that endorses candidates, most of whom run as Democrats, and campaigns… |
| DSCC | Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee | Works to elect Democrats to the US Senate, recruiting candidates, raising money and coordinating spending in competitive Senate races. |
| EC | Electoral College | Body of 538 electors, allotted to states by their number of senators and representatives plus three for the District of Columbia, that formally elects the US President… |
| EO | Executive order | Directive issued by the US President to manage operations of the federal government, carrying the force of law within the executive branch when grounded in… |
| EV | Electoral vote | Vote cast by a member of the Electoral College for President or Vice President. |
| FDR | Franklin Delano Roosevelt | Thirty-second President of the United States (1933-1945), the only president elected four times, who led the country through the Great Depression and most of World War… |
| FLOTUS | First Lady of the United States | Informal title for the wife of the President, who traditionally hosts White House social events and often leads public initiatives. |
| FPTP | First-past-the-post | Electoral system in which the candidate with the most votes in a district wins, even without a majority. |
| FY | Fiscal year | The 12-month accounting period a government or company uses for budgets and financial reports, which need not match the calendar year. |
| GND | Green New Deal | Congressional resolution and broader policy framework calling for rapid decarbonization of the US economy combined with job guarantees and social programs, named in… |
| GOP | Grand Old Party (Republican Party) | Nickname and abbreviation for the Republican Party, one of the two major US political parties, used heavily in headlines. |
| GOTV | Get out the vote | Final phase of a campaign focused on making sure identified supporters actually cast ballots, through door knocking, phone banks, texts, rides to the polls and… |
| Gov. | Governor | Title of the elected chief executive of a US state or territory, abbreviated before a name in news copy, as in "Gov. |
| H.Con.Res. | House Concurrent Resolution | Prefix for concurrent resolutions originating in the House, which must pass both chambers but are not presented to the President and do not have the force of law. |
| H.J.Res. | House Joint Resolution | Prefix for joint resolutions originating in the House, which must pass both chambers and be signed by the President like bills, and therefore have the force of law. |
| H.R. | House of Representatives (bill prefix) | Prefix for bills introduced in the US House of Representatives, followed by a number, as in "H.R. 1". |
| H.Res. | House Resolution | Prefix for simple resolutions in the US House of Representatives, which concern only the House: adopting rules for debate, electing officers, censuring members or… |
| HASC | House Armed Services Committee | House committee with jurisdiction over the Defense Department and the armed forces, which drafts the House version of the annual National Defense Authorization Act and… |
| HB | House Bill | State-legislature prefix for bills introduced in a house of representatives or other lower chamber, followed by a number, as in "HB 2" or "H.B. 1557". |
| HFC | House Freedom Caucus | Bloc of conservative Republicans in the US House of Representatives that pushes for deep spending cuts and a more confrontational approach toward Democrats and, at… |
| HPSCI | House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence | House committee that oversees the US intelligence agencies, authorizes their budgets and receives classified briefings on covert actions. |
| I | Independent (party label) | Label for a politician not affiliated with a political party, used after names in news copy and election results, as in "Sen. |
| IG | Inspector General | Office that investigates complaints of fraud, waste, abuse, misconduct and reprisal and inspects units for readiness and compliance. |
| IRV | Instant-runoff voting | Single-winner ranked ballot method in which the candidate with the fewest first-preference votes is eliminated in successive rounds and ballots transfer to voters' next… |
| JCT | Joint Committee on Taxation | Nonpartisan committee of Congress whose staff estimates the revenue effects of tax legislation and helps draft tax bills, playing the role for tax measures that the CBO… |
| JFK | John F. Kennedy | Thirty-fifth President of the United States (1961-1963), the youngest person ever elected president, whose administration saw the Cuban Missile Crisis and the launch of… |
| LBJ | Lyndon B. Johnson | Thirty-sixth President of the United States (1963-1969), who took office after John F. |
| Lt. Gov. | Lieutenant Governor | Second-ranking executive official in most US states, who succeeds the governor in case of vacancy and in many states presides over the state senate. |
| LV | Likely voters | Poll subgroup made up of respondents judged likely to vote, based on screening questions about past voting, interest and intention. |
| MAGA | Make America Great Again | Campaign slogan of Donald Trump, first used prominently in his 2016 presidential campaign, that also became a label for his political movement and its supporters. |
| MMP | Mixed-member proportional representation | Electoral system in which voters cast one vote for a local district representative and another for a party, with list seats added so that each party's total share of… |
| MOC | Member of Congress | Shorthand used by congressional staff, lobbyists and advocacy groups for a US representative or senator. |
| MOE | Margin of error | Half the width of a confidence interval, usually at 95 percent confidence, reported with opinion polls and surveys. |
| NDAA | National Defense Authorization Act | Annual law that sets policy and authorizes spending levels for the Defense Department and the national security programs of the Energy Department, covering topics from… |
| NIMBY | Not in my backyard | Label for residents who oppose a proposed development near where they live, such as housing, shelters, transmission lines or landfills, even if they support it in… |
| NRCC | National Republican Congressional Committee | Party committee that works to elect Republicans to the US House of Representatives, recruiting candidates, raising money and advertising in competitive districts. |
| NRSC | National Republican Senatorial Committee | Senate campaign arm of the Republican Party, recruiting candidates, raising money and running advertising in competitive Senate races. |
| NSA | National Security Advisor | Senior White House aide who heads the National Security Council staff, coordinates foreign and defense policy across agencies and advises the President directly. |
| PAC | Political action committee | Organization that pools contributions to donate to candidates, parties or other committees, or to spend on elections. |
| PEOTUS | President-elect of the United States | Informal title for the winner of a presidential election between Election Day in November and the inauguration on January 20. |
| POTUS | President of the United States | Head of state and head of government of the United States, commander in chief of the armed forces and chief of the executive branch, elected every four years through… |
| PR | Proportional representation | Family of electoral systems that allocate legislative seats in proportion to the votes each party receives, typically in multi-member districts using party lists. |
| Prop | Proposition | Short form used for numbered ballot measures in states such as California, Arizona and Nevada, where citizens vote directly on proposed laws and constitutional… |
| PVI | Partisan Voting Index | Measure published by The Cook Political Report that shows how strongly a congressional district or state leans toward one party compared with the nation as a whole… |
| R | Republican (party label) | Single-letter label for the Republican Party used after politicians' names in news copy and election results, often combined with a state abbreviation, as in "Sen. |
| RBG | Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Associate Justice of the US Supreme Court from 1993 until her death in September 2020, appointed by President Bill Clinton and known for her work on gender equality and… |
| RCV | Ranked-choice voting | Voting method in which voters rank candidates in order of preference; if no candidate wins a majority of first choices, the last-place candidate is eliminated and those… |
| Rep. | Representative | Identifies a member of the US House of Representatives or of a state house, placed before the name. |
| RFK | Robert F. Kennedy | US Attorney General (1961-1964) under his brother John F. |
| RGA | Republican Governors Association | Organization of Republican governors that supports the election of Republican candidates for governor, raising money and spending heavily on advertising in competitive… |
| RINO | Republican in name only | Pejorative used by some Republicans for party members they regard as insufficiently conservative or loyal to the party's direction. |
| RNC | Republican National Committee | Governing body of the US Republican Party, which organizes the national convention, raises money, maintains voter data and supports Republican candidates. |
| RV | Registered voters | Poll subgroup consisting of respondents who say they are registered to vote, labeled "RV" in poll tables. |
| S. | Senate (bill prefix) | Senate counterpart of H.R., placed before the number of a bill introduced in the US Senate, as in "S. 2155". |
| S.Con.Res. | Senate Concurrent Resolution | Prefix for concurrent resolutions originating in the Senate, which need approval by both chambers but not the President's signature. |
| S.J.Res. | Senate Joint Resolution | Prefix for joint resolutions that originate in the Senate. |
| S.Res. | Senate Resolution | Prefix for simple resolutions in the US Senate, which affect only the Senate: setting internal rules and committee funding, honoring individuals or expressing the… |
| SASC | Senate Armed Services Committee | Senate committee that oversees the Defense Department and the military, writes the Senate version of the annual National Defense Authorization Act and holds… |
| SB | Senate Bill | Prefix for bills introduced in a state senate, followed by a number, as in "SB 8" or "S.B. 202". |
| SCOTUS | Supreme Court of the United States | Highest court in the federal judiciary, consisting of a Chief Justice and eight associate justices appointed for life by the President with Senate confirmation. |
| Sen. | Senator | Title for a member of the US Senate or a state senate, abbreviated before a full name in news copy, as in "Sen. |
| SFRC | Senate Foreign Relations Committee | Senate committee that handles treaties, ambassadorial and State Department nominations, foreign aid authorizations and other foreign policy legislation. |
| SG | Solicitor General | Official who represents a government before its highest court. |
| SoS | Secretary of State | Title of two very different US offices: the federal cabinet member who leads the State Department and conducts foreign policy, and the state-level official who in most… |
| SOTU | State of the Union | Annual address by the President to a joint session of Congress, reporting on the condition of the country and proposing legislative priorities. |
| SSCI | Senate Select Committee on Intelligence | Senate committee that oversees the US Intelligence Community, authorizes intelligence budgets and reviews nominees such as the Director of National Intelligence and the… |
| STV | Single transferable vote | Proportional voting method for multi-member districts in which voters rank candidates, and surplus votes from elected candidates and votes from eliminated candidates… |
| Super PAC | Independent expenditure-only political committee | Political committee that may raise unlimited sums from individuals, corporations and unions and spend unlimited amounts on ads supporting or opposing candidates… |
| UC | Unanimous consent | Procedure in the US Senate, and to a lesser extent the House, by which business proceeds without a formal vote unless a single member objects. |
| VBM | Vote by mail | Method of voting in which ballots are mailed to voters, who return them by mail or drop box. |
| VP | Vice president | Corporate officer title for a senior manager who leads a function, division or region and reports to a more senior executive, such as an SVP or the CEO. |
| VPOTUS | Vice President of the United States | Second-highest officer of the US executive branch, first in the presidential line of succession and President of the Senate, where the vice president casts tie-breaking… |
| W&M | Ways and Means Committee | The House of Representatives' chief tax-writing committee, with jurisdiction over taxes, tariffs, Social Security, parts of Medicare and other revenue matters. |
| YIMBY | Yes in my backyard | Movement and its supporters advocating construction of more housing and infrastructure, especially by loosening zoning rules, to reduce housing costs. |