Deck 6: Elections, Parties and Democracy

Question 1

In recent decades the percentage of voters preferring neither party has doubled while

A) the percentage of Republicans has also doubled.
B) the percentage of Republicans has remained the same.
C) the percentage of Democrats has doubled.
D) the percentage of Democrats has remained the same.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

When elected candidates think that their positions on issue brought them electoral victory it is called

A) the myth of the eternal return.
B) the myth of policy mandate.
C) the myth of party realignment.
D) the myth of media censorship.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Which of the following is seen as a "myth" when it comes to understanding voter behavior?

A) Voters vote based on policy positions.
B) Voters vote based on candidate image.
C) Voters vote based on economic conditions.
D) Voter vote based on perceived group benefit.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

In democratic nations, the first function of elections is to

A) tie the masses to the system.
B) choose the people who will hold public office.
C) protect individuals and groups from official abuse.
D) All of the above are true.

Question 5

Most voters have _______ information about many of the specific policy issues upon which to base their voting choices.

A) a great deal of
B) no
C) a moderate amount of
D) just enough

Question 6

To appeal to the majority of voters, a political party must

A) clearly articulate a policy platform.
B) move to the ideological middle.
C) choose a very attractive candidate.
D) make extensive use of negative campaign ads against the other party's candidate.

Question 7

The purpose of the responsible party system is to

A) modify the demands of special interests.
B) build a consensus to get majority support.
C) provide simple, but still meaningful choices for voters.
D) All of the above are true.

Question 8

Political Scientist Russell Dalton has found that newer "dealigned" voters are frequently

A) informed on political issues.
B) concerned with politics generally.
C) willing to consider candidates from either party.
D) All of the above are true.

Question 9

A policy voter castes their ballots based on

A) a candidate's party.
B) a candidate's position on issues like taxes, abortion, or the environment.
C) a candidate's past performance in office.
D) a candidate's charm, confidence, sincerity, and attractiveness.

Question 10

As more voters identify as independents, ____________ of candidates have become central to many.

A) policy views
B) personal characteristics
C) educational status
D) the individual wealth

Question 11

_________ are those who rely on either liberal or conservative principles in evaluating candidates and issues.

A) Policy voters
B) Retrospective voters
C) Ideologues
D) Party activists

Question 12

The percentage of the adult population who are party activists is roughly

A) 35 percent.
B) 25 percent.
C) 10 percent.
D) less than 5 percent.

Question 13

President __________ personal appeal won more Democratic voters than any other Republican candidate in modern history.

A) Nixon's
B) George G.W. Bush's
C) Reagan's
D) George W. Bush's

Question 14

The decline in the number of people attracted to either party is referred to as

A) apathy.
B) dealignment.
C) realignment.
D) neutralization.

Question 15

Realignment is evidenced by

A) a Democratic leaning social group becoming identified as Republican.
B) a partisan cleavage among a group without a distinct partisan bias.
C) a highly aligned group losing its partisan distinctiveness.
D) all of the above.

Question 16

Candidate image voters caste their ballots based on

A) a candidate's party.
B) a candidate's position on issues like taxes, abortion, or the environment.
C) a candidate's past performance in office.
D) a candidate's charm, confidence, sincerity, and attractiveness.

Question 17

Political parties have ____________ holding their elected officials responsible for enacting party positions or carrying out party platforms.

A) several direct measures for
B) considerable power in
C) no direct means of
D) the ability to enact measures for

Question 18

Democratic candidates tend to do better among _________ voters.

A) single women
B) small-town, rural
C) protestant
D) all of the above

Question 19

The image difference between Barak Obama and John McCain

A) was not important to voters.
B) was difficult for most people to notice.
C) was stark.
D) All of the above are true.

Question 20

Voters for the democratic party are disproportionately drawn from

A) big-city dwellers.
B) Jews, Catholics, and African Americans.
C) public employee unions.
D) all of the above.

Question 21

The U. S. Supreme Court ruled that independent expenditures by corporations and unions could not be restricted. This case is known as

A) Brown v Board of Education .
B) the Reynolds case.
C) the Citizens United case.
D) the United Farm Workers of America.

Question 22

There is no incentive for parties to stand on the far left or far right when most Americans are found ____________________.

Question 23

___________ is consistently the most "successful" minor party in the United States.

A) The Green Party
B) The Reform Party
C) The Libertarian Party
D) The Democratic Socialist Party

Question 24

Compared with presidential elections, participation in primary elections is about

A) one-tenth.
B) one-half.
C) equal.
D) two-thirds.

Question 25

How many independent candidates have been elected to the White House in U.S. history?

A) 0
B) 1
C) 2
D) 3

Question 26

Vicious and personal attacks during election campaigns are

A) worsening in recent elections.
B) declining in recent elections.
C) favored by incumbent candidates.
D) as old as American politics.

Question 27

SuperPACS

A) are now illegal in all except one state.
B) can raise and spend unlimited amounts of money promoting or attacking candidates.
C) are an invention of the media.
D) are able to use public funds for campaigns.

Question 28

____________________ is the term describing the increasing ideological separation between Democratic and Republican Party activists.

Question 29

2011 Presidential candidate, Ron Paul is also

A) a preacher and televangelist.
B) a congressman.
C) a state senator.
D) a sheriff.

Question 30

The party that draws its membership more from small-town residents, Protestants, and professionals is the ____________________ Party.

Question 31

In 2009, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg spent over _________to win a third term.

A) $100 million
B) $500 million
C) $800 million
D) $1.2 billion

Question 32

T hose who evaluate parties and candidates by expected favorable or unfavorable treatment for specific social groups are known as _____________voters.

Question 33

Generally, the ideology that believes in limited government, individual liberty, and free markets is called

A) liberalism.
B) conservatism.
C) Americanism.
D) republicanism.

Question 34

Elections are a means of selecting

A) policy mandates.
B) public opinion on specific issues.
C) public support for government.
D) people, not policy.

Question 35

Retrospective voting can only indicate what policies voters ____________________.

Question 36

Third parties fail in American politics due to

A) ballot access issues.
B) cultural support for innovation.
C) a tradition of third parties running for office.
D) all of the above.

Question 37

In ________, a majority of party convention delegates began to be selected in primary elections.

A) 1787
B) 1865
C) 1936
D) 1972

Question 38

The first goal of a party is to

A) promote ideological positions.
B) frame the issue debate.
C) win elections.
D) educate the electorate.

Question 39

In recent decades, democratic party loyalty has________________.

Question 40

Parties are ____________________, dominated by active ideologically motivated elites.

Question 41

The establishment of ____________________ has contributed a great deal to the decline in importance of party organizations.

Question 42

Political contributions given directly to political parties, not candidates, is referred to as ____________________.

Question 43

Democrats in Congress voted to block President Bush from invading Iraq.

Question 44

Masses are likely to understand what the meaning of liberalism or conservatism is.

Question 45

SuperPACS. can raise and spend ______________ amounts of money promoting or attacking candidates.

Question 46

The term for elections in which success is defined by getting the most votes is ____________________.

Question 47

____________________ occupies more of a candidate's time than any other campaign activity.

Question 48

Elections are primarily ______________exercises that help tie the masses to the established order.

Question 49

The American party system provides the masses with an effective means to direct public policy.

Question 50

Americans who identify as liberal or conservative remain ideologically consistent in their policy views.

Question 51

Most campaign funds are raised from ____________________.

Question 52

The U.S. Supreme Court declared that the right to spend as much of one's own personal wealth on campaigning as they wish is protected by the ____________________.

Question 53

Elections provide the masses with an opportunity to________________ judge the conduct of past administration.

Question 54

The Democratic and Republican Parties divide clearly along liberal and conservative lines.

Question 55

____________________ and ethnic minorities are conspicuously underrepresented in the primary electorate.

Question 56

Increasing numbers of voters identify not with either major party, but as independents.

Question 57

Voter behavior, or how and why the masses make their ballot decisions, is a central question in political science.

Question 58

The core Republican activists are often government employees or belong to labor and teachers' unions and feminist, civil rights, and environmental organizations.

Question 59

Unionists, feminists, and environmentalists are more likely to be Democrats than Republicans.

Question 60

In the ________________ case, the US Supreme Court ruled that independent expenditures by corporations and unions could not be restricted.

Question 61

Primary elections weaken the influence of ideological activists in each party.

Question 62

Describe the process by which parties must appeal to the moderate center of the American electorate.

Question 63

What is a SuperPac and why is it so important to campaigns?

Question 64

The highest socioeconomic levels are found among the highest echelons of the party organization.

Question 65

What is the function of ideology in the American political system?

Question 66

Most third parties do not try to win, but only to publicize a political message.

Question 67

Parties are the agents of democratic decision making, and therefore are democratic themselves in their structures.

Question 68

Why have campaign finance laws proven to be ineffective?

Question 69

In 2009, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg spent over $1.2 billion to win a third term.

Question 70

Party loyalties in American politics show stability over time.

Question 71

The organization of the two main parties formally resembles the American federal system.

Question 72

Discuss the idea of someone being an economic conservative but social liberal.

Question 73

Democratic and Republican party leaders differ over public policy more than do party mass followers or the general public.

Question 74

The growth of presidential primaries over the last several decades contributed a great deal to the decline in the importance of party organizations.

Question 75

A major reason for the continuation of a two-party system in the United States is its acceptance as a custom.

Question 76

Discuss the "responsible party" model of the American system.

Question 77

What is the impact of growing numbers of "dealigned voters" on the two main political parties?

Question 78

Major party candidates are automatically included on the general election ballots.

Question 79

In a 2008 public opinion poll, an almost equal number of respondents described Obama and McCain as having good judgment in a crisis.

Question 80

Discuss the meaning of the "pyramid" shape of the figure illustrating mass participation in party affairs.