Deck 11: Political Parties

Question 1

What is the single greatest influence in establishing a person's first party identification?

A) economic status
B) religion
C) hot-button social issues
D) parents

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Which of the following was a prominent feature of the era called the "Golden Age" of political parties?

A) bipartisanship
B) candidate-centered politics
C) party realignment
D) political machines

Answer 2

D

Question 3

What has become the most powerful predictor of how members of Congress vote?

A) economic circumstances
B) their campaign finances
C) how hot-button issues are being discussed in the media
D) party affiliation

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Which of the following is a minor party that was formed to oppose desegregation?

A) the American Independent Party
B) the Green Party
C) the Free Soil Party
D) the Bull Moose Party

Question 5

One of the various activities that parties engage in is __________.

A) dividing the electorate
B) narrowing voter choice
C) running candidates
D) reducing accountability mechanisms

Question 6

Members of which of the following groups are most likely to prefer the Democratic Party?

A) Jews
B) Protestants
C) moderates
D) men

Question 7

The years 1876 to 1900 had __________.

A) one-party Republican dominance
B) one-party Democratic dominance
C) candidate-centered politics
D) high voter turnout

Question 8

What is the party in the electorate?

A) party officers who seek to educate the public on key party stances
B) public officials who are registered with a political party
C) voters active in the business of the party
D) citizens who identify with a political party

Question 9

In what way do minor parties make a significant contribution to the political system?

A) They frequently win elections in crucial swing states.
B) They simplify citizens' choices on Election Day.
C) They draft most legislation that is eventually enacted by one of the major parties.
D) They reveal political divides and bring to light new ideas.

Question 10

The most visible instrument that parties use to formulate,convey,and promote public policy is __________.

A) its articles
B) its constitution
C) its platform
D) its procedural document

Question 11

When was the Era of Good Feelings?

A) as political parties first began to develop (1800s)
B) during James Monroe's presidency (late 1810s and early 1820s)
C) after the Golden Age (1930s)
D) during the modern era (1970s)

Question 12

What institutional feature of U.S.politics hinders the success of minor parties?

A) the separation of powers system
B) the Electoral College
C) multi-member districts
D) proportional representation

Question 13

What are some of the major barriers to minor-party political success?

A) anti-fusion laws, campaign finance rules, and union shop laws
B) the winner-take-all system, public financing rules for presidential campaigns, and the Electoral College system
C) constitutional restrictions, voter perceptions, and the secret ballot
D) unpopular policies, voter identification laws, and constitutional restrictions

Question 14

A gradual shift in party coalitions that is based more on demographic shifts than on shocks to the political system is known as a __________ realignment.

A) secular
B) critical
C) party
D) piecemeal

Question 15

Modern national party conventions serve what end?

A) They assemble delegates who will be assessed for their future political potential.
B) They mobilize support for the nominee who has essentially already been selected.
C) They deliberate on the party's choices for presidential and vice presidential nominees.
D) They hold elections to determine new party leaders.

Question 16

What typically precedes a party realignment?

A) a caucus
B) censure
C) a critical election
D) economic crises

Question 17

Which factor largely accounts for the failure of the U.S.electoral system to produce a third party that rivals the Democrats and Republicans?

A) multi-member districts and a proportional voting system
B) single-member districts and a nonpartisan blanket primary system
C) multi-member districts and a plurality voting system
D) single-member districts and a plurality voting system

Question 18

A __________ is a collection of policy-oriented researchers and academics who are sources of policy ideas.

A) caucus
B) convention
C) political machine
D) think tank

Question 19

Which of the following is a prominent feature of the modern era of political parties?

A) bipartisanship
B) candidate-centered politics
C) "smoke-filled rooms"
D) political machines

Question 20

Which of the following years was a critical election?

A) 1806
B) 1914
C) 1932
D) 1975

Question 21

What key issue led to the dissolution of the Whig Party?

A) federal taxation
B) the Mexican-American War
C) post-Civil War Reconstruction
D) slavery

Question 22

The Democratic National Committee and the Republican National Committee focus on __________.

A) aiding presidential campaigns and conducting general party-building activities
B) aiding congressional campaigns and writing a focused party platform
C) winning more seats in Congress and media outreach
D) conducting oversight of state parties and running primary elections

Question 23

Which of the following voter profiles most strongly suggests that an individual will identify with the Democratic Party?

A) Asian, male, Evangelical Christian
B) black, female, from the Northeast
C) college-educated, male, from the South
D) senior citizen, male, annual income over $75,000

Question 24

Which of the following statements most accurately describes the ideological distribution of members of Congress?

A) The parties are increasingly polarized, with Democrats moving further to the left than Republicans are moving to the right.
B) The parties are increasingly polarized, with Republicans moving further to the right than Democrats are moving to the left.
C) The parties are increasingly polarized, with both the Democrats and Republicans becoming equally extreme.
D) Despite common belief that the parties are becoming increasingly polarized, there is no evidence to support this theory.

Question 25

When can a party officially change its platform?

A) after a federal census
B) at the start of each fiscal year
C) during the national party convention
D) every two years

Question 26

The __________ is the formal governing body of both major parties.

A) national party assembly
B) national party convention
C) national party delegation
D) national party legislature

Question 27

Why do state legislators rely more on their state and local parties for election assistance than do their congressional counterparts?

A) because state legislators are not able to make campaign-related decisions on their own
B) because state legislators base their main talking points directly on state and local public policy
C) because members of Congress do not like to make visits to their home states
D) because members of Congress have easier access to funds and other campaign resources from other sources

Question 28

The decrease in the number of __________ has been identified as one cause of increasing polarization.

A) East Coast liberal Democrats
B) Midwestern independents
C) northern liberal Republicans
D) southern conservative Republicans

Question 29

How does the Missouri Plan suggest that judges be selected at the state level?

A) They should be appointed by a nonpartisan nomination commission.
B) They should be appointed by the state governor.
C) They should run for election as party candidates.
D) They should run for election with no party affiliation.

Question 30

During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries,political machines provided __________.

A) economic equality
B) over half of the nation's alcohol
C) nonpartisan advice about politics
D) housing, employment, and food

Question 31

Proponents of a government that includes a greater role for minor parties might suggest that the United States consider Europe's system of __________.

A) delegate elections
B) multi-party national conventions
C) nonpartisan elections
D) proportional representation

Question 32

A __________ is when a party's base of supporters undergoes a rapid,fundamental,and enduring alteration.

A) culture war
B) dealignment
C) party realignment
D) secular realignment

Question 33

How does a citizen typically become a delegate to a national party convention?

A) appointment by the governor
B) appointment by the president
C) selection by citizens in primaries and caucuses
D) donating enough money to the party or candidate

Question 34

Which party entity has the responsibility of establishing a cohesive vision for partisan identifiers nationwide?

A) the delegates
B) the primary election
C) the national committee
D) the party caucus

Question 35

Members of which of the following demographic groups are most likely to identify with the Democratic Party?

A) African Americans
B) Catholics
C) Hispanics
D) Protestants

Question 36

Which of the following voter profiles most strongly suggests that an individual will identify with the Republican Party?

A) Hispanic, female, Catholic
B) Protestant, male, annual income over $75,000
C) senior citizen, Jewish, from the Midwest
D) white, Catholic, from the Northeast

Question 37

How has party-line voting in Congress changed in the past few years?

A) It has remained about the same.
B) It has increased in some years and decreased in others.
C) It has increased noticeably.
D) It has decreased noticeably.

Question 38

Who was the first chief executive to win the White House as the nominee of a truly national,popularly based political party following the first national party convention in 1832?

A) John Adams
B) Henry Clay
C) Benjamin Franklin
D) Andrew Jackson

Question 39

The national parties have set restrictions about how states select __________.

A) state party chairs
B) election monitors
C) national convention delegates
D) the precincts to target in get-out-the-vote efforts

Question 40

A critical election is typically associated with __________.

A) dealignment
B) party realignment
C) correcting alignments
D) secular realignment

Question 41

Governors in many states hold greater influence over their parties' organizations and legislators than do presidents.

Question 42

More than half of individuals earning an annual income of more than $75,000 identify as independents.

Question 43

The modern era of political parties is notable for the rise of the political party organization and a move away from the candidate-centered politics of the nineteenth century.

Question 44

Women are more likely to identify as Democrats than as independents or Republicans.

Question 45

Democratic superdelegates are not pledged to a candidate and thus may support whichever candidate they choose.

Question 46

When questioned about their views of politics in Congress,a slight majority of Americans expressed a desire for __________,while about 30 percent wanted members of Congress to stick to their beliefs.

A) compromise
B) resolve
C) tax relief
D) party polarization

Question 47

Scholarship suggests that more than half of the promises in the victorious party's presidential platform are completely or mostly implemented.

Question 48

Barriers to minor-party success in the United States include the rules for public financing of presidential elections and the Electoral College system.

Question 49

Minor parties have played a more important role in the United States than in virtually any other democratic nation.

Question 50

Most researchers now explain the gender gap in party identification as the Republican Party's difficulties in attracting women more than the Democratic Party's difficulties in attracting men.

Question 51

Virtually all government regulation of political parties falls to the states.

Question 52

The media are partly responsible for the nation's perception that our country is deeply divided along party lines.

Question 53

The competitive two-party system has always featured prominently in the United States.

Question 54

The highlight of the national party conventions is the casting of the Electoral College votes.

Question 55

Married voters today are most likely to identify as Democrats.

Question 56

Since 1993,the Republican Party's fund-raising has consistently dwarfed that of their Democratic counterparts.

Question 57

Precinct and ward committees are important components of a political party's organization at the state level.

Question 58

Citizens under 30 years old tend to identify as independents or Democrats rather than Republicans.

Question 59

Electoral realignments occur exclusively as a result of a critical election.

Question 60

Members of think tanks are primarily responsible for writing the national party platforms.

Question 61

Organizations that used tangible incentives such as jobs and favors to win loyalty among voters are known as __________.

Question 62

Members of which demographic groups tend to support each of the major parties?

Question 63

Hispanic voters tend to support the __________ Party.

Question 64

Parties in Congress are not equally polarized: __________ are further from the center than are their counterparts.

Question 65

The modern party era is known for its __________-centered politics.

Question 66

Assess the utility of the party platform in drawing party support and to what extent politicians are held accountable to it.

Question 67

The __________ is the site for the approval of the party platform every four years.

Question 68

Explain the significance of critical elections to party realignment.Provide an example of a critical election.

Question 69

Explain the effects of minor parties on American politics.

Question 70

A tactic known as __________ allows political parties to identify potential voters based on a wealth of data including consumer preferences,personal habits,and past voting behavior.

Question 71

Describe how the New Deal realignment transformed American political parties.

Question 72

The __________ consists of all potential voters who identify themselves with a political party.

Question 73

Why do other democracies have more political parties than does the United States?

Question 74

What is political polarization and what causes it?

Question 75

Describe a secular realignment.How is it different from a party realignment?

Question 76

Why might a focus on the candidates be viewed as a weakening of the party system?

Question 77

Studies of political socialization have shown that __________ is/are the single greatest influence(s)in establishing a person's political identity.

Question 78

A __________ is a dramatic shift in partisan preferences that drastically alters the political landscape.

Question 79

__________ achieve their greatest successes when they incorporate new ideas or alienated groups or nominate attractive candidates.

Question 80

Identify the major activities or functions of political parties.