Deck 10: Participation Voting, and Elections

Question 1

The motives of parties according to electoral competition theory lead them to

A) take clearly distinguished positions.
B) take the most popular positions possible.
C) appeal to extremist voters.
D) spend lots of money mobilizing voters.
E) offer changes to economic policy to voters.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Which of the following is NOT required for the responsible party model of voting to work?

A) The two parties must be cohesive and unified.
B) The parties must take clear policy positions that differ significantly from the other party's position.
C) Presidents must work together with Congress.
D) The winning party must do what it says it would do.
E) Citizens must clearly understand each of the party's positions.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

The responsible party theory assumes that

A) citizens will vote for the candidate rather than the party.
B) parties should compete for votes by taking the most popular positions they can.
C) the two major parties should stand for different policies.
D) the winning party will compromise with the losing party on major decisions.
E) candidates act independently of the party.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

The electoral competition model relies on the notion that

A) political parties are responsible in the sense of European parties.
B) both parties are likely to end up standing for the same policies, those favored by the most voters.
C) a plurality of votes wins an election.
D) the electoral college would be abolished.
E) voters are unlikely to turn out to vote.

Question 5

Under the electoral competition theory, both parties tend to take policy stands

A) at the opposite ends of the political spectrum.
B) that advocate extreme positions.
C) near the midpoint of public opinion.
D) that appeal to their based of support.
E) regardless of public opinion.

Question 6

The electoral reward and punishment model of voting maintains that

A)candidates take the most popular positions they can during an election campaign.
B) parties appeal to the midpoint of the political spectrum.
C) past performance and personal competence are important for explaining vote choice.
D) parties offer clear and distinct policy positions during the campaign.
E) candidates differ from their party's platforms to decrease accountability.

Question 7

The theory of electoral reward and punishment predicts that in elections,

A) political parties will take similar positions.
B) political parties will take clear, unambiguous positions.
C) voters will vote based on how well the incumbent party satisfied them.
D) voters will vote mostly according to party identification.
E) political parties will act responsibly.

Question 8

The electoral reward and punishment theory of elections

A) requires very little of voters, just judgments of how well or how badly things have been going.
B) requires party representatives to take clear stands on issues and follow party lines once elected.
C) demands that parties' stands on issues will be sharply different from each other.
D) all of the above
E) requires voters to have clear party loyalties.

Question 9

The electoral competition theory ensures democratic control only if

A) parties are fragmented.
B) parties take ambiguous stands on policy issues.
C) all eligible voters vote.
D) voters focus on candidates and personalities.
E) parties are responsible.

Question 10

Which of the following is a factor that distinguishes U.S. elections from those of other countries?

A) Other countries designate election days as holidays to encourage voter participation.
B) In the United States, the election to fill each office is separate and independent from elections for other offices.
C) Elected officials for government positions have fixed terms of office.
D) The United States has more elections than any other democratic country.
E) All of the above are true

Question 11

Elections are important controlling mechanisms in ________ like the United States.

A) representative democracies
B) direct democracies
C) managerial regimes
D) multiparty systems
E) governing democracies

Question 12

In the electoral competition model, parties appeal to the ________ voter.

A) oldest
B) richest
C) median
D) most partisan
E) mean

Question 13

Under the electoral competition model,

A) in theory at least, it does not matter which party wins the election, since either will enact the platform that the voters want.
B) political parties are "responsible," in the sense of European political parties.
C) elected officials are free to govern as they wish, since the people have no real policy preferences.
D) members of Congress would be elected using nonpartisan ballots.
E) parties are responsive to specific issues deemed important by the voters.

Question 14

The median voter model holds that

A) parties should take the most popular positions that they can.
B) parties must take responsibility for their vote choices.
C) accountability is a central feature of vote decisions.
D) voters prefer personality and character traits and do not vote on the basis of policy
E) only fifty percent of the electorate will turn out to vote.

Question 15

In democracies, the chief means by which citizens control the government are supposed to be

A) interest groups.
B) opinion polls.
C) social movements.
D) elections.
E) political parties.

Question 16

The theory of responsible party government predicts that in elections,

A) the political parties will take similar positions.
B) the winning party should carry out its mandate.
C) the voters will decide how to vote based on the personalities of the candidates.
D) voters will vote mostly according to party identification.
E) none of the above

Question 17

The theory of electoral competition predicts that in elections,

A) the political parties will take similar positions.
B) the political parties will take clear, unambiguous positions.
C) the voters will decide how to vote based on how well the incumbent party satisfied them.
D) voters will vote mostly according to party identification.
E) the parties will take vague, yet dissimilar positions.

Question 18

The electoral reward and punishment model is also known as

A) reactionary voting.
B) reorganized voting.
C) responsive voting.
D) retrospective voting.
E) prospective voting.

Question 19

The electoral competition model assumes that

A) parties should take positions at the midpoint of the political spectrum.
B) each of the two parties lacks cohesion and unity.
C) the winning party will compromise with the losing party on major decisions.
D) citizens will vote on the basis of candidate style rather than issues.
E) only fifty percent of the electorate will turn out to vote.

Question 20

One aspect of the electoral competition theory that is clearly democratic is that parties

A) seek investors as well as voters.
B) are motivated by selfish reasons.
C) give distinct choices to voters.
D) respond directly to public opinion.
E) respond directly to party delegates.

Question 21

What is the proportion of eligible voters who actually vote in an election called?

A) the voter turnout
B) the electoral college
C) a constituency
D) the voting percentage
E) the popular vote

Question 22

Unconventional participation includes which of the following actions?

A) writing letters
B) going door-to-door for a campaign
C) protesting
D) contributing to campaigns
E) voting

Question 23

How are American elections different from elections in most other democracies?

A) The U.S. has fewer elections.
B) American elections are combined and dependent on each other.
C) Most Americans are determined by a "first past the post" system
D) Most Americans tend to vote.
E) all of the above

Question 24

Which of the following groups won the constitutionally protected right to vote first?

A) women
B) black males
C) felons
D) 18- to 20-year-olds
E) Native Americans

Question 25

In the early years of the United States, the franchise was held by

A) Congress.
B) the president.
C) white males with property.
D) the whole population.
E) the US Supreme Court.

Question 26

The ratification of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments

A)limited state powers to determine who within its borders was eligible to vote.
B) increase state power over election contests.
C) increased the powers of political parties in election contests.
D) led to direct election of senators.
E) guaranteed minorities and women the right to vote.

Question 27

Which of the following terms is also defined as the right to vote?

A)plurality
B) suffrage
C) franchise
D) participation
E) both B & C are correct

Question 28

The United States achieved universal white male suffrage ________ European democracies.

A) earlier than
B) following the example of the
C) about the same time as
D) and 80 percent turnout rates later than
E) after

Question 29

Voter turnout in the United States can best be described as __________ in comparison with other countries.

A) lower, but not significantly so
B) much lower
C) about the same.
D) higher.
E) much higher.

Question 30

Which of the following groups won the right to vote last?

A) women
B) southern blacks
C) 18- to 20-year-olds
D) felons
E) minorities

Question 31

Which activity is considered unconventional political participation?

A) writing letters
B) taking part in campaigns
C) demonstrations
D) giving money to parties
E) voting

Question 32

The first barriers to fall in the process of expanding the right to vote were those concerning

A) gender.
B) race.
C) property and religion.
D) age and literacy.
E) national origin.

Question 33

Women's suffrage was brought about by

A) legislation.
B) litigation.
C) constitutional amendment.
D) executive action.
E) state action.

Question 34

The voting age was lowered from 21 to 18 in

A) 1870.
B) 1954.
C) 1971.
D) 1981.
E) 1993

Question 35

________ is realized almost completely in the United States.

A) Full suffrage
B) Political equality
C) Full voter turnout
D) Government responsiveness to ordinary voters
E) Political opportunity

Question 36

In the first presidential election in 1788, approximately ________ percent of the adult population was eligible to vote.

A) 23
B) 50
C) 62
D) 11
E) 33

Question 37

The most basic form of political participation in modern democracies is

A) demonstrating.
B) voting.
C) voting in legislatures.
D) waging war.
E) running for office.

Question 38

Suffrage and franchise

A) both refer to the right or ability to vote.
B) differ in that the former refers to social movements and the latter refers to established political power.
C) differ in that the former refers to voting and the latter refers to running for political office.
D) differ in that the former refers to dictatorship and the latter refers to democracy.
E) both refer to the tendency to turnout to vote.

Question 39

Which of the following is NOT an example of conventional participation?

A)writing a letter to a member of Congress
B) organizing a boycott
C) voting
D) volunteering for a campaign
E) contributing money to a campaign

Question 40

In a "first past the post" election, a candidates needs

A)a majority of votes to win.
B) proportionally more votes than the competition to win.
C) a plurality of votes to win.
D) to win in a run-off election to be declared the winner.
E) a majority of parties members to be elected in order to win the election.

Question 41

Compared to other modern industrialized nations, voter turnout in the United States is

A) higher.
B) lower.
C) about the same.
D) increasing at a very fast rate.
E) increasing at the same rate.

Question 42

Which of the following is NOT cited as a cause for low voter turnout?

A) difficulties in registration
B) alienation of the public about politics
C) a high level of political efficacy on the part of voters
D) lack of mobilization of voters by the parties
E) all of the above

Question 43

According to Figure 10.2,

A) overall voter turnout was at its lowest point in the 1970s.
B) the twentieth century witnessed higher voter turnout than the nineteenth century.
C) turnout reached its overall high point in the 1950s.
D) there has been an overall decline in voter turnout since the beginning of the nation.
E) turnout has declined overall since its zenith in the mid-1800s.

Question 44

Between 1840 and 1896, the percent of eligible voters who turned out in presidential elections was approximately

A) 20 percent.
B) 30 percent.
C) 50 percent.
D) 80 percent.
E) 90 percent.

Question 45

The United States turnout rate

A) has been increasing steadily.
B) is much higher than it was a century ago.
C) has been on the decrease.
D) has remained unchanged over the past several decades.
E) has increased recently, despite being historically low.

Question 46

The clearest predictor of who will vote is

A) level of education.
B) party membership.
C) ideology.
D) gender.
E) race.

Question 47

Despite the low voter turnout in the United States, Americans

A) still have a higher rate of voter turnout than most other Western nations.
B) are much more aware of issues and of their candidates' positions than voters in most other countries.
C) will soon bypass other Western democracies since voter turnout is rising rapidly in the United States.
D) are more likely than people in other countries to participate actively in campaigns.
E) none of the above

Question 48

What does Figure 10.2 say about voter turnout?

A) It has been relatively constant over time.
B) It started strong but has since faded.
C) It was highest in the nineteenth century.
D) It was highest in the twentieth century.
E) none of the above

Question 49

What demographic characteristic is the most significant predictor of whether someone will vote?

A) age
B) income
C) race
D) education
E) gender

Question 50

It is not uncommon to have a turnout in the range of ________ percent of the eligible voters in local elections.

A) 10-20
B) 20-30
C) 30-40
D) 40-50
E) 50-60

Question 51

The Seventeenth Amendment

A) gave women the right to vote.
B) repealed prohibition.
C) gave minorities the right to vote.
D) ended slavery.
E) gave people the power to directly elect US Senators.

Question 52

According to your text, low voter turnout in the United States is primarily the result of

A) numerous barriers to voting, including cumbersome registration laws.
B) increased television advertising which, when persistent, annoys voters and leads them to tune out politics and not vote.
C) changes in voter eligibility requirements that have reduce the available pool of voters.
D) government coercing people to vote which actually discourages participation.
E) a reduction in potential voter population.

Question 53

The recent influx of immigrants has contributed to which of the following?

A) It has increased the chances that Republicans will win state-wide elections.
B) It has increased the likelihood that a competitive third party will form in the United States.
C) It has contributed to a recent decrease in the proportion of the voting age population's eligibility to vote.
D) It has instigated a movement to increase voting rights to non-US citizens.
E) none of the above

Question 54

According to the authors of Struggle for Democracy, there is a class bias in both political participation and voting. This bias undermines ________.

A) political socialization
B) political confidence
C) political equality
D) civil rights
E) representation

Question 55

Which of the following groups is most likely to vote?

A) those with higher-than-average formal education
B) blacks
C) Hispanics
D) 18- to 20-year-olds
E) high school graduates

Question 56

Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A) Americans are more likely to participate in campaigns than people in other countries.
B) Americans are more likely to vote than people in other countries.
C) The United States has the easiest voter registration laws among the world's democracies.
D) The American political parties have recently tried to register millions of low-income people to vote.
E) Americans are likely to turn out at about the same rate, regardless of ethnicity or income.

Question 57

Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A) The alienation and apathy about politics that many Americans felt after the 1960s probably contributed to recent declines in voter turnout.
B) The proportion of Americans who are alienated and apathetic about politics is really quite small.
C) A sizable number of Americans have never been alienated or apathetic about politics.
D) Americans take their politics seriously and participate actively in campaigns and vote in high proportions to the number of eligible voters.
E) Electoral competition typically increases voter apathy about politics.

Question 58

Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A) Eligible people of all ages vote in similar proportions.
B) There is a class bias in political participation in the United States.
C) Blacks do not vote nearly as often whites of similar class and background.
D) Hispanics vote in higher proportions than whites.
E) none of the above

Question 59

According to the authors of Struggle for Democracy, ________ may be as strong a predictor of voting as is education.

A) age
B) race
C) income level
D) gender
E) party identification

Question 60

Which of the following groups is most likely to participate in politics?

A) 18- to 20-year-olds
B) Hispanics
C) those with higher-than-average incomes
D) blacks
E) high school graduates

Question 61

Incumbent presidents seeking reelection have an advantage over challengers mainly because they

A) do not rely on public funding for their campaigns.
B) do not have to run in primaries or caucuses.
C) can use the machinery of government for their purposes.
D) nearly always have positive media attention.
E) have an overwhelming number of endorsements.

Question 62

In which state does the first presidential primary take place?

A) Massachusetts
B) New Hampshire
C) Rhode Island
D) Iowa
E) South Carolina

Question 63

Which of the following is NOT usually a characteristic of U.S. presidential campaigns?

A) Candidates tend to be vague and ambiguous.
B) Candidates emphasize symbolic matters that appeal to most people.
C) Candidates take clear-cut positions on specific issues.
D) Candidates try to avoid issues that would offend voters.
E) none of the above

Question 64

Which of the following presidential candidates would have the easiest time getting elected?

A) a moderate, representing mainstream values
B) an opponent of gun control
C) someone who is conservative on economic issues but very liberal on social issues
D) an independent
E) an outsider with no ties to Washington, DC.

Question 65

Because voters are clearly different from nonvoters,

A) a political system that includes and mobilizes nonvoters might well produce different policies.
B) increased voter turnout probably would not have much effect on policies because different types of voters would cancel each other out.
C) it really does not matter who participates because voting does not have any real influence on policymakers.
D) elections should be held more frequently so that nonvoters would be encouraged to participate.
E) elections are not truly democratic unless all participate.

Question 66

Most of the delegates to national party conventions are chosen by

A) party caucuses.
B) state primaries.
C) the national committee.
D) the candidates themselves.
E) state legislatures.

Question 67

Showing party division and conflict at the national party convention

A) can help a party by attracting media attention.
B) helps the Democrats by highlighting their inclusiveness.
C) can seriously hurt the party in the general election.
D) has not happened since the 1950s.
E) helps Republicans.

Question 68

A referendum is

A) synonymous with an initiative.
B) available in all states.
C) a procedure available to state legislatures to submit a law or constitutional amendments for approval by the voters.
D) a procedure available to Congress to submit a law for approval by the voters.
E) no longer a constitutional means of legislating.

Question 69

In most recent national conventions,

A) the party nominee has been the candidate who was favored by big business and corporate officers.
B) the party nominee has been the candidate who was most popular with rank-and-file party identifiers in the nation as a whole.
C) the party nominee has been the candidate who received the most endorsements from newspapers and was given the most favorable attention by television commentators.
D) there has been no discernable pattern concerning characteristics of the party nominees.
E) the party nominee has not been chosen until the convention.

Question 70

Serious presidential candidates nearly always

A) have well-defined issue positions.
B) appeal to all party delegates.
C) have previous government experience.
D) have very high IQs.
E) have served in the military.

Question 71

In a primary election,

A) party leaders nominate candidates.
B) voters nominate candidates.
C) the national committee nominates candidates.
D) state legislatures nominate candidates.
E) delegates select voters to support candidates.

Question 72

It is especially important for a presidential candidate to establish momentum in the race for the presidency. One of the best ways to accomplish this task is to

A) gain the support of the AFL-CIO.
B) win early primaries and caucuses.
C) get the support of a majority of the members of Congress.
D) win the electoral college.
E) garner a substantial number of endorsements.

Question 73

In recent years there have been more ___________ elected president than any other.

A) vice presidents
B) senators
C) governors
D) members of Congress
E) business leaders

Question 74

Which of the following today is the most common way for Republican and Democratic parties to choose delegates to their national conventions?

A) direct primaries
B) state conventions
C) caucuses
D) petition
E) national convention

Question 75

Presidential candidates with extreme views rarely get very far because they fail to appeal to average voters and

A) important financial backers.
B) fail to get media attention.
C) usually do not have well-defined ideologies.
D) political activists.
E) all of the above

Question 76

At the beginning of each presidential election year, a number of candidates descend upon the sites of early contests because

A) a certain proportion of campaign money must be expended in each state in order to be eligible for federal matching funds.
B) the national committees of the two major parties require all candidates to participate in at least two-thirds of the state primaries.
C) candidates' names will be dropped from later primaries if they do not receive a minimum of 10 percent of the vote in each state.
D) it is important for a candidate to establish momentum by winning early primaries and caucuses.
E) none of the above

Question 77

Since the 1970s, most of the delegates to both the Democratic and Republican national conventions have been chosen by

A) direct primaries.
B) state conventions.
C) caucuses.
D) petition.
E) national convention.

Question 78

The presidency in recent years has been monopolized by former

A) movie stars.
B) governors and vice-presidents.
C) military leaders.
D) congresspersons.
E) senators.

Question 79

Members of Congress or local officials who supplement the Democrats' popularly elected delegates are known as

A) superdelegates.
B) primary delegates.
C) convention delegates.
D) state delegates.
E) national delegates.

Question 80

Which of the following groups have the lowest voter turnout rates?

A) women
B) blacks
C) Hispanics
D) 18- to 20-year-olds
E) Asians