American Government Poli ch 9

Among those who don't see low voter turnout as a problem, the argument is that low voting rates signify that voters

are satisfied with the status quo.

According to some scholars, democracies with low voter turnout are more likely to breed

authoritarian leaders. corruption.

What specific advantage do states with early presidential primaries have over states with primaries late in the nomination process?

greater ability to determine the eventual nominee

Pursuant to the ruling in Citizens United, corporations and labor unions

have the same First Amendment free speech rights as individuals.

Experts believe that the correlation between income level and the likelihood of voting may be attributed to the fact that

lower-income individuals believe government does not listen to people like them. lower-income individuals tend not to have as much leisure time.

Voters who select a candidate based upon his or her campaign promise to reduce the national debt are using which method of candidate evaluation?

prospective voting

A 527 committee's purpose is to

raise money for political activities.

Criticisms of voting by mail include which of the following?

undermining feelings of civic engagement voting before all information about a candidate is available increased chance of fraud less privacy

Which of the following is not correct about the presidential candidate nomination process?

If a nominee is not determined at the convention, Congress will vote to determine the nominee.

Which one of the following people is least likely to vote?

25-year-old high school dropout who works part-time

Which two of the following ethnic groups did Hillary Clinton focus on during the 2016 presidential election?

African Americans Hispanics

A secret ballot prepared by government, distributed to all eligible voters, and counted by government officials in an unbiased fashion is known as a(n) ______ ballot.

Australian

Approximately how much money did Enron contribute to federal and state party-building activities, leading to public outcry and the passage of campaign finance reform?

$4 million

The number of Electoral College votes required to be officially elected as president of the United States is

270

In ______ of the 50 states, registered voters can cast a ballot in person during a designated period before Election Day.

34

What is the voter turnout rate of U.S. citizens with the lowest income level?

50 to 60 percent

How many electors are in the Electoral College?

538

In the 2016 presidential election, the turnout rate was

61 percent.

Which one of the following people is more likely to vote compared to the others?

65-year-old white attorney

What is the voter turnout among U.S. citizens with the highest income levels?

85 percent

A presidential primary election strategy that was aimed at increasing the political importance of southern and rural states became known as

Super Tuesday.

Which of the following rulings did the Supreme Court make when reviewing the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act?

Advertising within the 30- or 60-day window could not be prohibited.

The language "the candidate...has a First Amendment right to engage in the discussion of public issues and vigorously and tirelessly to advocate his own election" is from which U.S. Supreme Court case?

Buckley v. Valeo

Which of the following best defines rational choice theory?

Choices are based on individual assessment of costs and benefits.

In what month do the Electoral College delegates officially meet and select the president of the United States?

December

Which act banned partisan activities by most federal government employees?

Hatch Act

Critics blame which of the following structural elements of U.S. elections for low voter turnout?

Elections are held too frequently. Elections are held on weekdays.

True or false: In order to win a federal general election, candidates must secure a majority of the popular vote.

False Reason: The candidate with the greatest number of votes wins the general election, especially when more than two candidates are seeking the office.

The Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) as amended in 1974 created which enforcement mechanism for campaign finance laws?

Federal Election Commission

Under which presidential administration did the Teapot Dome scandal take place?

Harding

Which of the following accurately characterizes absentee voting?

Increasingly, states permit absentee voting because it is more convenient for the voter.

What was the result of the Federal Corrupt Practices Act of 1925, which aimed to regulate campaign finance as a result of the Teapot Dome scandal?

It was ineffective because it did not have an enforcement mechanism.

Because of Donald Trump's rhetoric during the 2016 campaign, a drop in participation by which of the following groups was most surprising?

Latinos

Which of the following is an example of a date on which general elections in the U.S. can never occur?

November 1

Which state has significantly increased voter turnout by eliminating physical polling locations?

Oregon

A report issued jointly in January 2017 by U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies stated with "high confidence" that the government of which nation had conducted a sophisticated campaign designed to influence the 2016 presidential election?

Russia

Which of the following is true of voting by absentee ballot?

The requirements vary from state to state.

Evidence of intentional voter suppression in the 2018 midterm elections includes which of the following?

The suspension of 50,000 voter registrations in Georgia, a disproportionate amount of them from African Americans. The closing of nearly 1,000 polling places, many of them in southern black communities.

True or false: Unlike 527 groups, 501(c)4 groups are not required to disclose their donors.

True Reason: 501(c)4s go largely unregulated by the FEC, and their activities are not subject to the transparency requirements of other interest groups and campaign organizations.

True or false: A candidate can win the popular vote but lose the presidency in the Electoral College.

True Reason: This happened in 2016, when Hillary Clinton led Donald Trump by 3 million votes but still lost the presidency.

How does the nature of political campaigns in the United States impact people's likelihood of voting?

U.S. campaigns are long and drawn out, and voters lose interest.

Which explains an increase in voter turnout?

Voter efficacy is high.

Which was a legal challenge to the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act of 2002?

a ban on independent issue ads

Before the Citizens United ruling, which factor contributed to the rapid increase in the number and influence of PACs on campaigns?

a court case determining that campaign contributions are a form of speech Reason: A law was written to change this. Citizens United came after this.

When does the general election begin?

after the party conventions

The U.S. Supreme Court held in Buckley v. Valeo that

campaign spending by a candidate is protected speech.

Which of the following were provisions of the 1939 Hatch Act?

capped contributions from an individual to a campaign committee limited the amount of money a group could spend on an election banned partisan political activity by most federal government employees

Who or what chooses most delegates to the national convention, excluding super delegates?

citizens who vote in the primary election

Which type of primary leads to increased political party discipline by ensuring that voters cannot select nominees from the opposite party?

closed

Rational actors weigh the ______ of voting, such as the time and effort it takes, with the ______, such as electing their chosen candidate.

costs; benefits

Which of the following provisions were included in the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA)?

created an enforcement mechanism for federal campaign finance laws provided a voluntary tax checkoff system to fund presidential election contributions provided public financing for qualified candidates agreeing to spending limits

Candidates who decide to increase the amount of negative campaigning directed toward their opponents can expect which of the following results?

decreased voter turnout increased issue identification differences between candidates

Popular voting in presidential primaries results in the selection of

delegates.

What reasons may typically be given by a voter in order to obtain an absentee ballot?

disability work military service convenience

The characteristic that best predicts voting participation is

education level.

According to some, which of the following would increase voter turnout?

establishing a national voting holiday

An advantage of voting by mail is

increased voter turnout.

Typically, the likelihood of voting ______ as education increases.

increases

The situation in which one candidate already holds the office that is up for reelection is called

incumbency

Campaign expenditures that are not a coordinated part of a candidate's campaign are known as

independent expenditures.

In 2010, the Supreme Court ruled that individuals, corporations, and labor unions may spend unlimited amounts of money advocating for candidates as long as the expenditures are

independent of the campaign.

Nevada's proposal for an opt-out system of voter registration on the state's general election ballot in 2018 is an example of a(n)

initiative.

The computerized voting machine simulates the elimination of the last-place vote-getter in a(n)

instant runoff election

PACs can spend money for advertising for a candidate so long as such spending

is not coordinated with a candidate's campaign.

Young voters are

less likely to vote, due to their mobility.

Nonvoters are typically characterized by which factor?

low efficacy

Nonvoting impacts our democratic system by doing which of the following?

maintaining low efficacy making elections less representative increasing the likelihood that some groups will be ignored in future campaigns

The effect of the reforms enacted after the national political party conventions in 1968 was to

make the delegates more representative by setting aside slots for different groups. significantly increase the influence of party voters.

Which factor is responsible for the increase in campaign expenses?

media expenses

In the 2018 midterm elections, complaints emerged over alleged efforts to suppress voter turnout of which of the following?

minority voters in the South

The meddling in the 2016 presidential elections violated the idea that nations have the right to self-rule without interference from the outside, which is best referred to as

national sovereignty.

The idea behind the closed primary is that

only party members should choose who should lead them in the general election.

A state that permits all registered voters, regardless of party affiliation, to vote in a primary election has what type of primary system?

open

Which single factor most often determines how a voter will vote?

party identification

In attempting to influence the vote itself, the meddling by Russia challenged which fundamental concept of U.S. democracy?

popular sovereignty

Which one of the following is a key factor in determining which candidate a citizen will vote for?

positions that are clearly different between candidates

In a ______, voters nominate the person who will represent their party in a run for office.

primary

Voters who determine how they will vote based upon the voting record of the incumbent are using which method of candidate evaluation?

retrospective voting

In some states, a(n) ______ election is held if no candidate receives a majority of the vote in a primary.

runoff

Which single factor is most important when voters cast ballots based upon policy issues?

salience

Despite many other differences among the states, which of the following is/are in use no matter which U.S. state the vote is held in?

secret ballots

What was the main tool used by the Russian government to meddle in the 2016 presidential election?

social media

Which campaign finance loophole was exploited by a corporation, leading to the passage of the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act of 2002?

soft money

What can citizens do if they are seriously dissatisfied with an officeholder's performance?

sponsor a recall election

A political organization that uses contributions from individuals, corporations, and labor unions to spend unlimited sums independently of campaigns to influence the outcomes of elections is a(n)

super PAC.

The Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission decision resulted in the rise of

super PACs.

With regard to voter turnout, African Americans

surpassed white turnout rates during the the Obama presidential campaigns.

A disadvantage of voting by mail is

that the final few days of the campaign process are rendered less relevant.

According to rational choice theory, why might some citizens choose not to vote?

the benefits they get from voting are very low voting is too inconvenient or costly their candidate may not win

If all people made the "rational choice,"

the majority of people would be unlikely to vote.

The degree of competition in the general election is influenced by which of the following?

the presence and strength of incumbency the level of the office the degree of party competition

The proportion of eligible voters who actually voted is referred to as

the turnout rate.

What is the primary reason cited by persons aged 18 to 24 for not voting?

too busy

A general election determines

who should hold office.

In a primary election, candidates for office run against challengers from

within their party.