Deck 14: Voting, Campaigns, and Elections

Question 1

Major-party presidential nominations are now determined primarily by ______.

A) each party's slate of electors from the Electoral College
B) Super Tuesday primaries
C) convention delegates selected in party primaries, caucuses, and state conventions
D) the party leaders at the parties' national conventions
E) the public at large in open primaries

Answer 1

C

Question 2

______ is the idealized voting behavior,but ______ more realistically reflects how policy considerations influence voters' decisions.

A) Swing voting; prospective voting
B) Prospective voting; retrospective voting
C) Prospective voting; swing voting
D) Retrospective voting; prospective voting
E) Front-loading; retrospective voting

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Which of the following statements is NOT true concerning the role of issues in citizens' voting decisions?

A) People know where they stand on the "easy" issues but tend to tune out the "complicated" issues.
B) The media do not generally cover issues in depth.
C) Calculated policy decisions by voters are common.
D) Most voters rely on party labels to tell them what they need to know about candidates.
E) People are influenced by policy information.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

The single biggest factor accounting for how people decide to vote is ______.

A) gender
B) candidate characteristics
C) party identification
D) the issues
E) ethnicity

Question 5

A party caucus is a meeting of ______.

A) local party members who choose delegates for the national convention
B) state politicians who send themselves to the national convention
C) voters to decide which parties make it onto the ballot
D) the national party committee to assign delegates to the national convention
E) none of the above

Question 6

Research indicates that ______.

A) state elections have little influence on state public policy
B) the electoral process does a surprisingly good job of directing policy
C) politicians running for Congress usually have little interest in the presidential election
D) presidents have little influence on foreign policy
E) all of the above

Question 7

According to the text,the images that voters have of candidates usually cause voters to ______.

A) struggle to perceive any meaningful differences among presidential candidates
B) make the presidential contest out to be something akin to a beauty or personality contest
C) form clear opinions about candidate qualities that are relevant to governing
D) typically ignore candidate qualities that are relevant to governing
E) choose the more articulate and handsome of presidential contestants

Question 8

A party's effort to inform potential voters and persuade them to vote for that party is known as ______.

A) issue ownership
B) issue advocacy
C) prompting
D) oppo research
E) voter mobilization

Question 9

Elections perform all of the following functions EXCEPT this one:

A) selecting leaders
B) decreasing political efficacy
C) informing the public
D) containing conflict
E) citizen development

Question 10

Citizens' feelings of effectiveness in political affairs is called ______.

A) political efficacy
B) good feelings
C) power
D) legitimacy
E) system stability

Question 11

Those who are LESS likely to vote tend to be ______.

A) poor rather than wealthy
B) older rather than younger
C) college graduates
D) whites
E) relatively wealthy

Question 12

The primary impact of state voter registration laws has been to ______.

A) make it more expensive to vote
B) decrease turnout
C) discourage voters from identifying themselves with a party
D) improve voter awareness of elections
E) prevent fraud

Question 13

______ voting occurs when people base their voting decisions on well-informed opinions and consideration of the future consequences of their votes.

A) Factional
B) Partisan
C) Prospective
D) Retrospective
E) Wedge issue

Question 14

As a method of selecting leaders,democratic elections ensure that the ______.

A) winning candidate will have been chosen by a majority of the voting public
B) best potential candidates will be attracted to the process
C) voters will be able to judge the candidates well
D) leader chosen is the most popular candidate on the ballot
E) selection of leaders will be a smooth and uncontroversial process

Question 15

______ voting occurs when people use their judgment of the current political situation along with the past performance of the incumbents.

A) Retrospective
B) Passive
C) Partisan
D) Prospective
E) Sentimental

Question 16

What method has increased voter registration?

A) registration on the Internet
B) registration at one's place of employment
C) registration by fingerprint
D) registration by phone
E) motor Voter bills

Question 17

Some of the overall decline in voter turnout at the end of the twentieth century was likely due to ______.

A) increasing citizen involvement in community groups
B) the weakened relationship between interest group leaders and political leaders
C) the willingness of citizens to tax themselves to provide important community services
D) societal changes
E) the number of interest groups in a community

Question 18

Party identification is the single most important predictor of how people decide to vote because ______.

A) voters are too unsophisticated to vote in any other fashion
B) it leads people toward prospective issue voting
C) as a benefit, being a partisan means the voter does not need to register to vote, which counteracts one of the costs of voting
D) it directly influences one's vote and indirectly colors the partisan's perceptions of issues and candidates
E) it leads people toward retrospective issue voting

Question 19

The founders created the Electoral College and specified that senators would be chosen by the state legislatures because ______.

A) they feared that the people would band together with like-minded people to fight for their own interests rather make choices based on the public good
B) they feared that powerful elites would dominate elections through the use of superior wealth
C) they thought the only real alternative was to appoint senators and presidents for life
D) allowing direct election of one institution of government was so radical an idea at the time that it never occurred to them to go farther and let the people elect other public officials
E) none of the above

Question 20

Politicians who are thinking about running for the presidency begin their runs by ______.

A) testing the waters unofficially
B) announcing their candidacy
C) acquiring the money to run
D) filing with the Federal Election Commission
E) positioning themselves as credible prospects with the media

Question 21

All of the following statements concerning the Electoral College are true EXCEPT this one:

A) The rules of the Electoral College give all the states importance in presidential elections.
B) Critics argue that the Electoral College is undemocratic.
C) Critics argue that a close election could be decided by a few faithless electors.
D) It distorts candidates' campaign strategies.
E) All the proposed alternatives have problems or at least serious criticisms.

Question 22

Which of the following statements is NOT true about the choice of a vice presidential candidate?

A) Historically, the choice does not seem to have had significant electoral consequences.
B) Presidential candidates weigh the choice carefully.
C) The caliber of the decision about whom to choose as a vice presidential candidate can be viewed as an indication of the other appointments a presidential candidate might make.
D) The choice of the vice presidential nominee is up to the presidential nominee.
E) Traditionally, the vice presidential candidate is from the same region and wing of the party as the presidential candidate.

Question 23

The Constitution dictates that each state has ______.

A) a minimum of two electors
B) fewer electors if the presidential or vice presidential candidates are not from their state
C) a choice of how many electors it will have
D) one elector for each senator and one elector for each representative
E) an equal number of electors

Question 24

Swing voters are ______.

A) the 50 percent of the electorate who are in play during each election
B) those who have changed their political party in the past ten years
C) people who have not made up their minds at the start of the campaign
D) so unpredictable that candidates are better off ignoring them
E) such a miniscule part of the electorate that they can be ignored safely

Question 25

Front-loading affects the selection of a nominee by ______.

A) making success in earlier primaries all the more important in gaining and keeping momentum
B) hurting incumbent presidents who cannot contest their party's primaries as easily as challengers
C) making the performance of candidates at conventions all the more important
D) making money less important in early contests as long as the candidate gets in front of other borrowers for the later primaries
E) making the selection of senators as party nominees much more likely than the selection of governors

Question 26

Delegates to the national conventions are chosen ______.

A) in closed meetings of the party leaders
B) in primary elections and caucuses
C) by national surveys
D) by the party's presidential candidate
E) by the party's cabinet

Question 27

The term convention bump refers to ______.

A) the danger of a front-runner stumbling badly after the convention
B) the staged hoopla surrounding a nominee's acceptance speech
C) the opinion poll spike that most candidates enjoy immediately after the convention
D) persuading delegates assigned to other candidates to vote for the presumptive nominee
E) convincing the candidate's primary-election rivals to support him at the convention

Question 28

To win the presidency,a candidate must do all of the following EXCEPT this:

A) raise large amounts of money before the primaries and caucuses start and while they are going on
B) pick a vice presidential candidate who will win large numbers of votes
C) energize the base of the party
D) focus the general-election campaign on the large, competitive states
E) win the votes of a large percentage of swing voters

Question 29

Faithless electors,as defined by the text,are electors who ______.

A) are regular voters who refuse to vote because they lack political efficacy
B) vote their conscience rather than for the candidate they were pledged to support in the Electoral College
C) have a position of trust with the federal government in violation of the Constitution
D) neglect to vote for any presidential candidate
E) refuse to pledge support to a candidate before the election

Question 30

Typically the three important tasks of the presidential convention are to pick the presidential candidate,______.

A) raise money, and revise the party's rules
B) send out a positive message about that candidate, and raise money for the nominee's fall general-election campaign
C) select the vice presidential candidate, and write the party's platform
D) have a good time, and avoid media attention given to the convention
E) avoid media attention given to the convention, and line up interest group support

Question 31

Because of the Electoral College,presidential candidates generally spend most of their time and resources in ______.

A) competitive states, especially large ones
B) states where there are competitive local races so that they can raise money for their own general-election campaigns
C) coastal and border states because they are the so-called blue states
D) California, Texas, and New York because they are the biggest states
E) states where they have a comfortable lead in order to extend that lead

Question 32

Modern campaigns are run by professional staff because ______.

A) the party campaign committee cannot provide the technical services needed in the modern campaign
B) the party political committees cannot be trusted
C) the party organization is too busy trying to win state and local elections
D) presidential candidates believe a professional staff reflects better on their credentials for the presidency
E) party political committees would drive away independent voters

Question 33

What is a key effect of Electoral College votes being counted on a winner-take-all basis in all but two states?

A) Candidates have to raise considerable amounts of money during the general election campaign.
B) The electoral vote margin exaggerates the popular vote margin, which then legitimizes the winner's victory.
C) Despite being different votes, electoral- and popular-vote margins tend to mirror each other closely.
D) Electoral votes are won almost too easily by third-party candidates.
E) Candidates are forced to visit all or nearly all states in order to sew up the election.

Question 34

______ determine(s)how delegates are distributed by the primaries.

A) Party rules
B) Federal statutes
C) The Constitution
D) Municipal regulations
E) State statutes

Question 35

The use of issues in campaign strategy is about ______.

A) setting the agenda
B) persuading the public of the value of your solutions to problems while ignoring your opponent
C) debating issue positions with your opponent
D) avoiding all talk of issues
E) taking both sides of controversial issues or being as vague as possible

Question 36

Front-loading is the process of ______.

A) scheduling presidential primaries earlier in the primary season
B) encouraging one's supporters to vote early on the primary-election day
C) biasing the nomination process so that senators go to the front of the line
D) presidents declaring their candidacy early to scare off potential opponents
E) requiring all fundraising to occur in the year prior to parties' primaries and caucuses

Question 37

According to the textbook,what is considered "winning" in primary elections?

A) having an absolute majority of votes in every primary
B) beating expectations and gathering momentum, even if the candidate did not come in first in the primary or caucus
C) winning only the Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary but no other primaries
D) winning all primaries except the Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary because these contests have such little influence on the race
E) taking first place in every primary or caucus on a particular day

Question 38

Oppo research refers to an investigation of the ______.

A) electorate's mood prior to a campaign
B) mistakes of past campaigns
C) best possible media strategy
D) other candidate's background, often to find negative information
E) opposing party's campaign strategy

Question 39

In the presidential nomination process,______.

A) more states use caucuses than use primary elections to choose delegates to the national convention
B) front-loading favors the candidate who goes into the nomination process as the front-runner
C) the complicated and unpredictable scheduling of primaries and caucuses favors the candidate who goes into the process without a set strategy for winning the nomination
D) the goal in the primaries is always to come in first because the media usually call anything else a defeat
E) the national party rules of both major parties require that the states allocate delegates on a proportional basis according to how many votes each candidate won in the state's primary election

Question 40

According to the textbook,for candidates,the goal of presidential campaigns is to ______.

A) persuade their party members to show up at the polls
B) convert voters affiliated with the other party
C) convince undecided and swing voters to support them
D) destroy their opponent's credibility
E) mobilize their bases and entice swing voters to vote for them

Question 41

According to the text,social connectedness has been increasing over the past several decades.

Question 42

Wedge issues are controversial matters ______.

A) that differentiate the two major candidates
B) that are generally ignored in campaigns because they are too explosive
C) that undecided voters use to choose their preferred candidate
D) on which most voters and candidates share the same position
E) that one party uses to split voters in the other party

Question 43

All of the following statements concerning the media in election campaigns are true EXCEPT this one:

A) Debates usually have more impact on voter evaluation of the candidate than any other event of the campaign.
B) Campaigns attempt to maximize opportunities for free coverage.
C) The public's reliance on campaign advertising has increased drastically with the rise of television.
D) Candidates do not like the fact that news organizations perpetuate horse-race journalism.
E) The Internet magnifies the importance of every error by a candidate, no matter how trivial.

Question 44

When analyzing campaign advertisements,one should ask all of the following questions EXCEPT this one:

A) Who created the message?
B) Are the accusations relevant to the campaign or office in question?
C) Is the accusation or attack timely?
D) Is the ad true?
E) Does the message convey a fair charge that can be answered?

Question 45

In the 2010 midterm,racial and ethnic differences reemerged with turnout among non-Hispanic whites surpassing African American turnout by 5 percent and Latino turnout by 17 percent.

Question 46

Negative advertising ______.

A) is strictly an act of desperation and typically signifies that the candidate using these ads is far behind in the polls
B) lacks any informational content, so it attracts only the least well-informed voter
C) is used only by challengers because presidents do not want to be seen as lowering themselves to such tactics
D) registers more quickly and is remembered longer than information from positive advertisements
E) is accepted as fact by the public in campaigns for lower office but is rejected in presidential elections

Question 47

Basing voting decisions on reactions to past performance is called retrospective voting.

Question 48

______ refers to an investigation of the other candidate's background,often to find negative information.

A) Oppo research
B) A sting operation
C) Undercover research
D) Political espionage

Question 49

In recent get-out-the-vote efforts,parties have ______.

A) placed all their efforts on television and radio commercials
B) put more effort and technology into grassroots mobilization efforts
C) failed to merge new technologies with older forms of voter mobilization
D) decreased their efforts because the public has not been responding
E) curtailed most of these efforts in order to bankroll their television advertising

Question 50

Geography is the single most important predictor of how people decide to vote.

Question 51

A party's effort to inform potential voters and persuade them to vote for that party is known as voter mobilization.

Question 52

The media interpret election outcomes by ______.

A) displaying evidence of "buyer's remorse" and quickly becoming critical of the winner
B) lifting assessments of the election from political scientists and historians
C) quickly developing a standard, though incomplete, explanation of the complex decision made by the American electorate
D) providing vastly different explanations for the election's outcome, which means no one is sure why the winning candidate succeeded
E) explaining the election outcome based on their ideological biases, which means some claim the winner has a mandate, and others claim the winner lacks a mandate

Question 53

A ______ issue is one on which the parties differ in their perspectives and their proposed solutions.

A) position
B) valence
C) momentum
D) wedge
E) third-rail

Question 54

Elections can only ensure that the leader chosen is ______.

A) the most popular on the ballot.
B) the most fit to serve.
C) going to follow the will of the people.

Question 55

The Citizens United case reversed the McCain-Feingold Act.This Supreme Court case says that corporations can now ______.

A) contribute no money to interest groups
B) contribute no money to advertising for or against presidential candidates
C) engage in broadcast campaigns
D) spend no money on scientific research involving animal experimentation
E) spend money on advertising only if it is from a special PAC fund

Question 56

According to the authors of the textbook,the key advantages of the "political specialization view" of modern democracy include all of the following EXCEPT this one:

A) It is reasonably stable.
B) It responds to changes of issues and candidates.
C) The electorate as a whole cares.
D) The electorate as a whole does not care so intensely that any significant portion of the citizenry will challenge the results of an election.
E) It protects the interests of those who are least likely to be the activist or pluralist citizens.

Question 57

To receive government matching funds in primary elections,candidates must ______.

A) reach particular requirements on numbers of petitions signed, funds raised, and public support in the polls
B) raise a specified amount of money from at least twenty states
C) put up at least 20 percent of their yearly income as collateral
D) submit petitions signed by five thousand people in twenty states
E) receive at least 20 percent in three separate polls over a month in Iowa

Question 58

Who may collect government matching funds during the general election?

A) qualified presidential candidates who choose to accept them
B) only the nominees of the two major parties
C) major-party candidates and any third-party candidate who has polling rates of support that exceed 10 percent
D) any natural-born American who has received the nomination of any American political party, no matter how minor the party
E) any candidate who promises to visit at least forty states during the general-election campaign

Question 59

A valence issue is an issue ______.

A) on which most voters and candidates share the same position
B) that sharply divides the two candidates
C) on which the two candidates agree but on which the public is sharply divided
D) that never gets addressed and therefore hangs there like window dressing
E) that splits voters within one party

Question 60

Campaign contributions donated directly to candidates and,thus,limited by federal election laws are referred to as ______.

A) hard money.
B) soft money.
C) a slush fund.
D) easy cash.

Question 61

In 2012,the central strategic campaign objective of the Republican challenger,Mitt Romney,was to cast the election as a referendum on Obama's culpability for a slow economic recovery.Since almost everyone felt the economy was in poor shape and improvement was slower than we would like,this was supposed to push voters to cast a ballot for change.The Obama campaign had the challenge of contending that the state of the current economy was due to factors beyond Obama's control and changing the subject to differing views between his and Romney's visions for the country.Obama won by a landslide.How did Romney so greatly misjudge the American public?

Question 62

Why is party identification the single largest factor that determines how someone votes?

Question 63

How have primaries changed over time in their importance to presidential selection? How do they affect the presidential selection process now?

Question 64

What features distinguish voters from nonvoters? Why don't some people vote,and what is being done to improve voter turnout?

Question 65

A(n)______ issue is one on which the parties differ in their perspectives and their proposed solutions.

Question 66

The authors of the textbook argue for a "political specialization view" of the role citizens play in modern democracy.Describe this model.Explain how it compares with other models of citizen participation.What is the major weakness of the model?

Question 67

______ voting occurs when people base their voting decisions on well-informed opinions and consideration of the future consequences of their votes.

Question 68

Most states use the ______ election today.

Question 69

______ are people who have not made up their minds at the start of the campaign.

Question 70

What are the major functions of elections in a democratic society? List and discuss each fully.

Question 71

Discuss the different strategies used during presidential elections.What are the dynamics at the pre-primary,primary,and general-election stages? How does the primary-election strategy differ from the strategy of the general-election campaign?

Question 72

Explain how the Electoral College works and why it is unlikely that this system will be changed.

Question 73

Explain how candidates and the media each interpret election results.How do winning candidates interpret the outcomes? Describe the media's role in explaining the outcomes.Do either the media or candidates provide a realistic picture of what the election outcome meant? Why or why not?