Deck 8: Political Participation and Voting

Question 1

Nearly ________percent of Americans lack high-speed Internet access in their homes.

A) 5
B) 15
C) 33
D) 50
E) 62

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Which of the following methods of participation was an important part of the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s?

A) mobilizing the power bloc of southern African American voters
B) violent protests
C) assassinations of political leaders
D) sit-ins and marches
E) placing initiatives on the ballot

Answer 2

D

Question 3

________percent of Americans remain offline in 2014.

A) Two
B) Ten
C) Twenty
D) Thirty-three
E) Forty-five

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Accidental mobilization occurs when

A) people are mistakenly contacted by a political party on Election Day.
B) individuals are exposed to political information that they did not explicitly seek out.
C) a candidate makes a verbal gaffe that leads new groups of people to vote in an election.
D) turnout in a midterm congressional election is much higher than analysts predict.
E) interest groups, rather than political parties, mobilize the majority of voters in an election.

Question 5

What was the main cause for dropping the legal voting age to eighteen?

A) Young American citizens effectively organized and protested for the right to vote.
B) It had been one of the civil rights movement's important goals.
C) The Constitution mandated that the draft age be equivalent to the voting age.
D) Government officials hoped it would lead to a decline in disruptive student protests.
E) A decision by the Supreme Court justices determined that voting requirements based on age were unconstitutional.

Question 6

The Twenty-Sixth Amendment was ratified

A) during the Korean War.
B) right after the Soviets launched Sputnik.
C) during the Vietnam War.
D) during Watergate.
E) during the Iranian hostage crisis.

Question 7

The protests against SOPA and PIPA are an example of how

A) members of Congress can use new media to ensure the passage of their preferred pieces of legislation.
B) online political action can never achieve its goals.
C) new media can be effectively used to mobilize offline participation in politics.
D) new media cannot be effectively used to mobilize offline participation in politics.
E) new media has made offline participation in politics completely obsolete.

Question 8

About ________ percent of eligible voters turn out for midterm congressional elections.

A) 10
B) 33
C) 50
D) 61
E) 76

Question 9

When did African Americans truly gain voting rights in the United States without fear of reprisal?

A) 1865
B) 1870
C) 1920
D) 1945
E) 1965

Question 10

________is the single most important political act for most Americans.

A) Peaceful protest
B) Writing a letter to the editor
C) Contributing to political campaigns
D) Voting
E) Canvassing

Question 11

Which of the following is NOT a traditional form of political activity?

A) protests
B) contributing to a candidate
C) litigation
D) voting
E) visiting a candidate's website

Question 12

The main goal of the group Rock the Vote is to

A) encourage increased voting by musicians.
B) draw young voters into participating politically.
C) encourage states to use voting machines with paper ballots.
D) register more Latino voters.
E) eliminate voter fraud.

Question 13

World War I was an important factor in advancing the cause of women's suffrage because

A) the peace treaty that stopped the fighting required all countries to give women the right to vote.
B) a number of European nations threatened to refuse military assistance to the United States unless women were given the right to vote.
C) soldiers returning from service began to demand the right to vote for their wives.
D) President Woodrow Wilson and members of Congress believed that women would support the war effort if they were granted the right to vote.
E) too many men were serving in the military overseas to have meaningful elections without the participation of women.

Question 14

Which of the following statements about the digital divide is NOT true?

A) Inequality in access to political information online is an important public policy issue.
B) A lack of interest is a primary reason elderly Americans are offline.
C) Cost is a primary reason the poor are offline.
D) All racial and ethnic groups in the United States are equally likely to have online access.
E) Racial minorities and younger Americans are likely to access the Internet through mobile devices such as cell phones, even if they lack home access.

Question 15

SOPA and PIPA were

A) interest groups who protested congressional attempts to outlaw online piracy.
B) bills considered by Congress in 2011 to eliminate all forms of censorship online.
C) bills considered by Congress in 1993 to allow people to register to vote at the Department of Motor Vehicles when they applied for a driver's license.
D) bills considered by Congress in 2012 to extend U.S. copyright laws beyond U.S. borders.
E) bills considered by Congress in 1996 to outlaw pornography online.

Question 16

The digital divide refers to the

A) tendency for liberals and conservatives to visit very different sites online.
B) line separating citizens with Internet access from those without.
C) finding that Facebook users have fundamentally different political views than Myspace users.
D) fact that only a small number of people read political stories online.
E) large differences between how people use cell phones and how they use personal computers for political purposes.

Question 17

Which of the following statements about the impact of the SOPA and PIPA protests is most accurate?

A) The protests led to congressional ethics investigations against three members of the House of Representatives and two senators.
B) The protests led Congress to pass new laws outlawing political action by search engines and social networking sites.
C) The protests created a grassroots backlash that caused the bills to lose support among many members of Congress.
D) The protests created a surge in popular support for the bills and led many additional members of Congress to vote in favor of them.
E) The protests had no noticeable effect on the congressional debate.

Question 18

Social capital refers to

A) campaign contributions made by community organizations.
B) community networks that motivate political participation.
C) the fees associated with membership in a club or social group.
D) the fund that interest groups raise during election campaigns.
E) an individual's belief in his or her ability to competently engage in personal interactions with other people.

Question 19

What was the primary venue for citizen participation in national politics until the early 1900s?

A) U.S. Senate elections
B) U.S. presidential elections
C) both a and b
D) U.S. House elections
E) recall elections

Question 20

Which of the following did NOT take part in the 2012 protests against SOPA and PIPA?

A) Wikipedia
B) Google
C) Facebook
D) Twitter
E) U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Question 21

Which of the following characteristics constitutes one's socioeconomic status?

A) level of income, level of education, and prestige of occupation
B) level of income, level of political participation, and number of friends
C) level of income, level of political participation, and level of intelligence
D) level of education, number of friends, and age
E) level of education, level of political participation, and age

Question 22

One-third of all Asian Americans live in ________.

A) California
B) New York
C) Florida
D) Texas
E) Washington, D.C.

Question 23

Evangelical Protestants are more likely to be associated with ________.

A) the Republican Party
B) the Democratic Party
C) the Moral Majority Party
D) the Green Party
E) no party; they are typically nonpartisan

Question 24

About ________ percent of African Americans voted for Barack Obama in 2008.

A) 33
B) 50
C) 66
D) 80
E) 95

Question 25

Women are disadvantaged as candidates for office because

A) too many women run in elections every year.
B) women only run in elections as candidates from the Democratic Party.
C) male voters almost never support female candidates.
D) male candidates are more likely to have the advantage of incumbency in office.
E) there are still many state laws that prevent women from running in elections.

Question 26

What is one reason that political parties and politicians view Latinos as a critically important group?

A) The Latino population in the United States is large and rapidly growing.
B) Latinos register to vote at higher levels than whites and African Americans.
C) Latinos turn out to vote at higher levels than whites and African Americans.
D) Latinos contribute more money to political parties and campaigns than whites and African Americans combined.
E) Latinos consistently vote for candidates from the Republican Party.

Question 27

About ________ percent of U.S. senators and U.S. representatives serving in Congress are women.

A) 5
B) 17
C) 30
D) 45
E) 55

Question 28

Which of the following statements about youth participation in the 2008 presidential election is true?

A) Youth turnout rose in 2008 and most young people voted for Barack Obama.
B) Youth turnout rose in 2008 and most young people voted for John McCain.
C) Youth turnout declined in 2008 but most young people voted for Barack Obama.
D) Youth turnout declined in 2008 but most young people voted for John McCain.
E) Youth turnout was the same in 2008 as it was in 2004, 2000, and 1996.

Question 29

Which statement is correct?

A) Religion has played an important role in organizing political participation.
B) Religious groups have played a relatively minor role in politically mobilizing Americans.
C) The Moral Majority was the first broad-based political organization of atheists in the United States.
D) Religious issues have not been important or divisive in American politics.
E) White evangelicals have become closely aligned with the Democratic Party in recent years.

Question 30

Over the past decade, polls have revealed that Asian American voters are moving

A) toward the Republican Party.
B) toward the Democratic Party.
C) away from all forms of partisan identity.
D) toward the Green Party.
E) toward newly formed political parties that focus entirely on Asian American political issues.

Question 31

On average, more women vote for ________ candidates and more men vote for ________ candidates.

A) Republican; Republican
B) Republican; Democratic
C) Democratic; Republican
D) Democratic; Democratic
E) Independent; Independent

Question 32

What bloc of voters has recently been called "the sleeping giant"?

A) African Americans
B) Latino Americans
C) Asian Americans
D) middle-class whites
E) upper-class whites

Question 33

The Supreme Court justices ruled that prayer in public schools was unconstitutional in ________.

A) Baker v. Carr (1962)
B) Engel v. Vitale (1962)
C) Hustler Magazine v. Fallwell (1988)
D) New York Times Co. v. Sullivan (1964)
E) Regents of University of California v. Bakke (1978)

Question 34

Which of the following statements about Asian Americans is true?

A) Although a majority of Asian Americans voted Republican in the 1990s, in the 2000s they have been voting increasingly Democratic.
B) Although a majority of Asian Americans voted Democratic in the 1990s, in the 2000s they have been voting increasingly Republican.
C) There are more Asian Americans in the United States than African Americans.
D) There are more Asian Americans in the United States than Latinos.
E) Turnout is higher among Asian Americans than among whites.

Question 35

Which of the following statements is FALSE?

A) The Moral Majority is the first broad-based political organization of evangelical Christians.
B) Walter Mondale received 80 percent of the evangelical Christian vote in 1984 to 20 percent for Ronald Reagan.
C) The televangelist Pat Robertson ran for the presidency in 1988.
D) George W. Bush was closely aligned with religious conservatives in 2000 and 2004.
E) George W. Bush started the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives.

Question 36

Which of the following groups have had the highest levels of political participation?

A) senior citizens (65 and over)
B) Asian Americans
C) young people (18-24)
D) people who did not graduate high school
E) unemployed people

Question 37

African Americans

A) are increasingly voting Republican in federal elections.
B) are supporting the Democratic Party at lower levels than the 1960s.
C) are very diverse in their voting patterns.
D) have linked fate when it comes to political participation.
E) none of the above

Question 38

Which of the following best describes the goal of the EMILY's List organization?

A) to promote the expansion of pro-life legislation
B) to advocate a pro-life position to the public
C) to raise money for Democratic women candidates interested in running for office
D) to litigate sex discrimination cases in court
E) to increase the number of African American representatives in Congress

Question 39

Which of the following is NOT a key factor affecting one's level of participation?

A) age
B) income
C) geographic region
D) education
E) occupation

Question 40

About ________ percent of political advertising is aimed at Americans between 18 and 34 years of age.

A) 14
B) 25
C) 40
D) 50
E) 67

Question 41

Studies show that people are most likely to participate in politics when

A) they are paid to do so.
B) someone asks them to get involved.
C) government officials officially invite input and feedback.
D) they are able to participate electronically through e-mail and computer voting.
E) the media devotes a great deal of time to covering politics.

Question 42

The political power of Asian Americans has recently been hindered because of the

A) diversity of national backgrounds and cultures.
B) political apathy among Asian American voters.
C) disenfranchisement of Asian American voters in the 1990s.
D) lack of a sufficiently large population for bloc voting.
E) absence of organizations working to mobilize Asian Americans.

Question 43

Political parties have been doing less ________ in recent years.

A) fund-raising
B) advertising
C) mobilizing of voters
D) nominating of candidates
E) presenting of party platforms

Question 44

What is the best explanation for the fact that Latinos have tended to favor Democratic Party candidates in national elections?

A) They disagree with the Republican Party's stance on immigration.
B) They support the Democratic Party's foreign policy toward Cuba.
C) They agree with the Democratic Party's stance on military issues.
D) They typically find the Democratic Party's candidates more charismatic than the Republican Party's candidates.
E) They are socially conservative and, as a result, support the Democratic Party's positions more.

Question 45

Which of the following statements is true?

A) The American states vary dramatically in the competitiveness of presidential elections.
B) Most U.S. House seats are not electorally competitive.
C) No other democracy uses an electoral college to mediate between a national vote for presidential candidates and the actual winner.
D) A person becomes president when he or she receives 270 electoral votes.
E) all of the above

Question 46

Which of the following statements is true?

A) Voter turnout in California decreases in a presidential election when the race is not close.
B) Citizens are generally less knowledgeable about politics in battleground states.
C) States do not vary much when it comes to voter turnout.
D) Voter turnout in Oregon increases in a presidential election when the race is not close.
E) Texas is a "safe" Democratic state.

Question 47

________ is the single most important factor in predicting whether an individual votes.

A) Age
B) Race
C) Education level
D) Religious affiliation
E) Geography

Question 48

Which of the following statements about young people is true?

A) Although many young people feel that they can solve problems in their communities, most express a deep cynicism about politicians.
B) Although many young people feel that they cannot solve problems in their communities, they express strong feelings of trust in politicians.
C) Many young people feel that they can solve problems in their communities and express strong feelings of trust in politicians.
D) Many young people feel that they cannot solve problems in their communities and express a deep cynicism about politicians.
E) Whatever their feelings about the political process, young people participate in politics more than any other group in American society.

Question 49

Which of the following statements is true about political participation?

A) African Americans and Latinos are less likely to participate in politics than whites.
B) African Americans and Latinos participate in politics at the same levels as whites.
C) African Americans hardly participate in politics at all, while Latinos participate at extraordinarily high levels.
D) Latinos barely participate in politics, while African Americans participate at extraordinarily high levels.
E) Whites hardly participate in politics at all, while African Americans and Latinos participate at extraordinarily high levels.

Question 50

Which of the following statements about political parties is correct?

A) During the nineteenth century, political parties employed hundreds of thousands of workers to organize and mobilize voters.
B) During the nineteenth century, political parties were more interested in fund-raising than in organizing and mobilizing voters.
C) During the late twentieth century, political parties organized and mobilized a larger percentage of voters than at any other point in American history.
D) Political parties have never attempted to organize and mobilize voters because doing so would violate the Constitution.
E) Since 2000, political parties have ended efforts to organize and mobilize voters because doing so would violate federal campaign finance laws.

Question 51

The socioeconomic status model explains one's political participation by examining an individual's ________.

A) level of education, income, and occupational status
B) membership in community organizations
C) legal right to vote
D) membership in political organizations
E) age

Question 52

An example of the phenomenon called the gender gap would be that

A) more women than men vote for Democrats.
B) more women than men vote for Republicans.
C) more men than women turn out to vote.
D) in families, it is usually women who determine how the family votes.
E) more men than women have had their ballots invalidated.

Question 53

Which of the following statements about the gender gap is FALSE?

A) Women are more likely to oppose military activities than men.
B) The gender gap in voting behavior has always been about 20 percentage points since women's suffrage in 1920.
C) Following the 2012 elections, there were 80 men and 20 women serving in the U.S. Senate.
D) Women are more likely to support social spending by government than men.
E) Women currently register and vote at rates similar to or higher than those of men.

Question 54

Nonelectoral forms of participation usually require more ________ than voting.

A) time, money, and effort
B) knowledge, passion, and cynicism
C) information, trust, and strategic thinking
D) economic security, perseverance, and alienation
E) intelligence, pessimism, and mobilization

Question 55

What has been one of the most pressing questions concerning socioeconomic status?

A) Why has the level of participation in politics not increased as a result of the rising level of education among Americans?
B) Why do recent immigrants display a higher level of political participation than second- and third-generation Americans?
C) Why is Catholic American participation consistently higher than that of Protestant Americans?
D) Why do citizens in coastal cities tend to have a voting rate approximately 5-7 percent higher than citizens in landlocked states?
E) Why have rising income levels not increased the number of people who are willing to make monetary contributions to political candidates?

Question 56

Statewide initiatives on the ballot

A) increase voter turnout in elections.
B) decrease voter turnout in elections.
C) have no effect on voter turnout.
D) advantage the Democratic Party.
E) advantage the Republican Party.

Question 57

The power of the Christian Coalition in the 1990s was due to

A) its ability to donate large sums of money to candidates.
B) its success in mobilizing a large grassroots base.
C) the number of its members who were elected to political office.
D) its close alignment with the Democratic Party.
E) the number of its members who were appointed to the federal judiciary.

Question 58

Studies have discovered ________ to be the key element of successful mobilization efforts.

A) personal contact
B) direct mailings
C) extensive use of phone banks
D) advertising in local media
E) e-mail newsletters

Question 59

Which of the following statements is true about political participation?

A) Young people are far less likely to participate in politics than older people.
B) Older people are far less likely to participate in politics than younger people.
C) Young people are just as likely to participate in politics as older people.
D) Neither young people nor older people participate much in politics.
E) Both old people and young people participate in politics at a very high level.

Question 60

The strongest critique of the socioeconomic status model's explanation of political participation is that

A) African Americans with high levels of education do not participate.
B) education levels are rising while rates of participation are falling.
C) people from the lowest income brackets participate the most in politics.
D) income levels are decreasing while rates of political participation are increasing.
E) many people who go to college do not vote in local elections.

Question 61

According to political scientists, voter registration requirements reduce voter turnout by as much as ________ percent.

A) 5
B) 15
C) 25
D) 33
E) 50

Question 62

Compared with western Europe, the United States has a(n) ________ turnout in elections.

A) higher
B) lower
C) roughly equivalent
D) noncomparable
E) unstudied

Question 63

About ________ percent of registered voters have voted in recent elections.

A) 24
B) 38
C) 50
D) 64
E) 82

Question 64

Which of the following statements about voter identification laws is most accurate?

A) Voter identification laws in the states disproportionately affect minority citizens and the less affluent.
B) Every state requires all voters to show ID before voting at the polls.
C) The Supreme Court justices have ruled that voter identification laws cannot go in effect until after the 2016 elections.
D) In every state with a voter identification law, a person must have a federal government-issued photo ID in order to cast a legal ballot.
E) Every voter identification law was passed prior to 1958.

Question 65

Which of the following statements is true?

A) Eighteen states granted women the right to vote before the adoption of the Nineteenth Amendment.
B) Many states allowed the direct election of U.S. senators before the adoption of the Seventeenth Amendment.
C) both a and b
D) Congress gave women the right to vote in the United States before any single state.
E) Direct election of senators began during the civil rights movement of the 1960s.

Question 66

Which of the following statements about voting rights is correct?

A) Many states have laws restricting the voting rights of persons convicted of felonies.
B) Laws passed by Congress prevent the abridgement of a felon's voting rights.
C) According to the Supreme Court, the Constitution prevents felons from having their right to vote limited due to their criminal status.
D) According to the Supreme Court, the Constitution requires that felons have their right to vote limited due to their criminal status.
E) Even though prison inmates cannot vote, federal law states that an ex-con's voting rights cannot be restricted.

Question 67

Which of the following is NOT a reform that has attempted to make voting easier?

A) early voting
B) Election Day registration
C) voter ID laws
D) permanent absentee ballots
E) none of the above

Question 68

During the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the criteria for determining one's eligibility to vote were established by ________.

A) the U.S. Constitution
B) the federal government
C) state governments
D) the common-law tradition
E) the Articles of Confederation

Question 69

The Fifteenth Amendment, ratified in 1870, mandated that

A) states were forbidden to impose poll taxes.
B) no state could prevent the right to vote on account of race.
C) no state could deny the right to vote on account of gender.
D) no state could deny the right to vote on account of property requirements.
E) literacy tests were forbidden in federal elections.

Question 70

Which of the following states does NOT permit Election Day registration?

A) New Hampshire
B) Montana
C) Minnesota
D) Iowa
E) Indiana

Question 71

________ is the only state that does not require voter registration.

A) California
B) Wisconsin
C) Maine
D) Indiana
E) North Dakota

Question 72

About ________ million Americans have lost their voting rights as a result of felony convictions.

A) 1
B) 5
C) 14
D) 23
E) 50

Question 73

State-level data from 1980-2010 suggests that

A) stringent voter ID laws have the effect of lowering overall turnout.
B) stringent voter ID laws have the effect of substantially lowering the turnout of the rich.
C) the Twenty-Sixth Amendment has resulted in a sharp increase in voter turnout.
D) both b and c
E) the electoral college will be abolished by a constitutional amendment in the next few years.

Question 74

________ conducts its elections entirely by mail.

A) New Mexico
B) Oklahoma
C) Oregon
D) Louisiana
E) Michigan

Question 75

Which of the following statements is true?

A) Republicans were better organized than Democrats in 2004.
B) Republicans were better organized than Democrats in 2008.
C) Republicans were better organized than Democrats in 2012.
D) Barack Obama focused on traditional mobilization tactics in 2008 and 2012.
E) The Tea Party movement does not utilize grassroots political mobilization.

Question 76

What was the original purpose of voter registration?

A) to reduce corruption by making it more difficult to vote
B) to simplify the voting process
C) to make voters more dependent on the political parties
D) to raise revenues for the government
E) to reduce the number of women who voted in national elections

Question 77

________ typically has the highest voter turnout among the states.

A) Minnesota
B) New York
C) California
D) Mississippi
E) Florida

Question 78

Under the Constitution, ________ has/have the power to regulate elections.

A) Congress
B) the president
C) the Federal Election Commission
D) state legislatures
E) none of the above

Question 79

Which of the following statements about the 2004 presidential election is true?

A) John Kerry won the popular vote.
B) George W. Bush was narrowly re-elected.
C) Same-sex ballot measures in several states may have helped to get George W. Bush reelected.
D) both b and c
E) George W. Bush won a landslide election.

Question 80

It is likely that eliminating state-level voter registration laws would

A) decrease voter turnout among younger people.
B) decrease voter turnout among older people.
C) decrease voter turnout among all voters.
D) increase voter turnout among younger people.
E) have no effect on voter turnout among any group.