question

The main goal of the group Rock the Vote is to

answer

draw young voters into participating politically

question

What percentage of eligible voters participated in the 2004 presidential election?

answer

59%

question

Since the 1960's, the percentage of Americans exercising their right to vote has

answer

decreased

question

The main problem with voting as a form of political participation is

answer

that citizens cannot communicate very much information by only casting a ballot

question

Protest and riots, lobbying, and litigation are all ______ forms of political activity

answer

nonelectoral

question

What is the main difference between voting and lobbying?

answer

Unlike voting, lobbying involves an attempt to directly influence a government official

question

When the auto industry produced an advertising campaign against a bill passed to raise fuel economy standards, it was engaged in _____

answer

public relations

question

Litigation can be a form of participation in which people _____

answer

file lawsuits in order to change public policies

question

Nonelectoral forms of participation usually require more ______ than voting

answer

time, money, and effort (all of the above)

question

Which is the most accessible form of political activity?

answer

voting

question

The constitution was amended in ____ to give eighteen-year-olds the right to vote

answer

1971

question

Throughout American history, which of the following was NOT a common restriction the government placed on voting rights?

answer

occupational requirements

question

The term "suffrage" refers to:

answer

the right to vote

question

The Constitution was amended to allow women to vote during all public elections in

answer

1920

question

The Fifteenth Amendment, passed in 1870, mandated that

answer

no state could prevent the right to vote on account of race

question

What was the main cause for dropping the legal voting age to eighteen?

answer

Government officials hoped it would lead to a decline in disruptive student protests

question

Compared with Western Europe, the United States has a ______ turnout in elections

answer

lower

question

The American political community is defined as

answer

those who are eligible to vote and participate in American political life

question

According to the text, the central challenge for establishing a democracy in Iraq has been

answer

securing Sunni participation in politics

question

Which of the following was NOT a critical group that attempted to expand civil rights for African Americans? (choices are: NAACP, DAR, SNCC, SCLC)

answer

DAR

question

The civil rights movements of the 1950s and 1960s used all of the following methods of participation EXCEPT: (choices are: sit-ins and marches, litigation, lobbying and political pressure, the power bloc of southern African American voters)

answer

The power bloc of southern African American voters

question

What bloc of voters has recently been called the "sleeping giant"?

answer

Latinos

question

Forty percent of all Asian americans live in

answer

California

question

Over the pas decade, polls have revealed that Asian American voters are moving toward

answer

the Democratic party

question

The political power of Asian Americans has recently been hindered because of the

answer

diversity of national backgrounds and cultures

question

Which of the following best describes the goal of the EMILY's List organization? (choices: to promote the expansion of pro-choice legislation, to advocate a pro-life position, to raise money for Democratic women candidates interested in running for office, to litigate sex discrimination cases in court)

answer

to raise money for Democratic women candidates interested in running for office

question

T/F: Religion has played an important role in organizing political participation

answer

T

question

Churches and religious groups have been influential in all of the following EXCEPT (choices: the Civil rights movement, antiabortion protests, health care reforms, the mobilization of the Republican Party)

answer

health care reforms

question

Evangelical Protestants are more likely to be associated with what party?

answer

The Republican Party

question

What was the Supreme Court case that ruled prayers in public schools were unconstitutional?

answer

Engel v. Vitale

question

The power of the Christian Coalition in the 1990s was due to

answer

its success in mobilizing a large grassroots base

question

Which group has had the highest levels of political participation?

answer

senior citizens

question

The proportion of young people voting has _____ since 1971

answer

decreased

question

Which of the following is NOT a key factor in indicating one's level of participation?

answer

geographic region

question

Which of the following characteristics does NOT constitute one's socioeconomic status? (choices: level of income, level of education, prestige of occupation, level of political participation)

answer

level of political participation

question

The explanation of political participation that points to characteristics of individuals focuses on

answer

socioeconomic status

question

The socioeconomic status model explains one's political participation by examining an individual's

answer

level of education, income, and occupational status

question

T/F: Young people are far less likely to participate in politics than older people

answer

T

question

The strongest critique of the socioeconomic status model's explanation of political participation is that

answer

education levels are rising while rates of participation are falling

question

An example of _____ was exhibited through the interest group Friends of the Earth issuing a press release blaming the Hurricane katrina devastation on global warming

answer

public relations

question

What was the effect of the National Voter Registration Act (Motor Voter Act)?

answer

Voter registration rose, but voter turnout did not.

question

Political ______ is the process in which large numbers of people are organized for political action

answer

mobilization

question

Studies show that people are more likely to participate in politics when

answer

someone asks them to get involved

question

Studies have discovered ______ to be the key element of successful mobilization efforts

answer

personal contact

question

Which of the following have political parties been doing less of in recent years? (choices: fund-raising, advertising, mobilizing voters, nominating candidates)

answer

mobilizing voters

question

What is the most reasonable explanation for why about 70 percent of the Latino population in the United States voted for Democrats during the 2006 congressional elections?

answer

They disagreed with Republican immigration policies

question

What has been one of the most pressing questions concerning socioeconomic status?

answer

Why has the level of participation in politics not increased as a result of the rising level of education among Americans?

question

A political institution can best be defined as

answer

any organization that connects people to politics

question

_______ democracy arises when there is a decline in political participation, fund-raising becomes the most important task for political organizations, participation levels take on an unequal economic bias

answer

Checkbook

question

One problem arising from wealthy Americans choosing to abstain from participating in public institutions such as schools is that

answer

important groups of Americans no longer have a stake in the public sector

question

What is the main difference between elections in a democracy and elections under an authoritarian regime?

answer

Democratic regimes allow for viable opposition, while the leaders do not permit themselves to lose under an authoritarian government

question

What is the function of an election in a democracy?

answer

It promotes accountability among the leaders, It helps to politically protect different groups in society, It serves to legitimize the government

question

When a congressional election is help that does not coincide with a presidential election, it is called a

answer

midterm election

question

The primary responsibility for conducting public elections rests with

answer

state and local governments

question

During midterm elections, voters are electing

answer

members of Congress

question

In order for a political party to select a candidate to run in the general election, it holds a

answer

primary election

question

_____ is the practice of voting directly for proposed laws

answer

referendum

question

Which of the following is the best example of direct democracy in practice in the United States? (choices: gerrymandering, retrospective voting, referendum, issue advocacy)

answer

referendum

question

Recall elections are an electoral device first used by the

answer

Populists

question

Which of the following political officers are not subject to recall elections? (choices: the president, senators, federal judges, none of the above is subject to a recall election)

answer

none of the above is subject to a recall election

question

If the winner of an election is whoever receives the most votes, regardless of the percentage of votes received, the candidates are running under a ____ system

answer

plurality

question

Most European nations employ what system of elections?

answer

proportional representation

question

________ is the most common electoral system used in general elections in the United States.

answer

The plurality system

question

Smaller and weaker parties are most likely to have electoral success under which system of elections?

answer

proportional representation system

question

A majority electoral system, which is used on a limited basis in the United States, requires that a candidate must win ______ to win an election

answer

50 percent plus one of all votes cast

question

Plurality and majority systems tend to

answer

decrease the number of political parties

question

The boundaries of legislative districts in the United States are to be redrawn every _____ years

answer

ten

question

When the Supreme Court announced the principle of "one person, one vote" what did it mean?

answer

Within a state, electoral districts must have roughly equal populations

question

The practice of ______ means that district boundaries have been purposefully drawn to unfairly advantage on group or party.

answer

gerrymandering

question

When legislature draw district lines made up largely of underrepresented minority groups, the practice is called

answer

benign gerrymandering

question

In what case did the Supreme Court say that purposefully drawing districts where the majority of voters were members of a single minority group, in order to ensure minority representation, was not constitutional?

answer

Shaw v. Reno

question

Before the 1890s, who was responsible for printing election ballots?

answer

political parties

question

What unusual act did the Texas legislature perform in 2002?

answer

It redistricted without waiting for a new census

question

If you voted for a Republican for president and a Democrat for senator, you engaged in

answer

split-ticket voting

question

When American voters support only one party's candidates, they are said to be voting a

answer

straight ticket

question

The result that is produced when voters cast a ballot for the president and then automatically vote for the remainder of the party's candidates is called the

answer

coattail effect

question

Split-ticket voting increases what

answer

partisan divisions in government

question

What event helped lead to a change in the way that the electoral college chose the president and vice president?

answer

the duel between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr in 1803

question

A major factor in John Kennedy's 1960 presidential victory over Richard Nixon was

answer

that Kennedy had a much stronger performance than Nixon during televised debates

question

Who is the incumbent?

answer

the current officeholder, running for re-election

question

Approximately how much money does it take for a candidate to have a reasonable chance of winning a seat in the House of Representatives?

answer

$500,000

question

_________ conduct opinion polls, organize direct mailings, and develop the issues on which the candidate will focus

answer

Campaign consultants

question

When does public opinion polling take place during a campaign?

answer

throughout the entire campaign

question

Which of the following primary battle is the best example of an ideological clash, rather than a personality clash?

answer

Mike Huckabee and John McCain in 2008

question

For their primaries, most but not all state parties use what type of election?

answer

proportional representation

question

During the earliest years of the United States, who nominated the candidates for president?

answer

Nominations were controlled by each party's congressional caucus

question

At a party convention, when an entire state delegation votes for the single candidate supported by the majority of its delegates, it is called the

answer

unit rule

question

Party activists who are elected to vote at a party's national convention are called

answer

delegates

question

When candidates for office sponsor hearings, undertake inspection tours of disaster areas, or meet with foreign dignitaries, the form of publicity they receive is called

answer

free media

question

A _________is a media format where candidates meet with ordinary citizens, without the input of journalists or commentators

answer

town meeting

question

Partisan loyalty is likely to be highest in the election of

answer

a state legislator

question

If a citizen votes for a candidate because he or she approves of the candidates's past record, it is called

answer

retrospective voting

question

The majority of PACs represent

answer

business and professional groups

question

The right of candidates to spend their own money on running for office is

answer

protected absolutely by the First Amendment, according to the Supreme Court

question

What is a common way for interest groups, corporations, and political parties to aid a candidate while avoiding campaign finance laws?

answer

engaging in issue advocacy

question

The term "soft money" refers to

answer

money donated to a party to sponsor party building and voter registration

question

Money contributed directly to a political party, to be used for voter registration or party building, is called

answer

soft money

question

Which of the following were NOT major contributors to George W. Bush's 2000 presidential campaign?

answer

trial lawyers

question

Spot advertisements are useful because they

answer

permit a candidate's message to be delivered to a target audience before people can tune out

question

Which of the following has increased the ability of candidates to raise small contributions from tens of thousands of donars?

answer

the Internet

Chapter 8 &10 gov quiz – Flashcards

Unlock all answers in this set

Haven't found what you were looking for?

Search for samples, answers to your questions and flashcards