Deck 8: Political Participation

Question 1

What method have all of the states used to try to improve voter turnout?

A)Give voters the option to vote prior to election day via mail-in ballots.
B)Institute election holidays.
C)Conduct elections over the Internet.
D)Schedule election day on Saturdays.
E)Allow people to vote on numerous days.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

In most European countries,voter registration is

A)complex.
B)costly.
C)automatic.
D)as difficult as in the United States.
E)not effective.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

In 1856,this state became the last one to require voters to own property to vote.

A)South Carolina
B)North Carolina
C)New Hampshire
D)Georgia
E)Kentucky

Answer 3

B

Question 4

The nation with the highest voter turnout as percentage of voting-age population is

A)Belgium
B)Italy
C)United States
D)Sweden
E)New Zealand

Question 5

Between 1860 and1900,the percentage of eligible voters participating in presidential elections

A)was rarely above 30 percent.
B)was rarely above 40 percent.
C)was usually around 50 percent.
D)was generally comparable to vote turnout today.
E)ranged between 65 and 80 percent.

Question 6

The to the U.S.Constitution ensured that the residents of the District of Columbia could vote in presidential elections.

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

Question 7

In 1993,Congress attempted to facilitate voter registration by linking it to processes related to

A)health insurance.
B)home mortgages.
C)student loans.
D)driver's licenses.
E)high school graduation.

Question 8

When registered nonvoters are asked why they did not vote,the most common response that they give refers to

A)family obligations.
B)scheduling conflicts or being "too busy."
C)the negative nature of campaigns and so-called attack ads.
D)a sense that their vote would not matter.
E)a loss of faith in the American system of government.

Question 9

With respect to impact of motor voter laws,the evidence suggests

A)the number of registrants has not increased but voter turnout has increased slightly.
B)the number of registrants has increased somewhat but voter turnout has not increased significantly.
C)vote turnout and registration has increased significantly.
D)vote turnout and registration has not increased significantly.
E)None of these choices is true.

Question 10

Which of the following statements is incorrect?

A)No state may restrict voting based on discriminatory tests,taxes,or residency requirements.
B)People can register to vote when they apply for a driver's license in half of the states.
C)Most states allow absentee ballot voting prior to election day.
D)Some states allow people to register on the same day that they vote.
E)In areas where many non-English speakers live,election authorities must supply ballots written in their own language.

Question 11

In recent years,the gap between the VAP and VEP has

A)increased.
B)remained about the same.
C)decreased somewhat.
D)decreased considerably.
E)varied in no consistent way.

Question 12

By 1880,only an estimated percent of all adult males in the United States could not vote;while in England at the same time,about percent of adult males were denied the right to vote.

A)14;40
B)25;50
C)55;60
D)10;24
E)18;36

Question 13

In 1971,ratification of the to the U.S.Constitution extended voter eligibility to all persons age 18 or older.

A)Twenty-Third Amendment
B)Twenty-Fourth Amendment
C)Twenty-Five Amendment
D)Twenty-Sixth Amendment
E)Twenty-Seventh Amendment

Question 14

VEP measures of turnout might be preferable to VAP measures because they

A)usually render a lower,more conservative,estimate.
B)round fractions up to the nearest tenth.
C)are derived from representative samples in telephone interviews.
D)are based on census data.
E)remove ineligible voters from the equation.

Question 15

A 2008 study found get-out-the-vote drives have demonstrated statistically significant results when they involved

A)door-to-door canvassing and phone calls;although even most prospective voters touched by these tactics did not turn out.
B)leaflets and election day festivals.
C)direct mail and phone calls.
D)phone calls and social media.
E)None of these choices is true.

Question 16

Which is an example of political participation?

A)Voting
B)Keeping informed about government.
C)Giving money to a candidate.
D)Attending a school board meeting.
E)All of these choices are true.

Question 17

Voter turnout rates in America today are

A)higher than they were for previous generations.
B)lower than they were for previous generations.
C)higher than most European democracies.
D)about the same as previous generations.
E)not recorded by scholars.

Question 18

Today,voter turnout in midterm national elections has

A)averaged below 50 percent.
B)increased compared to the 1800s.
C)stayed about the same as the mid-1900s.
D)ranged between 65 percent and 80 percent.
E)averaged below 25 percent.

Question 19

When it comes to voting,Americans ages 18 to 20 are

A)less likely than older Americans ages 65 and older)to register and vote.
B)engaged in the political process more than middle age Americans.
C)more likely than older Americans ages 65 and older)to register but not more likely to vote.
D)less likely than older Americans ages 65 and older)to register but more likely to vote.
E)None of these choices is true.

Question 20

By the start of this president's administration,suffrage had been extended to include virtually all white males by the administration of

A)John Adams.
B)Thomas Jefferson.
C)Andrew Jackson.
D)James Monroe.
E)James Madison.

Question 21

In the late 1800s,voter turnout in a typical presidential election has been estimated to be

A)55 percent.
B)60 percent.
C)65 percent.
D)70 percent.
E)90 percent.

Question 22

When those below the age of 21 were first allowed to vote in presidential elections,they

A)flocked to the Republican candidates.
B)flocked to the Democratic candidates.
C)almost uniformly voted for Independent candidates.
D)generally voted for Richard Nixon.
E)did not flock to any particular party or candidate.

Question 23

Blacks first voted in large numbers in the South

A)in the 1970s.
B)after the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
C)after World War II.
D)early in the twentieth century.
E)soon after the Civil War.

Question 24

Until 1920,women were generally kept from voting by

A)intimidation.
B)social custom.
C)their own choice.
D)tradition.
E)law.

Question 25

In 2012,youth voting

A)increased for the fifth year in a row.
B)stayed constant from 2008.
C)dropped back to historic levels.
D)dropped to historic lows.
E)saw an increase in the percent of youth voting,but decrease in share of the vote that was under 30.

Question 26

Which of the following statements about U.S.voter participation in presidential elections is correct?

A)It increased sharply after the suffrage rights of women,blacks,and youths were protected.
B)It has remained steady since at least the 1950s.
C)It has declined since the latter part of the 1900s.
D)It rose steadily throughout the first half of the 1900s but has recently declined.
E)It has risen steadily since the campaign of Ralph Nader.

Question 27

Those who see the decline of voter turnout as a function of party organization change believe all of the following EXCEPT

A)parties originally aimed to increase mass political participation.
B)parties used caucuses and conventions and fought against legal barriers to voting to increase participation.
C)the nation was split by region in the late 1890s,and two-party competition decreased in many places.
D)both parties became more liberal.
E)citizens lost interest in politics because the parties did not respond to their needs.

Question 28

All of these were used to deny African Americans the vote EXCEPT

A)The grandfather clause
B)The poll tax
C)The literacy test
D)The Australian ballot
E)The white primary

Question 29

Between 1915 and 1925,the size of the eligible voting population in the United States almost doubled.The main reason for this was that

A)the Fifteenth Amendment to the U.S.Constitution was ratified.
B)women were given the right to vote.
C)the grandfather clause,which denied voting to blacks,was ruled unconstitutional.
D)literacy tests for blacks were ruled unconstitutional.
E)voter-registration laws were abolished in seventeen states.

Question 30

One way that whites prevented blacks from voting prior to passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was by requiring them to

A)meet qualifications found in Article III of the Constitution.
B)register six months in advance of an election.
C)become U.S.citizens.
D)memorize the Bill of Rights.
E)pass a literacy test.

Question 31

One explanation given by the text for the decline in U.S.voter participation in presidential elections after 1900 is that

A)parties began functioning to mobilize mass voter turnout.
B)fewer citizens were directly affected by the outcome of presidential elections.
C)other forms of political participation became more accessible to citizens.
D)election fraud was rampant during the nineteenth century.
E)the Republican Party began to attempt to mobilize individuals who were least likely to vote.

Question 32

The states that "the right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race,color,or previous condition of servitude"?

A)Twelfth Amendment
B)Seventeenth Amendment
C)Fifteenth Amendment
D)Twenty-fifth Amendment
E)None of these choices is true.

Question 33

During the nineteenth century,voting ballots were printed by

A)the government.
B)Congress.
C)the courts.
D)state legislatures.
E)political parties.

Question 34

During the nineteenth century,the term floaters referred to

A)individuals who were undecided as election day approached.
B)individuals who voted more than once.
C)members of political parties who defected to the other side.
D)voters who refused to support incumbents.
E)voters who always supported incumbents.

Question 35

Which of the following was required by the U.S.Constitution?

A)Adult free male suffrage
B)Popularly elected presidential electors
C)Nonpartisan election commissions
D)Popularly elected senators
E)Popularly elected House members

Question 36

In 1842,a federal law required that all House members be elected by

A)popular vote.
B)state legislators.
C)congressional delegations.
D)districts.
E)at-large elections.

Question 37

The first presidential elections in which all persons between the ages of 18 and 21 were able to vote were held in

A)1944.
B)1956.
C)1972.
D)1984.
E)1985.

Question 38

When Congress passed the Voting Rights Act of 1970 and lowered the voting age to eighteen,

A)the president vetoed the act.
B)the Fourteenth Amendment was overturned.
C)the Supreme Court declared the adjustment unconstitutional.
D)thirty-five state governors protested the change.
E)the number of eligible voters instantly doubled.

Question 39

Presidential electors were at first picked by

A)state legislatures rather than by the voters directly.
B)the voters directly.
C)federal judges.
D)the U.S.Senate.
E)the U.S.House.

Question 40

Which of the following statements regarding turnout of the youth vote those under thirty)in 2008 is correct?

A)It was the highest in any election since 1972.
B)It was the lowest in any election since 1972.
C)It increased for the third consecutive election and was fairly high.
D)It increased for the third consecutive election but remained fairly low.
E)It remained about the same as it had over the last three elections.

Question 41

Campaigners are distinguished from the general population by their

A)higher education levels and stronger opinions.
B)lower education levels and stronger opinions.
C)higher education levels and weaker opinions.
D)lower education levels and weaker opinions.
E)lack of party identification and distaste for conflict.

Question 42

The main goal of the Australian ballot was

A)to decrease voter fraud by having a government-printed ballot of uniform size and shape that was cast in secret.
B)to give political parties more power of the balloting process.
C)to decrease voter fraud by having individuals cast their vote in public.
D)to completely stop voter fraud.
E)to create a nationwide uniform voting system.

Question 43

The willingness to engage in partisan competition separates which two of the participation groups described by Verba and Nie?

A)Campaigners from complete activists
B)Inactives from campaigners
C)Parochial participants from communalists
D)Inactives from parochial participants
E)Communalists from campaigners

Question 44

Hispanic turnout in the United states is lower because

A)Hispanics have lower English proficiency.
B)Hispanics lack experience voting in American elections.
C)Hispanics tend to be poorer and have lower education levels.
D)None of these choices is correct.
E)Lower English proficiency,lack of voting experience,and lower income and education are all true.

Question 45

Youth,low income,and minority status are associated with which of the following participation groups?

A)Inactives
B)Parochial participants
C)Communalists
D)Campaigners
E)Voting specialists

Question 46

Keeping informed about government and politics would be an example of political participation.

Question 47

The text suggests there has been little decrease,and some increase,in the percentage of Americans who

A)campaign.
B)contact government officials.
C)volunteer.
D)work on community issues.
E)do all of these things.

Question 48

Verba and Nie found that about of the population was never active in politics in any way.

A)one-tenth
B)one-fifth
C)one-half
D)two-thirds
E)one-third

Question 49

This presidential election year witnessed the lowest level of voter turnout since 1924.

A)2008
B)2012
C)2004
D)1996
E)1992

Question 50

Two of the participation groups that Verba and Nie describe,campaigners and communalists,differ primarily in their

A)taste for conflict.
B)political ideology.
C)socioeconomic status.
D)general level of participation.
E)intensity of religious sentiment.

Question 51

Efforts to reform voting in the aftermath of the Florida vote-count controversy of 2000 might find particular fault with Congress because it

A)did not require states to develop systems for counting disputed votes.
B)did not provide funds for upgrading voting equipment.
C)stopped short of creating a uniform national voting system.
D)did not provide funds for training election officials.
E)did not investigate names that were not on official registration lists.

Question 52

In the aftermath of the 2002 reforms,voters are to vote for president by

A)paper ballots.
B)lever machines.
C)punch cards.
D)optical scans.
E)All of these choices are true.

Question 53

Compared with voters in the United States,most European voters have the opportunity to cast ballots

A)more frequently,for as many offices.
B)less frequently,for as many offices.
C)less frequently,for fewer offices.
D)more frequently,for fewer offices.
E)more frequently,for more offices.

Question 54

Compared with the rest of the population,voting specialists tend to be

A)younger and more educated.
B)younger and less educated.
C)older and more educated.
D)older and less educated.
E)middle-aged and highly educated.

Question 55

Which of the following statements regarding the Australian ballot is FALSE?

A)It is printed by the government.
B)It appeared first in the states.
C)It appeared in the late 1800s.
D)It is cast in secret.
E)It eliminated vote fraud.

Question 56

The most common form of political participation is

A)voting.
B)contributing money.
C)writing letters to newspapers.
D)attending political rallies.
E)joining political organizations.

Question 57

The steady decline in U.S.voter turnout appears to be the unintentional result of

A)strict voter-registration procedures.
B)the poll tax.
C)the fraudulent reporting of election results.
D)literacy testing.
E)media campaigns.

Question 58

Which of the following participation groups avoids both elections and community groups in its political activity?

A)Voting specialists
B)Campaigners
C)Communalists
D)Parochial participants
E)Inactives

Question 59

Between the completely inactive and the political activists are

A)voting specialists.
B)campaigners.
C)communalists.
D)parochial participants.
E)All of these choices are true.

Question 60

Rates of political participation tend to be higher among those who

A)are employed.
B)have gone to college.
C)are white.
D)are black as opposed to being Hispanic.
E)All of these choices are true.

Question 61

"Floaters" were good for political parties and democracy.

Question 62

Several states permitted women to vote prior to the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment.

Question 63

The Motor Voter Law allows citizens in 25 states to register to vote when they obtain their driver's license.

Question 64

Blacks did not begin to vote in large numbers until passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Question 65

Voter fraud today is more prevalent than in the nineteenth century and helps explain declining voter turnout.

Question 66

In many European nations,voters get to vote just once every four or five years.

Question 67

In areas where many non-English speaking persons live,election authorities can supply ballots to voters that are written in their own language.

Question 68

The Motor Voter Law has clearly led to an increase in the number of registered voters and an increase in voter turnout.

Question 69

Define political participation.Discuss the major forms of political participation in a democracy.

Question 70

Explain the difference between voting age population VAP)and voting eligible population VEP)and how making this distinction impacts our view of recent elections.

Question 71

When the voting age was lowered to eighteen,those eighteen to twenty-one years of age voted in impressive numbers.

Question 72

The VAP is problematic as a baseline measure because some people in that figure are not actually eligible to vote.

Question 73

Writing a letter to the editor would be an example of political participation.

Question 74

Poll taxes and literacy tests were methods used to keep blacks from voting.

Question 75

One theory of why voter turnout started to decline in the early 1900s is that the legal barriers to participation,such as complex registration procedures,started to increase.

Question 76

The rise of the Internet will have little effect on political participation.

Question 77

When VEP is used instead of VAP,estimates of voter turnout tend to decrease.

Question 78

Strict voter registration requirements reduce fraud but also reduce voter turnout.

Question 79

The 2008 presidential election featured a record level of voter turnout among young persons below thirty years of age).

Question 80

Americans typically have higher rates of political participation than citizens in other democracies.