American Government Exam 3
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- 1.America’s political parties originated in a rivalry between Alexander Hamilton, a promoter of a strong national government and commercial interests, and Thomas Jefferson, a supporter of states’ rights and small landowners. Which of the following is true of the parties they formed?
- A.
Jefferson’s supporters formed the Federalist party and Hamilton’s followers became the Republicans.
- B.
Jefferson’s supporters formed the Democratic party and Hamilton’s followers became the Republicans.
- C.
Jefferson’s followers became the Whigs and Hamilton’s supporters formed the Federalist party.
- D.
Jefferson’s supporters formed the Republican party and Hamilton’s followers became the Federalists.
- 2.A political party is
- A.
An organized membership that seeks to further its members’ interests through political action.
- B.
An organization through which an interest group raises and distributes funds for election purposes.
- C.
An ongoing coalition of interests joined together in an effort to get its candidates for public office elected under a common label.
- D.
None of the above
- 3.Proportional representation systems encourage the formation of small parties by enabling parties to
- A.
Win legislative seats even though they do not win a plurality of votes in elections.
- B.
Receive campaign funds from the government in proportion to their support in opinion polls.
- C.
Share in patronage appointments which serve as a lure to campaign workers.
- D.
Advertise on television.
- 4.In recent decades, party loyalties have weakened and the number of voters who call themselves Independents has risen substantially. In fact, Independents now account for roughly one-third of voters in the U.S.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 5.The major reason for the persistence of the American two-party system is
- A.
There are naturally only two sides to political disputes.
- B.
Regional conflict.
- C.
The existence of single-member election districts.
- D.
Proportional representation.
- 6.The Democratic coalition today includes the following groups except
- A.
Women.
- B.
African Americans.
- C.
Hispanic Americans.
- D.
The Christian Coalition.
- 7.In recent presidential elections, which party’s platform has supported school prayer and been opposed to abortion?
- A.
Democratic
- B.
Republican
- C.
Green
- D.
Reform
- 8.In California, the deadline for voter registration is ___ days before and election.
- A.
15
- B.
30
- C.
45
- D.
60
- 9.An ideology is
- A.
A person’s ingrained sense of loyalty to a political party
- B.
A consistent pattern of opinion on particular issues that stems from a core or basic belief
- C.
A process of political socialization that takes place through families, schools, mass media, and events
- D.
None of the above
- 10.There are predominantly four ideological types in the U.S. Individuals who think that government should be limited in its programs and who feel that government should use its power to uphold traditional values are called
- A.
Liberals
- B.
Conservatives
- C.
Populists
- D.
Libertarians
- 11.Those who would use the government for the purpose of economic redistribution but not for the purpose of supporting traditional values over less conventional ones are known as
- A.
Liberals
- B.
Conservatives
- C.
Populists
- D.
Libertarians
- 12.Individuals who are reluctant to use the government either as a means of economic redistribution or as a means of favoring particular social values are called
- A.
Liberals
- B.
Conservatives
- C.
Populists
- D.
Libertarians
- 13.Those who would use the government both as a means of redistribution and for the purpose of guarding traditional values are known as
- A.
Liberals
- B.
Conservatives
- C.
Populists
- D.
Libertarians
- 14.Most studies on the influence of ideology on public opinion agree that
- A.
Americans overwhelmingly identify themselves as liberals.
- B.
Americans are highly sophisticated in their political thinking.
- C.
Only a minority of Americans understand and apply ideological frames of reference.
- D.
Americans are highly consistent in their political thinking.
- 15.There is a geographic in the distribution of ideological types in the U.S. For example, liberals are heavily concentrated in the South, while conservatives are on the coasts and in large cities.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 16.The process by which individuals acquire their political opinions is called
- A.
Political culture.
- B.
Political assimilation.
- C.
Political socialization.
- D.
Socio-economic change.
- 17.Which of the following statements is true?
- A.
Democrats are more likely than Republicans to support pro-business measures.
- B.
Republicans are more likely than Democrats to support social welfare programs.
- C.
Republicans are more likely than Democrats to support progressive taxation.
- D.
Democrats are more likely than Republicans to support progressive taxation.
- 18.Regular voters are characterized by
- A.
A strong sense of alienation that motivates them to try to change things.
- B.
A strong sense of civic duty.
- C.
A desire to use government to help others.
- D.
A strong sense of independence that motivates them to try to defeat incumbents.
- 19.Which group of Americans has the lowest rate of voter turnout?
- A.
Those 60 and older
- B.
Those 30 and younger
- C.
Men
- D.
Women
- 20.Voter identification cards find the most support among
- A.
Democrats.
- B.
Republicans.
- C.
Libertarians.
- D.
Liberals.
- 21.In comparison with today’s newspapers, early American newspapers were
- A.
Written by hand.
- B.
Less political.
- C.
Supported by political parties.
- D.
More objective.
- 22.According to your textbook, the adoption of voter identification cards by several states
- A.
Will likely cause a decline in voter turnout.
- B.
Is intended to further the gains of the Motor Voter law.
- C.
Will increase the voting power of poorer citizens.
- D.
Was a response to well documented cases of widespread voter fraud.
- 23.By definition, the interest group system consists of all interests that are ___ and seek ___ goals.
- A.
Organized; political
- B.
Cohesive; narrow
- C.
Mobilized; ideological
- D.
Small; narrow
- 24.The yellow journalism of 1900 was characterized by
- A.
Prejudice against Asian people and countries.
- B.
An emphasis on sensationalism as a way of selling newspapers.
- C.
A desire to present the news in an objective manner.
- D.
An unwillingness to take editorial positions on political issues.
- 25.Education is strong predictor of voter turnout. Persons with a college education are much more likely to vote than are persons with a grade school education.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 26.Voter turnout in the U.S. appears to be unrelated to economic status. High and low income Americans are equally likely to vote.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 27.In U.S. presidential elections, retrospective voters generally judge incumbent candidates based on _____.
- A.
Opinion polls
- B.
Economic conditions
- C.
Their policies
- D.
Their leadership skills
- 28.Congress sets the requirements for who can vote in federal elections.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 29.Prospective voting is characterized by
- A.
A sudden shift in the vote from one party to another.
- B.
Choices based on party loyalty.
- C.
Choices based on government’s performance.
- D.
Choices based on awareness of the candidates’ positions on issues.
- 30.Federal law limits the amounts of money that can be contributed by individuals, political action committees, and political parties to the campaigns of candidates for federal office.
- A.
True
- B.
False
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