Topic 4 Gov.
If you want to participate in absentee voting in Texas, what should you do?
Go to your early polling place any time from 17 to 4 days before the election and cast your vote.
Which of the following statements is true regarding the voting-eligible population (VEP) voter turnout calculation?
It eliminates ineligible groups.
How does the salary for legislators in Texas compare with that paid to legislators in the other nine most populous states in the United States?
It is the lowest salary for legislators.
Why do political scientists prefer to use the voting-age population (VAP) to calculate voter turnout?
It makes it easier to compare states.
Switching from a partisan election system to a nonpartisan election system for judicial selection would result in which of the following?
It would reduce the cost of campaigns. It would eliminate straight-ticket voting
_____media is a means of communication that reaches many individuals.
Mass
Members of state boards and commissions are ______.
Members of state boards and commissions are ______.
______ courts hear all cases involving violations of city ordinances.
Municipal
A(n) ____ registration system is one that keeps citizens on the voter registration list without requiring them to reregister every year.
Permanent
After a falling out with the _______ Democratic Party, resigned his congressional seat and was reelected in a special election in 1981 as a Republican.
Phil Gramm
What is the literal meaning of "democracy"?
Rule by the people
The time and method of conducting primary elections in Texas is set by the ______.
Texas Election Code
Which of the following is true of the merit system of judicial appointment?
There is little evidence that it results in judges who are more competent.
The use of grand juries is required by ______.
U.S. Constitution
The _____ _____Act is a federal law aimed at preventing racial discrimination in the operation of voter registration and elections at the state level.
Voting Rights
What was the white primary?
a practice that excluded African Americans from the Democratic primary
A civil case is typically decided using which standard of proof?
a preponderance of the evidence
A grand jury is ______.
a screening body for criminal cases
The process that allows a person to vote before the regular election is known as _____voting.
absentee
Even after the poll tax was abolished in 1966, Texas still had a(n) ___registration system, which meant that voters were required to register each year between October 1 and January 31.
annual
In order to be elected governor in the state of Texas you must be ______.
at least 30 years old a citizen of the United States a resident of Texas for five years before election
How does Texas compare to the rest of the nation in terms of the percentage of the voting-eligible population participating in elections?
below the national average
When poll taxes were legal in Texas, when did they have to be paid?
between October and January each year
The nominating election in which voters could switch parties between offices was a(n) ______ primary.
blanket
The system that allowed voters to switch parties between offices and was ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court was known as a(n) _____ primary.
blanket
Multimember districts tend to promote ______.
broader representation
The term ______ implies a hierarchy of offices with levels of power leading to a centralized controlling authority.
bureaucracy
The collection, dissemination, and analysis of news and information by the general public, especially by means of the Internet, is called _____ journalism.
citizen
Although statutes may create general requirements, courts often ask if there are special circumstances that should lead the court to deal with a particular individual differently. This can be described as ______.
countermajoritarianism
______ courts primarily hear intermediate criminal and civil cases
county
When voters leave their party and vote in the other party's primary, it is known as ___voting.
crossover
The names of individuals on a voting list who are registered at a certain address but no longer live there are called
deadwood
What is the result of having "deadwood" on voter registration lists?
distorted counts of registered voters
The makeup of a multi-appointment board is designed to ______.
ensure that no single individual dominates the selection process
Interviews with citizens just after they have voted in an election are referred to as polls.
exit
The payment that is required in order to get a candidate's name on the primary or general election ballot is known as a
filing fee
Trial court judges are elected for ______ terms, and appellate court judges are elected for ______ terms.
four-year; six-year
____ is the media's attempts to focus attention on certain events and place them in context for meaning.
framing
What did "freedom of the press" mean at the time of the founding of the United States?
freedom to use an actual printing press
Mass media filter down all of what is happening in a given community into a specific set of news that is then transmitted to an audience. This is called ______. Multiple choice question. priming
gatekeeping
Which of the following is a factor in the lack of party competition in Texas's elections?
gerrymandering
Many Texas judges receive their initial seats on the courts via appointment by the Texas
governor
Using the VEP turnout rate, participation in recent presidential elections appears ______ previously determined using the VAP measure.
higher than
Some people do not vote because they feel their contribution is not pivotal in a large-scale election. In this instance, individual voting is considered ______.
irrational
Which of the following best characterizes a "public"?
its communicative nature
The ______ powers of governors include the ability to issue pardons, executive clemency, and parole for citizens convicted of a crime.
judicial
The state district courts in Texas are created by the ______.
legislature
Requirements that voters own property were applied mostly to ______ elections.
local
The petition requirements in Texas law ______ independent candidates to gather signatures and be placed on the ballot.
make it difficult for
The Texas legislature has ______ permanent and session-only staff than most other states.
more
Which primary type fosters crossover voting?
open
The main purpose guiding the Sunset Advisory Commission is to provide ______ to government operations.
oversight
What formal action allows some state legislatures to recall a bill to answer a governor's objections to it?
partial veto
Influence on government based on some combination of numbers of people; wealth, social norms; ideas; force and violence; and government actions is referred to as ___ ___
political power
In which contradictory ways do Americans believe that the law should function?
politically neutral and responsive to the electorate
At what point in Texas history was the idea of electing almost all officeholders reintroduced?
post-reconstruction
The rulings of appellate and supreme courts serve as especially important ______ for future legal decisions.
precedents
In Texas, who follows the lieutenant governor in the order of succession?
president pro tempore of the Texas Senate
In 1935, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the Texas Democratic Party to hold white primaries, stating that political parties were ______.
private organizations
The news media, in particular, operate as an institution within the _____ sphere.
public
The _____ is a community's arena. It allows individuals to freely discuss and identify societal problems and influence political action.
public sphere
In Texas, which of the following is required at least 30 days prior to an election?
registration
In which of the following areas are judges that are appointed by the governor considered to be weak?
responsiveness
Those who oppose voter ID laws believe that such laws ______.
restrict the right to vote
Under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, what did Texas have to do in order to change its voting laws?
seek preclearance from the Justice Department or U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
Which primary format allows voters to register or change their party affiliation on Election Day?
semi-closed
How is the primary system in Texas most commonly labeled?
semi-open
At the end of its 140-day session, the Texas legislature must adjourn. This is referred to as
sine dine
Judicial agencies are under the supervision of the ______.
state supreme court
In 2015, the FCC reclassified broadband Internet transmission as a _____, which allowed to regulate ISPs, but the protections offered by that decision ended in December 2017.
telecommunications service
How do you calculate turnout using the voting-age population (VAP)?
the number of people casting votes divided by the number of residents 18 and older
In which of the following ways do political scientists calculate voter turnout?
the number of people casting votes divided by the voting-eligible population the percentage of registered voters who cast a ballot the number of residents casting votes divided by the voting-age population
The funding Texas legislators receive for staff salaries and office expenses is set by ______.
the senators and representatives at the beginning of each session
The Legislative Budget Board is made up of which of the following?
the speaker of the house four senators the lieutenant governor four representatives
In a criminal case, ______ brings the case against someone accused of committing a crime against society
the state
Today, we use "press" and "media" somewhat interchangeably. At the founding of the nation, ______.
these two words had more nuanced meanings
Texas's political culture encourages which of the following to vote?
those who already have political power
What is the point of a push poll?
to attack a candidate or issue
The history of restricting access to voting in Texas is very much in line with Texas's ______ political culture.
traditionalistic
Approximately what portion of American adults use at least one form of social media to share information?
two-thirds
The media are typically categorized by ______.
type of message and type of media
Because voters elect many important state administrators, the Texas governor's ability to control administrative functions through appointive and removal powers is ______.
weak
Political power stems from which of the following sources?
wealth social norms laws and regulations numbers
The effect of public opinion on the increasing number of dismissals for small amounts of marijuana possession demonstrates that ______.
when conflict arises, public opinion is mobilized and affects the political elite
Government authority in Texas resides ______.
within many independent state agencies
The Texas House of ___Representatives has members.
150
Early voting in Texas begins_____ days before an election and closes ____ days before the election.
17 &4
Poll taxes were used in Texas until ______.
1966
In what era were property ownership requirements finally eliminated in Texas?
1970's
The state legislature can override a line-item veto by a ______ vote of each house
2/3
Currently, the Texas governor's staff numbers approximately ______.
275
How many levels of courts do most state court systems have?
3
The Texas Senate____ has members.
31
In order to qualify as governor in Texas, how long does one have to live in the state preceding the election?
5 yrs
How many separate state jurisdictions exist side by side with the federal courts?
50
In Texas the Court of Criminal ______ focuses on criminal cases, while the Texas_______ Court focuses on civil cases.
Appeals, Supreme
Which of the following describes the most important difference between trial and appellate courts?
Appellate courts decide cases based on points of law.
What is an example of an ex officio board or commission?
Budget Execution Committee Legislative Redistricting Board Bond Review Board