Deck 9: Campaigns and Elections

Question 1

The 2010 Supreme Court decision in Citizen's United v. FEC

A) increased the political power of corporations.
B) was supported by Republicans on the basis of free speech.
C) was opposed by Democrats because it gave corporations some political rights given to individual citizens.
D) ruled that corporations, unions, and non-profit organizations may spend freely to support or oppose candidates as long as those expenditures are not coordinated with the candidate campaigns.
E) All of the above are true.

Answer 1

E

Question 2

Political parties have

A) difficulty finding candidates for some local offices.
B) difficulty finding candidates to run for office in some regions of the country.
C) difficulty finding candidates when winning that office is unlikely.
D) an easier time finding candidates when the office has prestige.
E) All of the above are true.

Answer 2

E

Question 3

If a candidate is a highly visible incumbent seeking reelection

A) the strategy will be to get the incumbent's name before the voters as much as possible.
B) a front porch campaign has been proven most effective.
C) there may be little need for campaigning except to remind the voters of the officeholder's good deeds.
D) the strategy will be to keep as low a profile as possible.
E) the incumbent must devote almost every moment to campaigning to avoid seeming overly confident and arrogant.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Independent expenditures are

A) funds spent by the party independent without permission of the candidate.
B) personal funds spent by the candidate on campaign activities.
C) funds spent by political action committees that are not coordinated directly with a candidate's campaign.
D) funds spent by the Federal Election Commission.
E) funds spent by groups of independent voters.

Question 5

Which campaign financing reform was best known for restricting the political activities of civil servants?

A) Corrupt Practices Act
B) Federal Election Campaign Act
C) Supreme Court decision in Buckley v. Valeo
D) Hatch Act
E) McCain-Feingold Act

Question 6

The qualifications required to be a state governor are

A) to be a natural-born citizen within state residency.
B) to be a citizen aged 30 years or older.
C) to be a citizen, aged 30 years or older, within state residency.
D) to be a natural-born citizen, aged 30 years or older, within state residency.
E) varied because they are set by the separate state constitutions.

Question 7

Tracking polls are used

A) on a daily basis to determine last-minute changes in the mood of the electorate.
B) by the government to determine if a candidate is receiving illegal campaign contributions.
C) to encourage voter turnout.
D) primarily in countries that have a multi-party political structure.
E) by the media throughout the election year.

Question 8

Holders of political office in the United States today are usually

A) representative of the general public.
B) evenly divided between men and women.
C) white and male.
D) younger than the candidates elected in the 1800s.
E) Roman Catholics.

Question 9

Campaigns for high offices today tend to

A) focus on winning independents, rather than turning out the party base.
B) focus on party base turnout, rather than independents.
C) be party centered.
D) be candidate centered.
E) be policy centered.

Question 10

The 1974 Federal Election Campaign Act

A) created the Federal Election Commission.
B) placed limits on the sums that individuals and committees can contribute to candidates.
C) created an effective way to enforce campaign rules.
D) Options A and B are true.
E) All of the above are true.

Question 11

The widespread belief behind criticisms of money in the electoral system is that

A) large campaign contributions by special interests corrupt the political system.
B) when one party comes to power, it limits the flow of money to the other party.
C) the two parties restrict the flow of money to third parties.
D) it forces citizens to spend money to be actively engaged in politics.
E) None of the above.

Question 12

All of the following are reasons why many candidates for office are lawyers except

A) they have a more flexible work schedule.
B) holding office is good publicity for their law practice.
C) political connections can help them later in their career.
D) they have trouble finding work in most states.
E) they may have long-term career aspirations for positions that require political appointment such as judgeships or jobs in federal agencies.

Question 13

A striking feature of today's political campaigns is the

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 14

Political Action Committees

A) are not covered by federal election laws.
B) are committees created under federal or state law for the purpose of collecting political donations.
C) coordinate all expenditures directly with the candidate.
D) collect funds from the candidate and transfer them to the political party.
E) are limited in how much they spend.

Question 15

Advertising paid for by interest groups that support or oppose a candidate (or a candidate's position on an issue) without mentioning voting or elections is called

A) a PAC advertisement.
B) a soft money contribution.
C) issue advocacy advertising.
D) a hard money expenditure.
E) payola profiteering and pilfering.

Question 16

Naturalized citizens are constitutionally barred from running for the office of

A) U.S. senator.
B) U.S. representative.
C) U.S. president.
D) governor.
E) chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.

Question 17

Making political campaign lies illegal could have the effect of

A) more honest campaigning.
B) curtailing free speech and political satire.
C) a flurry of lawsuits every election year.
D) Both B and C.
E) All of the above.

Question 18

A ________________ 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) delegate election
E) general election

Question 19

Candidates for president face obstacles to winning for all of the following reasons except that they must

A) have great personal wealth in order to win.
B) be able to garner enough support to win the early primaries.
C) be able to organize, staff, and fund a campaign organization.
D) be able to find local volunteers in each state to win primary votes.
E) All of the above are true.

Question 20

The Stolen Valor Act, which criminalized false claims of having received military honors,

A) was ruled a violation of free speech by the Supreme Court.
B) was upheld as a reasonable restriction of speech by the Supreme Court.
C) was recently repealed by Congress.
D) only affects elections in Ohio.
E) None of the above.

Question 21

With regard to presidential candidates

A) Iowa and New Hampshire have the first caucus and primary, respectively, in voting for presidential candidates.
B) many states are moving their primaries to earlier dates in order to have more input into the selection of presidential candidates.
C) moving state primaries into the first months of the year is known as front-loading.
D) in 2008, twenty-four states had primaries on the same day.
E) All of the above are true.

Question 22

Independent expenditures

A) must be made from the candidate's personal funds.
B) are unregulated funds spent by interest groups on advertising or other campaign activities.
C) were banned by the Supreme Court decision in Citizens United v. FEC.
D) were less important in the 2012 presidential election than in previous years.
E) were widely supported by the McCain-Feingold Act.

Question 23

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 take three ballots for the party to choose the presidential candidate.

Question 24

A party-column ballot is a form of general election ballot

A) that is used by only a few states today.
B) that focuses attention on the office instead of the party.
C) in which the candidates are arranged in one column under their respective party.
D) that was held to be unconstitutional in 1948.
E) in which all candidates for each elective office are grouped under the title of the office.

Question 25

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

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 26

The pre-primary election effort to win support from elected officials, fund raisers, interest groups, and opinion leaders is called the

A) funding primary.
B) party primary.
C) closed primary.
D) invisible primary.
E) hidden primary.

Question 27

When voters can vote in either party primary without disclosing their party affiliation, it is called

A) a closed primary.
B) an open primary.
C) a run-off primary.
D) a blanket primary.
E) a caucus.

Question 28

Which of the following are true of superdelegates?

A) A superdelegate is a party leader or elected official who is given the right to vote at the national convention.
B) Their votes are ceremonial and do not count in the delegate total.
C) They are members of the media who cover the national convention.
D) They are elected at the state level.
E) They participate as delegates to the state convention.

Question 29

When only declared party members can vote in a primary election, it is called

A) a closed primary.
B) an open primary.
C) a run-off primary.
D) a blanket primary.
E) a caucus.

Question 30

In 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) Options A, B, and C are true.
E) None of the above is true.

Question 31

Super PACs

A) allow America's millionaires and billionaires to donate unlimited funds to influence elections.
B) are political advertising councils that design political campaigns.
C) are limited to raising no more than $10 million per campaign cycle.
D) raise money to run both positive and negative campaign ads.
E) Options A and D are true.

Question 32

In the presidential elections

A) electors meet in the state's capital in December to cast their votes for the president.
B) a joint session of Congress meets in early January (after the presidential election) and the electoral votes are counted.
C) one can win the majority of the popular vote and not become president.
D) one can win the electoral college vote without winning the majority of the popular vote.
E) All of the above are true.

Question 33

The number of members each state will have in the electoral college

A) cannot exceed fifty members.
B) cannot be changed without a constitutional amendment.
C) changes every four years.
D) is determined by adding the number of representatives and the number of senators a state has in Congress.
E) is the same so as to ensure that each state plays an equal role in selecting the president of the United States.

Question 34

The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002

A) banned soft money contributions to national parties.
B) banned campaign ads by special interest groups.
C) banned independent expenditures.
D) banned the practice of lobbying.
E) eliminated the Federal Election Commission.

Question 35

When the top two candidates in a primary compete in a second primary for the majority of votes, it is called

A) a closed primary.
B) an open primary.
C) a run-off primary.
D) a blanket primary.
E) a caucus.

Question 36

The 2010 Supreme Court decision in Citizens United v. FEC allows

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

Question 37

Which of the following statements about the electoral college is true?

A) Although it is theoretically possible for a candidate to win the electoral vote while losing the popular vote, this has never happened in U.S. history.
B) The framers ensured that it would be impossible for a candidate to win the electoral vote without also winning the popular vote.
C) The Constitution requires that the members of the electoral college vote in a manner consistent with their states' popular vote.
D) The only way that the United States could cease to use the electoral college is through the process of constitutional amendment.
E) The members of the electoral college are required by the Constitution to be at least thirty-five years old and of good moral character.

Question 38

Which statement about primaries is true?

A) Candidates for the presidency go through two elections-the primaries and the general election.
B) Most delegates to the national party conventions are chosen in primary elections.
C) Most primaries are winner-take-all.
D) In recent years, the Democrats have used a proportional system in the presidential primaries.
E) All of the above are true.

Question 39

A ballot in which all candidates for a particular elected post are grouped together is

A) an Indiana ballot.
B) an office-block ballot.
C) a party column ballot.
D) an absentee ballot.
E) an Australian ballot.

Question 40

The organizations that came to be known as "527s"

A) have become eclipsed in importance since the rise of super PACs.
B) were set up by political parties for anonymous donors' contributions.
C) run ads that are coordinated with the candidate's campaign ads.
D) are more powerful than super PACs.
E) Options B and C are true.

Question 41

In 2013, the Voting Rights Act requirement for pre-clearance of voting changes in areas with a history of discrimination was

A) done away with by the Congress.
B) effectively invalidated by the Supreme Court.
C) overturned by a presidential executive order.
D) narrowly reaffirmed by Congress.
E) strengthened and reaffirmed by the Supreme Court.

Question 42

The requirements to register to vote include all of the following except

A) choosing a political party.
B) being age eighteen or older.
C) being a citizen.
D) having residency where you register.
E) All of the above are true.

Question 43

A non-citizen immigrant might be counted as part of the ______________, but not as part of the ______________.

A) vote-eligible population; voting-age population
B) voting-age population; vote-eligible population
C) registered voter population; voting-age population
D) registered voter population; vote-eligible population
E) registered voter population; likely voter population

Question 44

Using the voting-age population to measure voter turnout is flawed because it

A) contains felons who have lost the right to vote.
B) contains non-citizen immigrants, who cannot vote.
C) does not contain potential voting citizens living abroad.
D) All of the above.
E) None of the above.

Question 45

Voter ID laws are often enacted with the stated goal of _______________, but actually have the effect of _______________.

A) increasing turnout; suppressing turnout among minorities and the poor
B) increasing turnout; suppressing turnout among members of the armed forces serving abroad
C) preventing vote fraud; suppressing turnout among minorities and the poor
D) preventing vote fraud; making ID fraud more common
E) preventing vote fraud; suppressing turnout among members of the armed forces serving abroad

Question 46

The right to vote

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

Question 47

Political scientists used to calculate voter turnout as a percentage of the ______________, but usually no longer do so.

A) voting-age population
B) vote-eligible population
C) registered voter population
D) party member population
E) expected voter population

Question 48

Voter registration drives

A) are a non-controversial political activity.
B) became political issue when Acorn, a community organizing group, was accused of violating election laws.
C) operate under very loose laws in Republican-controlled states.
D) are organized by public interest and political organizations in the week before an election.
E) All of the above are true.

Question 49

Some observers believe the following about low voter turnout:

A) Too few individuals are wielding too much political power.
B) Low turnout is a sign of satisfaction with the status quo.
C) Low turnout is a sign of political apathy in the voting public.
D) Potential voters do not want to take the time to learn about the issues.
E) All of the above are true.

Question 50

That women could vote in Wyoming in 1870, but not nationwide until 1920, is reflective of

A) the national government imposing conflicting election laws on the states.
B) states admitted later to the union having more power over elections.
C) the willingness of states to violate national laws.
D) the writers of the Constitution allowing states to decide who can vote.
E) Both A and B.

Question 51

Almost all of the support for creating voter ID laws has come from

A) Republicans.
B) Democrats.
C) libertarians.
D) socialists.
E) None of the above.

Question 52

All of the following statements about low voter turnout are true except

A) people do not vote because they feel the media is too focused on who is winning, rather than on policy.
B) it is much more common in most other countries to have low voter turnout than in the United States.
C) people feel their vote will not impact the election.
D) it results in the election of candidates who have received the votes of a small part of the voting-age population.
E) negative advertising turns people off to voting.

Question 53

All of the following statements are true except

A) voter ID laws are likely to suppress the vote of low-income voters.
B) the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Indiana voter ID law.
C) voter ID laws are favored by Republicans.
D) voter ID laws are favored by Democrats.
E) voter ID laws are likely to suppress the vote of minority voters.

Question 54

In midterm elections

A) voters choose all members of the U.S. House of Representatives.
B) national elections are held in which candidates for president are not on the ballot.
C) voters choose one-third of the members of the U.S. Senate.
D) Options A and B are true.
E) All of the above are true.

Question 55

Reported voter turnout _________ as age __________.

A) increases; increases
B) increases; decreases
C) stabilizes; increases
D) stabilizes; decreases
E) decreases; increases

Question 56

The use of the party-column ballot has been shown to ________________________.

A) increase the coattail effect.
B) decrease the coattail effect.
C) decrease straight-ticket voting.
D) increase voter turnout.
E) Both B and C.

Question 57

The real world effect of voter ID laws in the 2012 election was that

A) voter turnout was down across the board.
B) they did not work and vote fraud was rampant.
C) they had no measurable effect.
D) turnout was down primarily among minorities, who were adversely affected by the laws.
E) minorities felt their voting rights were under attack and turned out in higher than usual numbers.

Question 58

Reported voter turnout _________ as education __________.

A) increases; decreases
B) randomly swings; increases
C) stabilizes; increases
D) decreases; decreases
E) stabilizes; decreases

Question 59

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

A) wealthier people
B) people under the age of sixty-five
C) very young voters aged eighteen to twenty-four
D) the poor and homeless
E) Hispanics

Question 60

Voter fraud

A) is regularly suspected but seldom proved.
B) was more common in the 1800s when votes were openly purchased than today.
C) is the argument frequently cited by supporters of voter ID laws.
D) may be overstated by some.
E) All of the above are true.

Question 61

Detail the qualifications for someone to become president of the United States and discuss the implications these qualifications have on the candidates we choose.

Question 62

Explain how the electoral college works, the situations in which it has produced controversial results, and the criticisms leveled against it.

Question 63

Compare the features of two different types of primary elections and craft an argument in support of one of these.

Question 64

Which people are least likely to vote? How does this affect government policies?

Question 65

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

Question 66

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

Question 67

Describe the evolution of campaign regulation in the United States. Include details about efforts by Congress to reform the ways in which campaigns are financed.

Question 68

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 69

How has the right to vote been expanded since the Constitution was written?

Question 70

How has the advent of online fundraising changed the process of raising campaign funds? Which candidates have used the technique with great success?