Chapter 12- Voting and Elections

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Which of the following statements if FALSE?
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a. Elections in the United States are a means to hold government officials accountable b. The most common method of political participation in the United States is voting c. FALSE- Attending a protest or rally is an example of conventional political participation d. Approximately 35% of eligible voters rarely or never vote e. Some states allow felons who have served their sentences to vote; while other states do not
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Lower voter turnout in the United States can best be explained by
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The voter registration system
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Which of the following statements is false?
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a. In recent years, states have chosen early dates for their presidential primaries to have more influence in the process; this is called front-loading b. The most common reason given by college students for not voting is that they were too busy c. Whites vote more than African-Americans; African-Americans vote more than Hispanics d. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 bans any procedure that impinges upon minorities' right to vote e. FALSE- Evaluating a candidate based on what he says he will do if elected is called making a retrospective judgement.
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Why are so many more people registered to vote in most European nations than in the United States?
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Because voter registration is both free and automatic in these nations
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Political participation encompasses all of the following activities expect
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Paying your taxes
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Which of the following was required by the U.S. Constitution?
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Popularly elected House members
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Which of the following statements if false?
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a. Process allowing citizens to propose legislation and submit it to the electorate for popular vote is called initiative b. An election in which voters can remove an incumbent from office in the middle of his term is a recall c. FALSE- Age requirements for holding federal office are uniform across the House and Senate, but stricter for the presidency d. The procedure by which a state legislature offers proposed legislation for voter approval is called a referendum e. In recent years, the parties' national conventions have merely ratified pre-selected nominees
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Which of the following statements about elections in the U.S. is correct?
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The U.S. Constitution left entirely to the states the decision of who could vote and for what offices
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Which of the following was NOT a device intended to prevent blacks from voting?
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The Australian ballot. The grandfather clause, literacy test, and poll tax were all intended to prevent the black vote
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Which of the following statements about the right to vote by blacks is correct?
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According to the 15th amendment, blacks could not be denied the right to vote on the basis of race alone
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The Voting Rights Act of 1965 contained all of the following provisions except
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An end to all poll taxes and property requirements
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Between 1915 and 1925, the size of the eligible voting population in the U.S. almost doubled. The main reason for this was
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Women were given the right to vote
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Which of the following statements is FALSE?
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a. FALSE- A delegate slot to the Democratic National Convention reserved for an elected party official is known as a superdelegate b. Delegates to both of the national party conventions are wealthier and better educated than most Americans c. Delegates to the Democratic Party's national convention are demographically representative of the population in terms of race and gender d. When compared to the U.S. population as a whole, minorities at the Republican convention are the most underrepresented e. Delegates to the Republican Party's national convention are more likely to be from the working class than is the average American
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How does front-loading affect the nomination process?
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Front-loading tends to benefit the winner of the \"invisible primary\"
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Which of the following is the most helpful in understanding why fewer African Americans turn out to vote?
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African Americans have lower incomes
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The number of voter eligible to vote in the 1972 presidential election rose dramatically from the previous election, in large measure because voting was extended to
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Persons between the ages of 18 and 21
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By federal law, those areas in which less than 50% of the population has voted in presidential elections
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Can be subject to federal voter registrars and poll watchers
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Which of the following statements applies to the voting rights of U.S. citizens who cannot speak English?
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Areas with many such citizens must provide ballots written in the citizens' languages
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One explanation given for the decline in U.S. voter participation in presidential elections after 1900 is that
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Election fraud was rampant in the 19th century
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Of the following types of political participation, the least common among Americans is
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Giving money to a candidate
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Politically inactive individuals tend to be all of the following except
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Ideological
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Voters who support the party in government during good economic times and for the other political party during economic downturns are exercising
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Retrospective judgment
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One reason religious involvement increases political participation is because
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It leads to social connectedness and increases awareness of larger issues
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Which of the following statements about the Electoral College is FALSE?
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a. It was designed to produce a nonpartisan president b. It would require a constitutional amendment to abolish it c. It was modified by the 12th amendment to conduct separate elections for president and vice president d. FALSE- It decrees that any disputes about the process of selecting a president will be resolved by the Supreme Court e. 270 votes in Electoral College is needed to win the presidency
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The make-up of the Electoral College is affected by reapportionment which moved political power from the Northeast to the
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South and West
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All of the following statements are true EXCEPT
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a. The representation of states in the Electoral College is altered to reflect population shifts every ten years b. Incumbents sometimes lose because redistricting can result in districts that are disadvantageous for incumbents c. FALSE-In the 2008 congressional elections, Democrats won the Senate but lost the House d. Voter turnout in midterm elections is lower than in presidential elections
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Maine, Minnesota, Oregon, and Wisconsin and several other states have each legislated voter registration
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On the same as the elections
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One argument against compulsory voting in this country is
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Voter objections to identification papers
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Which of the following statements about public demonstrations such as sit-ins and protest marches is correct?
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They have become much more common in recent decades
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Compared to voters in the U.S. most European voters have the opportunity to cast ballots
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Less frequently, for fewer offices
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In the U.S, voter turnout is heavily skewed toward higher-status persons. One effect of this may be to make our government
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More sensitive to the ideologies of upper-status individuals
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The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act
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Restricted the use of political ads and banned soft money
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Which of the following is the main benefit of ballot measures?
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Voters can participate in public policy decisions
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The most powerful determinant of political participation, other than education is
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Age
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We learned from the 2000 presidential election that a few hundred votes
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Can determine an election outcome
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The secret ballot printed by the state used to help ensure voter regularity is the
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Australian ballot
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The National Voter Registration Act (1993) provides for
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Requirements that states designate offices to provide welfare and disabled assistance to facilitate voter registration, a requirement that states allow registration by mail, and a \"motor-voter\" registration
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Mid-term congressional elections elect
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About one third of the Senate and all Representatives
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All of the following are true concerning voter turnout EXCEPT
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a. Voter turnout is higher in primary elections than in special elections b. Voter turnout is highest in presidential elections c. Voter turnout is higher in general elections than in primary elections d. FALSE- Voter turnout is higher in local elections than in national elections
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Which of the following does not contribute to the \"scare-off\" effect? Incumbents
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Are older
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Voter turnout in the U.S is low due to
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Candidate-centered elections
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The earliest presidential primary usually takes place in
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New Hampshire
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What is gerrymandering?
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Redraw district lines for partisan gain
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Critics of electronic voting argue that
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It is vulnerable to fraud
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Regional primaries would
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More equitably distribute the influence of states in the nomination process
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What is the \"scare off\" effect?
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High-quality challengers are less likely to run against an incumbent
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A primary election in which only registered voters are eligible to participate is called
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A closed primary
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During midterm elections held in the sixth year of the president's term, the president's party usually
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Loses seats in both houses of Congress
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Gerrymandered districts
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Must be apportioned on the basis of population
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