Deck 9: Campaigns and Elections

Question 1

Which of the following best describes the impact the 2010 Citizens United decision has had on the political campaign process?

A) Allowing corporate entities to directly coordinate candidate or campaign events
B) Opening the door to negative campaigning on a national level
C) Allowing corporate entities to contribute unlimited amounts to support or oppose candidates
D) Closing the door to Super PAC involvement in political campaigns
E) Restricting the contributions of corporate or international donors

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Which of the following best describes what happens at the national convention?

A) Upon arrival, most delegates are undecided as to whom they would like to see as the party's candidate.
B) The delegates from those states that had early primaries and caucuses are seated closest to the front of the convention center.
C) The presidential candidate is chosen by the party delegates.
D) Elites within the political parties are entrusted with making the determination of an appropriate candidate based upon electability.
E) It usually takes three ballots for the party to choose the presidential candidate.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Which of the following best describes what happens when citizens vote for a president on election day?

A) They are voting for a slate of electors pledged to support a particular candidate.
B) Their votes are weighted by their level of education.
C) Their votes are weighted by their levels of income.
D) They become members of the electoral college.
E) They are also voting for all other candidates from the same party.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Which of the following statements best describes Super PACs?

A) They allow very wealthy Americans to donate unlimited funds to influence elections.
B) They are political advertising councils that design political campaigns.
C) They are limited to raising no more than $10 million per campaign cycle.
D) They allow money to be spent on advertising and other political activities.
E) They allow America's very wealthy to donate unlimited funds to influence elections and spend money on advertising and other political activities.

Question 5

The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 was amended in 1974 to do which of the following?

A) To create the Federal Election Commission
B) To provide public financing for congressional races
C) To limit campaign expenditures in presidential elections to a maximum of $2 million
D) To create the Federal Communications Commission
E) To expand presidential campaign spending to an unlimited amount

Question 6

Which of the following events contributed most to an increase in the number of African American public officials?

A) The legal end of segregation in public schools
B) The ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment
C) The passage of major civil rights legislation in the 1960s
D) The refinement of the constitutional requirements for office in the latter 1800s
E) The lowering of the legal voting age to 18

Question 7

Which of the following is responsible for monitoring campaign finance?

A) Congress
B) Electoral college
C) Federal Election Commission
D) Federal Broadcast Commission
E) Individual political parties

Question 8

Which of the following best describes what is allowed as a result of the 2010 Supreme Court decision in Citizens United v. FEC?

A) Corporations, unions, and individuals can donate unlimited funds to presidential campaigns.
B) Corporations, unions, and individuals can donate unlimited funds to entities that are "independent" of the candidates.
C) Corporations, unions, and individuals can donate unlimited funds to political parties.
D) Political parties can create special funds from federal monies to donate to candidates.
E) Corporations, unions, and individuals can donate unlimited funds to presidential campaigns, as well as to entities that are "independent" of the candidates.

Question 9

Abolishing the electoral college would require which of the following?

A) A constitutional amendment
B) An act of Congress
C) Approval by a simple majority of the states
D) A parliamentary system of government
E) The approval of the Supreme Court

Question 10

Which of the following federal regulatory agencies enforces federal campaign laws?

A) The Federal Election Commission
B) The Department of Elections
C) The Congressional Campaign Committee
D) The Voting Rights Commission
E) The Federal Campaign Commission

Question 11

The Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United v. FEC supports which of the following?

A) Corporations, unions, and interest groups funding campaign advertising without limits as long as it is not coordinated with a campaign
B) Restrictions on campaign language used in negative advertising about other candidates
C) Unrestricted advertising by, for, or about political candidates
D) The elimination of super PACs
E) The unrestricted role of big business in political campaigns and candidate advertising

Question 12

Which of the following states holds the nation's first and most famous caucus that requires people to attend a meeting of about two hours in which they indicate their preferences and then try to convince those who are undecided to join their candidate's group?

A) Arkansas
B) Iowa
C) New Hampshire
D) New Mexico
E) Washington

Question 13

Which of the following best describes the outcome of the 1974 Federal Election Campaign Act?

A) It created the Federal Election Commission.
B) It placed limits on the sums that individuals and committees can contribute to candidates.
C) It created an effective way to enforce campaign rules.
D) It created the Federal Election Commission and placed limits on the sums that individuals and committees can contribute to candidates.
E) It made political action committees unconstitutional.

Question 14

Beginning with the 2010 election, corporations were free to run ads directly advocating a candidate's election for the first time since 1907 when Congress first banned using general corporate funds in federal election campaigns. This occurred based on which 2010 U.S. Supreme Court decision?

A) Federal Election Commission v. McCain
B) Feingold v. McConnell
C) Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission
D) BCRA v. Fox News
E) FEC v. Americans United Trust

Question 15

In most states, the slate of electors is chosen by which of the following?

A) A majority of votes
B) Two-thirds of the votes
C) A duality of votes
D) A plurality of votes
E) A proportionality of votes

Question 16

Which of the following is a statewide election of delegates to a party's national convention, where the delegates will choose the party's presidential nominee.?

A) Primary election
B) Party primary
C) Presidential primary
D) Delegation primary
E) General election

Question 17

Which method of delegate selection begins with local meetings and culminates in a state convention?

A) Open primary
B) Frontloading method
C) Caucus method
D) Closed primary
E) Deliberation

Question 18

Which of the following is a preliminary election conducted within a political party to select candidates who will run for office?

A) Special
B) General
C) Municipal
D) Primary
E) Caucus

Question 19

In 1971, Congress tried to put candidates on an equal financial footing and make them less beholden to special interests through which of the following?

A) McCutcheon, et.al v. FEC
B) Campaign Finance Reform Act
C) Election and Campaign Finance Act
D) Citizens United case
E) Federal Election Campaign Act

Question 20

A striking feature of today's political campaigns is which of the following?

A) Large number of people who are willing to volunteer their time
B) Positive theme that most candidates use exclusively through the election
C) Lack of money contributed to candidates for major political office
D) Importance of paid professionals rather than volunteers
E) Refusal of so many candidates to take advantage of the media

Question 21

Who currently elects the members of the electoral college?

A) House of Representatives
B) People of each state
C) Senate
D) State legislatures
E) State governors

Question 22

Blacks compared to whites tend to have political participation rates today that are which of the following?

A) Far lower
B) Slightly lower
C) About the same
D) Slightly higher
E) Far higher

Question 23

We elect the president via 50 state elections combined into the electoral college; thus, presidential elections are best described as which of the following?

A) National
B) Majoritarian
C) Federal
D) Unfair
E) Elitist

Question 24

Who originally elected the members of the electoral college?

A) House of Representatives
B) People of each state
C) Senate
D) State legislatures
E) State governors

Question 25

The Constitution spells out in some detail the workings of which institution that chooses the president?

A) Electoral college
B) Federal Election Commission
C) House of Representatives
D) Senate
E) State legislatures

Question 26

If no presidential candidate receives a majority of the electoral college votes, the election is decided by which of the following?

A) The president
B) The House of Representatives
C) The Senate
D) Votes in the 50 state legislatures
E) The U.S. Supreme Court

Question 27

When a popular candidate influences the success of other candidates on the same party ticket, it is called which of the following?

A) Partisan effect
B) Australian ballot
C) Butterfly ballot
D) Incumbent effect
E) Coat-tail effect

Question 28

Which of the following is true of presidential elections?

A) Voters elect the president directly.
B) The number of electors equals each state's number of senators (two) plus its number of representatives.
C) Electors have always voted for the candidate who won their state's vote.
D) The House of Representatives usually picks the winner.
E) The Senate selects the winner from among the top three vote getters.

Question 29

Characteristics frequently associated with nonvoters include which of the following?

A) Low education, high income, and being middle-aged
B) Low education, low income, and being relatively young
C) High education, low income, and being relatively old
D) Low education, low income, and being middle-aged
E) High education, high income, and being middle-aged

Question 30

To win the modern presidency, a candidate must obtain which of the following?

A) A majority of the popular vote
B) A plurality of the popular vote
C) 100 electoral votes
D) 270 electoral votes
E) 538 electoral votes

Question 31

Which two states do not use a winner-take-all system in the electoral college?

A) Maine and Ohio
B) Nebraska and Maine
C) Nebraska and Delaware
D) Michigan and Maine
E) Nevada and Nebraska

Question 32

In Oregon, everyone votes by which of the following methods?

A) Telephone
B) Internet
C) Electronic devices
D) Mail
E) Raising their hand

Question 33

The formal selection of the president of the United States is in the hands of which of the following?

A) Supreme Court
B) Electors in the electoral college
C) House of Representatives
D) People
E) Senate

Question 34

The manner in which members of the electoral college are selected within each state is currently governed by which of the following?

A) State laws
B) The Federal Electoral Selection Act
C) Article II of the U.S. Constitution
D) Congressional oversight
E) Federal district court judges

Question 35

Some states, such as Oregon, have started to use which of the following where voters get ballots in the mail two weeks prior to the election, providing them a chance to research the candidates and cast their ballots?

A) Australian ballot
B) Compulsory voting
C) Graveyard voting
D) Internet voting system
E) Vote-by-mail system

Question 36

In 1965, which of the following laws was passed by Congress that effectively ended strategies that had discriminated against African Americans at the polls?

A) Civil Rights Act
B) Equal Voting law
C) Federal Rights Act
D) Motor Voter law
E) Voting Rights Act

Question 37

Which of the following occurs when a popular president running for reelection brings additional party candidates into office?

A) Bundling
B) Front porch campaigning
C) Microtargeting
D) Presidential coat-tails
E) Gerrymandering

Question 38

Members of the electoral college selected by each state equal the number of what?

A) House members
B) Senators
C) House members plus senators
D) Voting districts
E) Voting districts plus 3

Question 39

Today, how many electoral votes does each state get?

A) 1
B) 2
C) 10
D) 1 for every 10,000 residents
E) A number equal to the state's number of House and Senate members

Question 40

Which of the following qualifications for voting was virtually eliminated in all states by the 1850s?

A) Property ownership
B) Age
C) Race
D) Gender
E) Literacy requirement

Question 41

How did the Citizens United decision affect campaign funding? Do you believe this was a change for the better? Explain your response.

Question 42

Describe the general process of running for a congressional seat. When does it begin? What obstacles are faced by challengers?

Question 43

Evaluate the extent to which the constitutional requirements for the office of president are still necessary in today's society.

Question 44

Evaluate the extent to which the constitutional requirements for members of Congress are still necessary in today's society.

Question 45

How have recent campaign finance laws changed the nature of presidential campaigns?

Question 46

Which of the following amendments to the Constitution prohibits states from denying the right to vote "on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude"?

A) Tenth
B) Fourteenth
C) Fifteenth
D) Twenty-Second
E) Eighteenth

Question 47

Which of the following amendments extended voting rights to African American males?

A) Thirteenth Amendment
B) Fourteenth Amendment
C) Fifteenth Amendment
D) Nineteenth Amendment
E) Twenty-First Amendment

Question 48

Which of the following groups tends to be overrepresented in the electorate?

A) Wealthier people
B) People under the age of 65
C) Voters aged 18 to 24
D) The poor and homeless
E) Hispanics

Question 49

In general, which of the following factors contributes to higher voting rates?

A) Greater geographic mobility
B) Higher education level
C) Minority status
D) Youth
E) Less competitive race

Question 50

Which of the following granted women the right to vote?

A) Thirteenth Amendment
B) Fourteenth Amendment
C) Fifteenth Amendment
D) Nineteenth Amendment
E) Twenty-First Amendment

Question 51

Which of the following amendments lowered the voting age to 18?

A) Eighteenth Amendment
B) Nineteenth Amendment
C) Twentieth Amendment
D) Twenty-Sixth Amendment
E) Twenty-Seventh Amendment

Question 52

Women could vote in all states with the ratification of which of the following amendments in 1920?

A) Fifteenth
B) Nineteenth
C) Twentieth
D) Twenty-First
E) Twenty-Second

Question 53

Describe the role of political action committees in the election process including their role in campaign finance.

Question 54

Explore the strategies devised by interest groups and parties to get around campaign finance reform legislation.

Question 55

What was the effect of the Twenty-Sixth Amendment that enfranchised 18- to 20-year-olds?

A) It boosted voter turnout in the United States above that of most other democratic nations.
B) It reduced the national voter turnout rate.
C) It increased the national voter turnout rate.
D) It decreased the percentage of the population that distrusts the American political system.
E) It countered the increasing social mobility of this group.

Question 56

Which of the following groups of Americans turns out to vote at the lowest rate?

A) Voters with children
B) The wealthiest voters
C) The oldest voters
D) Middle-aged voters
E) The youngest voters

Question 57

Summarize legislation that has led to campaign finance reform, and discuss the current campaign finance environment.

Question 58

Discuss the impact of the Supreme Court's decision in Citizens United v. FEC, making note of the rise of super PACs and their effect on campaigns.

Question 59

Which of the following best describes the right to vote?

A) It has been expanded since the writing of the Constitution.
B) It has not been extended to those without property.
C) It has been given to aliens as long as they are registered to vote.
D) It can never be taken away.
E) It is taken away if one doesn't vote in five elections.

Question 60

Which of the following best describes the relationship between income and voting?

A) The lower one's income, the more likely you are to vote.
B) The lower one's income, the more likely you are to be politically knowledgeable.
C) Income appears to have no effect on voting participation.
D) The higher one's income, the more likely you are to vote.
E) The higher one's income, the less you are expected to vote.

Question 61

Describe what happens if no one wins a majority of the electoral votes.

Question 62

Do political action committees help or hinder citizen involvement in the political process?

Question 63

Which primary system serves parties best? Which system serves the public best?

Question 64

Explain how voter ID requirements might impede certain demographic groups from voting.

Question 65

Explain why a candidate would decide to forgo matching funds in his or her quest for the presidential nomination. Is this a successful strategy?

Question 66

Discuss differences in the ways that various demographic groups have voted.

Question 67

Discuss the modern campaign for running for president. Why is it referred to as the longest campaign? What is essential to a candidate's success?

Question 68

Describe how the framers felt about letting the people choose the president directly?

Question 69

Describe some situations in which the electoral college has produced controversial results and explain the criticisms leveled against it.

Question 70

Explain why a political party would prefer the party-column ballot over the office-block.

Question 71

Discuss the effects of voter identification laws, and argue whether these laws are a benefit or a harm to U.S. elections.

Question 72

How would the nomination process be impacted if all states adopted the "top-two" primary system?

Question 73

What should be the qualifications for voting in the United States? How tight should election rules be to prevent voter fraud? What would you do to prevent voter fraud?

Question 74

What is the impact of the office-column ballot on voter behavior?

Question 75

Evaluate the extent to which the Court's decision in Citizens United v. FEC undermines democratic values.

Question 76

How does socioeconomic status affect voter turnout? Why?

Question 77

Explain the electoral college process. Does it work as the founders envisioned?

Question 78

Explain the strengths and weaknesses of the electoral college.

Question 79

What policies should a state adopt to increase voter turnout?

Question 80

Describe how the electoral college could be reformed. Should it be reformed? Why or why not?