Deck 11: Campaigns and Elections

Question 1

In State X,legislative districts are drawn in such a way that African American and Latino voting strength is spread among several districts,thus reducing the likelihood of minority candidates winning office.Is this redistricting plan legal?

A)Probably.The Supreme Court allows states discretion in drawing legislative districts as long as the districts are nearly equal in population.
B)Probably.The districts are legal as long as each district has the same number of African American and Latino residents.
C)Probably not.This plan would violate the Supreme Court's one-person,one-vote rulings.
D)Probably not.The Voting Rights Act prohibits actions that diminish African Americans' and Latinos' voting power.
E)Probably not.No redistricting can occur without federal input.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

If a state legislature draws an awkwardly shaped district in order to help a particular candidate win election,the legislature could be accused of which of the following?

A)Violating the one-person,one-vote principle
B)Gerrymandering
C)Minority-vote dilution
D)Minority-vote packing
E)Majority-vote packing

Answer 2

B

Question 3

A voter who decided to cast his ballot for all of the Democrats in the 2008 general election is an example of

A)retrospective voting.
B)straight-ticket voting.
C)split-ticket voting.
D)the coattail effect.
E)robotic voting.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Which of the following statements is true about Senate elections?

A)Senate races are generally less competitive than House races.
B)Voters tend to perceive Senate races as national election contests.
C)Incumbent senators generally face weaker challengers than House incumbents.
D)Voters do not care about Senate races.
E)Senate races cost candidates very little money.

Question 5

Which of the following is an example of the coattail effect?

A)A voter casts his ballot for Kerry because Clinton is a Democrat.
B)In a presidential election,the voter votes for the full Democrat ticket because he likes Barack Obama.
C)A voter supports the president's reelection because he believes that the president has done a good job.
D)A voter supports Bush for president because Bush promises to hold down taxes.
E)A voter chooses to stay home because the incumbent endorses a challenger.

Question 6

On Election Day,a voter who votes for the Republican candidate for president but casts a ballot for the Democrat candidate for Congress is engaging in

A)retrospective voting.
B)straight-ticket voting.
C)split-ticket voting.
D)the coattail effect.
E)bipolar voting.

Question 7

Which of the following is a factor explaining why incumbent members of the U.S.House usually win reelection?

A)Voters perceive House races in terms of national issues,and polls show that voters believe that experience is important for those types of issues.
B)Congress as a whole is held in such high regard by the voters that individual members of Congress have a relatively easy time winning reelection.
C)Incumbents are much better known and funded than challengers are.
D)Incumbents often make enemies while in office.
E)Incumbents are perceived as all-powerful and unbeatable.

Question 8

How often must legislative district lines be redrawn?

A)Every 2 years
B)Every 10 years
C)Every 5 years
D)Every 20 years
E)Every 25 years

Question 9

Which of the following is true about negative campaigning?

A)Negative campaigning is not new in American politics.
B)Candidates do not use negative campaigning because it has proven unsuccessful.
C)Negative campaigning is particularly effective when attacks go unanswered.
D)Candidates who use negative campaigning last only one term in office.
E)Negative campaigning is illegal.

Question 10

Which of the following governing bodies redraws the district lines from which members of the U.S.House of Representatives are elected after the census?

A)State governments
B)The U.S.House
C)The U.S.Congress as a whole
D)The U.S.Supreme Court
E)County governments

Question 11

In which of the following elections do candidates from the same political party compete against one another instead of against candidates from other parties?

A)General elections
B)Primary elections
C)Bond elections
D)Interpartisan elections
E)Secondary elections

Question 12

Soft money is a campaign donation

A)in excess of one million dollars.
B)of less than one million dollars.
C)allowed for under the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002.
D)not subject to federal campaign finance regulations.
E)by a corporation.

Question 13

Races for the U.S.Senate are more competitive than House races,with a larger percentage of incumbents defeated for reelection.Which of the following reasons helps account for this fact?

A)Challengers for Senate seats are often better able to raise money and generate free publicity than are challengers for House seats.
B)Voters perceive Senate races as local contests,whereas they see House races as national elections.
C)PACs don't contribute money in Senate races.
D)The public hates the Senate more than they hate the House.
E)Voters perceive Senate races as less important than House races.

Question 14

The governor of a large state is running for reelection.Which of the following items would you expect to be the largest expenditure category in the governor's campaign budget?

A)Television advertising
B)Direct-mail advertising
C)Polling
D)Transportation
E)Entertainment

Question 15

What is currently the maximum amount a PAC can give to a candidate?

A)$1 million
B)$500,000
C)$100,000
D)$5,000
E)$1,000

Question 16

The cases of Baker v.Carr 1962)and Wesberry v.Sanders 1964)dealt with which of the following issues?

A)Legislative reapportionment
B)Term limitation
C)Racial discrimination
D)Trade policy
E)Voting rights

Question 17

Which of the following groups have benefited,either directly or indirectly,from the implementation of the Voting Rights Act?

A)Independents
B)African Americans
C)Nonvoters
D)States' rights advocates
E)Fundamentalists

Question 18

Today,most delegates to the national party conventions are selected through which of the following?

A)In a process that begins at the local level
B)By party leaders
C)Presidential primaries
D)By the Electoral College
E)Randomly

Question 19

Which of the following is true of the allocation of national delegates from state party conventions?

A)The Republicans award all delegates to the candidate with the most votes.
B)The Republicans apportion delegates to the candidates proportionally.
C)Both Republicans and Democrats award candidates proportionally.
D)Both Democrats and Republicans award all delegates to the candidate with the most votes.
E)Democrats award delegates to the candidates by the winner-takes-all principle.

Question 20

Which of the following elections always takes place in November of even-numbered years?

A)General elections
B)Primary elections
C)Bond elections
D)Special elections
E)Secondary elections

Question 21

If no candidate receives a majority of electoral votes,the House picks a president,while the Senate chooses a vice president.

Question 22

The party platforms are introduced at the party conventions.

Question 23

The reelection rate for Senate incumbents is higher than the reelection rate for House incumbents.

Question 24

Which of the following is the strongest contemporary argument in favor of preserving the Electoral College?

A)The Electoral College insulates presidential elections from the voters.
B)Electors are better informed about candidates than are average voters.
C)The Electoral College protects the interests of small states.
D)The Electoral College magnifies electoral point margins.
E)It is less expensive than any alternative.

Question 25

How does the Voting Rights Act affect reapportionment?

Question 26

Swing voters are voters who might vote for either major party.

Question 27

Gerrymandering is redrawing congressional district lines for political advantage.

Question 28

Georgia is unusual in requiring a runoff election between the two general election candidates with the most votes.

Question 29

Give an example of an officeholder who is elected at-large and another who is elected from a district.Compare their electorates and constituencies.

Question 30

Which of the following is the formula determining a state's electoral votes?

A)Electoral votes are apportioned by population.
B)Electoral votes are apportioned by the size of the state.
C)A state gets an elector for every representative in the House and Senate.
D)A state gives an elector for every congressional representative in the majority party.
E)Each state gets 10 electors.

Question 31

The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 targeted soft-money contributions.

Question 32

Why have the Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary played such an important role in the presidential nomination process?

A)Many delegates are at stake in each race.
B)The two states are so much like the nation as a whole that a candidate who does well there will do well nationwide.
C)They receive a great deal of media attention because they are the first major events of the presidential nomination.
D)They are late in the presidential nominating process.
E)Most candidates are from one of these two states.

Question 33

Distinguish between redistricting and reapportionment.

Question 34

The first presidential primaries are held in California and Puerto Rico.

Question 35

When do the electors of the Electoral College cast their votes?

A)A month after the presidential election
B)The day of the presidential election
C)Their votes are cast prior to the presidential election.
D)The day after the presidential election
E)After votes are counted on the day of the election

Question 36

The U.S.Supreme Court has held that legislative districts must be nearly equal in population size.

Question 37

What is the difference between an open primary and a closed primary?

Question 38

In the chart on page 213,in how many years since 1984 have presidents been elected by more of the electoral vote than of the popular vote?

A)None
B)One
C)Three
D)Five
E)Seven

Question 39

Both John McCain and Barack Obama raised most of their money for the 2008 presidential campaign through donations of $200 and under.

Question 40

What was the significance of the U.S.Supreme Court's decisions in Baker v.Carr and Wesberry v.Sanders?

Question 41

Compare the impact of current and forecasted economic conditions on retrospective and prospective voting.

Question 42

What are the advantages and disadvantages of the Electoral College?

Question 43

Why are campaigns so expensive? What are the things on which money is spent?

Question 44

The most striking feature of elections for the U.S.House of Representatives is that incumbents are almost always reelected.Since 1950,more than 90 percent of incumbent House members seeking reelection have won.Write an essay on congressional elections in which you identify,discuss,and evaluate the various reasons given by political scientists to explain the high reelection rate for congressional incumbents.

Question 45

What is Super Tuesday,and how does it influence presidential elections?

Question 46

Suppose that the mayor of your city is planning to run for governor in the next election and is preparing to hire a campaign manager to direct the campaign.Although the mayor is well known in your part of the state,he isn't well known statewide.Write a letter to the mayor applying for the job of campaign manager.Identify what you believe are the most important steps that the campaign must take between now and the election,which is more than a year away.Discuss the strategy that you would recommend for the campaign.

Question 47

What is the role of the primary in presidential elections? Consider such factors as funding,agenda building,democratic principles,and the impact of the media.

Question 48

The Electoral College has sometimes been called a constitutional crisis waiting to happen.Write an essay in which you a)discuss the potential problems with the Electoral College,b)explain the most frequently suggested proposals for reform,and c)analyze the prospects for reform.

Question 49

Legislative reapportionment has influenced legislative politics by increasing representation for some types of constituencies while decreasing representation for others.Write an essay in which you identify the interests and policies advanced by reapportionment.Include a discussion of gerrymandering.

Question 50

Is it more critical for a challenger or an incumbent member of Congress to have a well-funded campaign? Explain the basis of your answer.