Government Quizlet
Based on the data above, which group has the highest percentage of those responding that they go online "almost constantly"?
18-29 year olds
Which of the following statements best explains how candidate-centered campaigns have weakened the influence of political parties on the political process?
Candidates can raise campaign funds by appealing to voters and PACs directly
Which term accurately describes the presidential electoral change brought about by the permanent switch of many conservative white southerners from the Democratic party to the Republican party in the mid 1960s?
Party realignment
Which of the following best explains the function of the platforms of the two major US political parties?
Platforms are a set of general principles, goals, and strategies designed to give voters a sense of what candidates believe in and will address if elected
Selina voted for Senator Bruce Wayne (D-NY) in 2008 and was unhappy with his performance in office because he didn't fix the economy. So in the 2014 midterm elections, Selina decides to vote for Barbara Kean, a Republican candidate. Which model of voting behavior does this best represent?
Retrospective voting
Which of the following describes the message in the political cartoon?
A risk of incorporating a third party's agenda is that the third party's platform may eclipse the dominant party's platform
Which of the following scenarios is an example of how the media can act as a linkage institution?
A television network airs the results of public opinion poll projecting the winner of the 2016 presidential election
Which of the following scenarios is an example of a way that one of the major political parties can negatively impact a third party's chance of winning? Choose 1 answer:
Add issues that concern third-party voters into their platforms
"We advocate abolishing the term "citizen journalist." These people can call themselves "citizen news gatherers," but it is no more appropriate to call them citizen journalists than it would be to sit before a citizen judge or be operated on by a citizen brain surgeon. Because of declining revenues, newspapers, magazines and TV stations actually think they can get these "volunteers" to replace the professionals . . . that they can abandon their print editions, and have bloggers post without covering stories as they happen. Yes, there are a million news blogs, but only one New York Times. But to continue its reputation, the Times must uphold traditional editorial principles. So must we all." -Editorial, The Digital Journalist, 2009 Based on the text, which of the following statements would the author most likely agree with?
Although bloggers can cover stories as they happen, they do not have the training to provide good quality news coverage
Which of the following is a consequence of consumer-driven media outlets?
An increase in sensational stories and attack journalism rather than factual reporting
". . . without debate, without criticism, no administration and no country can succeed—and no republic can survive . . . that is why our press was protected by the First Amendment--the only business in America specifically protected by the Constitution . . . " President John F. Kennedy, The President and the Press: Address before the American Newspaper Publishers Association, April 27, 1961 Source: jfklibrary.org Based on the excerpt above, which of the following statements would Kennedy have most likely agreed with in terms of both the ideals of, and challenges for, the US republic?
An independent media must provide accurate information and commentary that uphold democratic principles and civil society
Which of the following best explains the danger that "attack journalism" poses to political participation?
By treating government officials and candidates as targets to be stalked in pursuit of scandal, attack journalists create the impression that all politicians are ineffective and untrustworthy
Based on the information in the graphic, which of the following claims would an opponent to the decision in Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission (2010) most likely make?
Campaign finance laws allow a small proportion of the US population to influence elections unfairly through unlimited political contributions
Which of the following Supreme Court cases is most relevant to the topic of the cartoon?
Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission (2010)
Which of the following is an accurate comparison of the political impact of both policy-creating decisions?
Comparison C Led to an increase in power for the national government to restrict freedom of speechLed to the creation of independent expenditure-only committees (Super PACs)
Like the old Progressive Party, a new generation third-party called the Working Families Party (WFP) has successfully competed in specific geographies in recent years, forging opportunistic alliances with either of the major parties while building a precinct-level organization and support. Based on this information and current election rules, which of the following is the best strategy for the WFP to influence public policy in the United States? Choose 1 answer:
Concentrate on "grass roots" campaigns in local elections lacking two-party competition
Based on the data shown in the table and your knowledge about the Electoral College, which of the following statements best explains the distribution of electoral votes?
Electoral votes are awarded to the candidate who wins the higher percentage of votes within a state
Based on the data shown in the table and your knowledge about the Electoral College, which of the following statements best explains the distribution of electoral votes? Choose 1 answer:
Electoral votes are awarded to the candidate who wins the higher percentage of votes within a state
Which two interest group sectors in the chart show the greatest percentage difference between their contributions to each of the two major parties?
Energy/Natural Resources and Labor
Contributions listed in the chart above include "hard" and "soft" money donations. Which best explains the difference between hard and soft money contributions?
Hard money donations go straight to the party or candidate, while soft money can only be used for general "party-building" activities
"If you start from the understanding that important party decisions are made before the voters weigh in, the question 'who's winning?'—or, alternately, 'who is the party choosing, and which people are making that choice?'—becomes one of the best ways to give ordinary citizens who want to become more active political participants the information they need. (If you're not a party member, meanwhile, knowing the process by which the party made its choice—rather than just the outcome it arrived at—can still help inform your own political participation.)" -Greg Marx, "In Defense of (the Right Kind of) Horse Race Journalism," Columbia Journalism Review, September 6, 2011. Regarding the above excerpt, which of the following statements would the author most likely agree with?
Horse race journalism is a more effective tool for informing voters and attracting their participation when applied to primary elections instead of general elections
The Green Party (GPUS) advocates environmentalism, social justice, and anti-war/anti-racism agendas. Which of the following statements accurately describes a barrier to the Green Party winning congressional seats or the presidency?
Incorporation of third-party issue positions or platforms by major political parties
Which of the following media developments from 1958 to 2017 has most likely contributed to the trend in public trust of the federal government?
Increased use of investigative and attack journalism to discredit politicians
Which type of organization is specifically excluded from the Federal Election Commission's contribution limitations chart, based on Supreme Court and appellate First Amendment rulings in the 2010s?
Independent-expenditure-only political committees or super PACs
Which statement accurately summarizes the impact of the Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010) decision?
It allows corporations and unions to spend unlimited amounts of money on political activities that are independent of a party or candidate
Which of the following impacts on political participation has resulted from the decrease in barriers to publishing on the internet? Choose 1 answer:
It has allowed people with little or no political experience or connections to have significant influence on elections
Which is the best explanation for the extraction of massive amounts of personal data from social media sites by political consulting firms?
It provides insights about voter preferences that campaign consultants use to strategically craft political messages
Which of the following is the most important element of a national political campaign plan?
Knowing the characteristics of the candidate base, opponent base, and the undecided
Political parties are most inclined to use which of the following strategies in national general election campaigns today?
Matching polling responses to identifiable individuals in voter files to determine patterns
Which of the following is an accurate conclusion based on a comparison of the trends in the chart and your knowledge of political beliefs and behavior?
Media coverage and commentary on political events influence political beliefs and behavior
If a campaign strategist in 2017 were projecting turnout for the 2018 midterms, which of the following would be the best prediction based on the data presented in the graph? Choose 1 answer:
Midterm turnout in 2018 is likely to rise to the high 30s or low 40s
Which of the following statements is reflected in the data in the chart?
More than half of US adults report that they often see inaccurate political news online
Based on the results shown in the table, which of the following reasons was the most cited reason that both Clinton and Trump voters chose their respective candidate?
Negative assessment of opponent
Which of the following statements best explains how national political campaigns have changed since the Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010)?
New "super PACS" can raise unlimited funds from virtually any source as long as the money is used as an independent expenditure for the campaign and is not given directly to the candidate
Which linkage institution is primarily responsible for keeping the electorate informed about political issues, policymaking, and leadership transitions in government?
News Media
Based on the data, which of the following statements accurately explains the implications for political campaigns of certain groups going online 'almost constantly'?
Political campaign messages are more likely to reach young voters if posted online
"As is now well known, political parties in recent years have built databases to facilitate targeting strategies. These databases list the names and contact information for all voters in a district, along with information about their personal traits, their neighborhoods, and their history of political participation. Politicians and their campaigns use these lists to perceive the electorate. The lists help them understand who their supporters are, what issues different voters care about, and how they should present themselves to voters in their campaign appeals. This large-scale collection of data influences how politicians perceive voters, and in turn, it affects how they interact with voters." -Source: Eitan D. Hersh, Hacking the Electorate: How Campaigns Perceive Voters, 2015 Based on the text, which of the following statements would the author most likely agree with?
Political parties can use voter-data management systems to tailor their policies to fit their constituents best and maximize voter turnout
Problem "As is now well known, political parties in recent years have built databases to facilitate targeting strategies. These databases list the names and contact information for all voters in a district, along with information about their personal traits, their neighborhoods, and their history of political participation. Politicians and their campaigns use these lists to perceive the electorate. The lists help them understand who their supporters are, what issues different voters care about, and how they should present themselves to voters in their campaign appeals. This large-scale collection of data influences how politicians perceive voters, and in turn, it affects how they interact with voters." -Source: Eitan D. Hersh, Hacking the Electorate: How Campaigns Perceive Voters, 2015 Based on the text, which of the following statements would the author most likely agree with? Choose 1 answer:
Political parties can use voter-data management systems to tailor their policies to fit their constituents best and maximize voter turnout
"If Mr. Rove, the embodiment of the species, was responsible for elevating the consultant's status to ever new heights, he may prove responsible for its diminishment as well. Hailed as the genius behind Mr. Bush's presidential victories and the Republican gains in 2000 and 2004, Mr. Rove now carries the burden of a 2006 election that cost his party control of Congress and called into question the political theories that are his stock in trade. And his unorthodox decision, for a consultant, to play such a prominent role in the White House means that he is now integrally linked to the travails of the second-term Bush presidency." -Excerpt from "Strategists as Stars," Adam Nagourney, The New York Times, July 15, 2007 Which of the following statements would the author of the above excerpt most likely agree with?
Professional consultants are a fixture in modern campaigns, but they are no replacement for the candidates themselves
The data displayed in the infographic best supports which of the following statements?
Since 1983, American news sources have become concentrated in the hands of a few companies
A campaign advertisement appears on TV and in social media that says, "Candidate Smith has a record that includes policies that will hurt all Americans. If these policies are put into place, much of your hard-earned savings will be taxed away, and your well-paying job will be moved overseas. Be sure to vote on election day." Which statement below best explains what limitations, if any, might be placed on this campaign message?
Smith's opponent could use "soft money" to pay for the ad and does not have to claim support for it
Which statement below best explains what limitations, if any, might be placed on this campaign message?
Smith's opponent could use "soft money" to pay for the ad and does not have to claim support for it
MediaQuant is a firm that tracks media coverage for each candidate and assigns a dollar value to it based on advertising rates. It evaluated the 2016 presidential campaign and concluded that Donald Trump received $4.96 billion in free media coverage, 60% of which came from the internet, including online news, blogs, forums, and social media. Which statement best explains the significance of this campaign strategy?
Social media allows candidates to personalize outreach to a new generation of voters, bypassing reliance on political parties and platforms
The presidential election cycle begins at which of the following points in modern day elections?
Spring of the year before an election
The presidential campaigns of Barack Obama (2012), Bernie Sanders (2016), and Donald Trump (2016) all had which of the following in common?
Success in attracting grass-roots, small-dollar contributions
In reference to the above excerpt, which of the following events most clearly supports the criticism of how public opinion polls are typically used during political campaign news coverage?
The 2016 presidential election
Use the text below to answer the following question. "Since polls conducted for the press must be simplified for comprehension by the general public, poll takers typically measure opinions crudely and analyze the data superficially. For example, measurement often involves yes/no, approve/disapprove, or agree/disagree dichotomies rather than finely calibrated scales that would more precisely reflect shades of opinion." -Charles Atkins, James Gaudino, "Polling and the Democratic Consensus," Annals of the American Academy of Politics and Social Sciences Vol. 472, 1984, p. 128. In reference to the above excerpt, which of the following events most clearly supports the criticism of how public opinion polls are typically used during political campaign news coverage? Choose 1 answer:
The 2016 presidential election
In this scenario, which of the following would be the best-supported projection of the effect on US political parties?
The Democratic party is likely to benefit more than the Republican party from increased percentages of younger, more ethnically diverse voters
Which of the following statements accurately summarizes why it is virtually impossible for third-party candidates to become president?
The Electoral College uses a winner-take-all system
Based on the results shown in the table, who won the election?
The Republican Party
Which statement best summarizes a central criticism in the ongoing debate surrounding the Supreme Court's ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010)?
The Supreme Court has extended First Amendment protection of political speech at the expense of election fairness
Which of the following scenarios best describes a candidate-centered campaign?
The candidate takes most of the initiative by hiring a professional campaign manager and soliciting contributions online
Which of the following generalizations is best supported by data in the table?
The characteristics of the candidates can dictate who voters support in an election
**Which of the following statements describes the role political parties within Congress play to promote their party's public policy agenda?
The majority party selects committee chairs who promote the party's legislative priorities
Which constitutional change in the early twentieth century led to an increase in democratic participation in the United States?
The method by which US senators are elected was changed
Which of the following best explains a consequence of candidate-centered campaigns?
The party's role in nominating candidates has weakened
Which of the following trends in the graph supports this claim?Even with the Civil Rights Movement and legislation supporting the Fifteenth Amendment, it was widely reported that, throughout the 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s, many southern states continued practices that prevented African Americans from voting. Which of the following trends in the graph supports this claim?
The percentage of voters in presidential elections during these years initially declined and then increased slightly
Which of the following political actors is NOT considered part of an iron triangle in developing public policy at the national level?
The president
Which of the following is a potential consequence of the change illustrated in the infographic?
The range of viewpoints expressed in news coverage has diminished
Which of the following statements describes why Ross Perot won zero electoral votes in the 1992 presidential election?
The winner-take-all system awarded electoral votes to the candidate who won the most votes in that state
Which of the following statements best explains how this 1894 political cartoon of reporters rushing their stories to print applies to news reporting today?
There is no such thing as completely objective journalism
Which of the following best explains why the 2004 election does NOT fit the label of a "critical election"?
There was little change in the two parties' major constituencies
Based on the Federal Election Commission's chart, how do contribution limits from non-multicandidate political action committees compare with those from individual donors?
They are the same as those for individual contributors across all types of recipient
Which of the following best explains how third parties affect the US political system?
They can shift national attention to particular issues and influence the outcome of elections
Which best explains why the health sector showed almost an equal percentage of contributions to both major parties in this period?
They gave equally to both sides to retain influence with whichever party holds each chamber of Congress and the presidency
Based on the table above, which of the following is an important conclusion that a third-party candidate could make when running for a Senate seat against both Republican and Democrat opponents?
They need to acquire at least 38% of the vote to win a contested election
"As is now well known, political parties in recent years have built databases to facilitate targeting strategies. These databases list the names and contact information for all voters in a district, along with information about their personal traits, their neighborhoods, and their history of political participation. Politicians and their campaigns use these lists to perceive the electorate. The lists help them understand who their supporters are, what issues different voters care about, and how they should present themselves to voters in their campaign appeals. This large-scale collection of data influences how politicians perceive voters, and in turn, it affects how they interact with voters." -Source: Eitan D. Hersh, Hacking the Electorate: How Campaigns Perceive Voters, 2015 Which of the following statements best summarizes the author's argument on how political parties use voter data?
To clarify political messages and enhance mobilization efforts
Which of the following statements would the cartoon's author most agree with even in the context of today's news coverage?
To ensure accountability by government and news outlets, citizens must learn to distinguish objective and truthful news from biased and false reporting
Looking at the chart from 1981 until 2011, which of the following is an accurate trend related to party control of the Senate?
Transitions in party control of the Senate occurred most often following mid-year elections
Which of the following is an accurate statement about the information shown in the chart?
Trump and Clinton voters consumed most of their campaign news from different sources
Which of the following statements accurately describes a trend depicted in the graph?
Trust in government declined across all generations over the course of George H.W. Bush's administration
After the three debates between Romney and Obama in the 2012 presidential race, the polls were effectively tied; after the Clinton/Trump debates in 2016, Clinton had a slight lead. Based on these two campaigns, which of the following is an essential campaign strategy when most voters have made up their minds?
Voter mobilization
Based on the above graph, which of the following correctly summarizes how demographics of all voters changed between 1992 and 2016?
Voters are significantly more diverse ethnically, significantly better educated, and slightly older
Horse race journalism is best defined as which of the following?
When the media focuses on who is winning an election rather than on policy agendas and debates
Based on the table above, which of the following variables made the most difference in winning an election for a third-party or independent candidate in these 7 elections?
Whether the candidate was an incumbent
Which of the following is an important structural barrier to third-party and independent candidate success in the United States?
Winner-take-all districts
Which of the following statements is the most valid criticism of voting for a third party in the US political system?
Your third-party vote may help a candidate that you disagree with
