Chapter 10

Approximately how much money does it take for a candidate to have a reasonable chance of winning a seat in the House of Representatives?

500,000

In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, election campaigns tended to be

Labor intensive

During midterm elections, voters are voting for

Members of Congress

Before the 1890s, who was responsible for printing election ballots?

Political Parties

If a citizen votes for a candidate because he or she approves of the candidate's past record, it is called

Retrospective voting

In what case did the Supreme Court say that purposefully drawing districts where the majority of voters were members of a single minority group, in order to ensure minority representation, was unlawful?

Shaw v. Reno

Which of the following statements about campaign spending in House elections is true?

The amount of money spent by incumbents has increased since 1980 and has grown at a much faster rate than the amount spent by challengers.

Which of the following political officers are subject to recall elections?

The governor of the state of California

_______ is the most common electoral system used in general elections in the United States.

The plurality system

The ________ is the last example of indirect voting in national elections.

electoral college

The themes, issues, and messages that candidates present during a campaign are generally based on

polls and focus groups.

The tern soft money refers to

money donated to a party to sponsor party building and voter registration.

In contemporary politics, local election campaigns tend to be ________, while statewide elections tend to be ________.

organizationally driven and labor intensive; media-driven and capital intensive

Three types of factors, _______, influence the decisions of voters at the polls.

partisan loyalty, issues, and the characteristics of candidates

Sport advertisements are useful because they

permit a candidate's message to be delivered to a target audience before people can tune out

Generally speaking, a recall effort begins with a

petition campaign

If the winner of an election is whoever receives the most votes, regardless of the percentage of votes received, the candidates are running under a _______ system.

plurality

In order for a political party to select a candidate to run in the general election, it holds a

primary election

Campaign consultants do all of the following except

print ballots for the election

For the presidential primaries, most but not all state parties use what type of election?

proportional representation

Most European nations employ what system of elections?

proportional representation

Political scientist call voters' choices that focus on future behavior ______, while those based on past performances are called ______.

prospective voting; retrospective voting

which of the following is the best example of direct democracy in practice in the United States?

referendum

At a party convention, when an entire state delegation votes for the single candidate supported by the majority of delegates, it is called the

retrospective vote. unit rule. butterfly ballot. consensus mark.

A major factor in John Kennedy's 1960 presidential victory over Richard Nixon was

that Kennedy had a much stronger performance than Nixon during televised debates.

Which party has reserved slots at the national convention for elected superdelegates?

the Democrats

What is the incumbent?

the current officeholder, running for re-election

who is the incumbent?

the current officeholder, running for re-election

Which event helped lead to a change in the way that the electoral college chose the president and vice president?

the duel between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr in 1803

When are national elections held in the United States?

the first Tuesday of November every other year

During the earliest years of the United States, who nominated the candidates for president?

Nominations were controlled by each party's congressional caucus.

When state legislators concentrate the members of one party in as few districts as possible in order to ensure that their opponents will elect as few representatives as possible, it is called

Packing

Private groups that raise and distribute funds for election campaigns are called

Political Action Committees (PACs)

How many times in American history has the presidential candidate who won the most popular votes not been selected by the electoral college?

3

If George W. Bush won the plurality of votes in Texas during the 2000 election, and Texas had thirty representatives in the House of Representatives, how many electoral votes from Texas did Bush win?

32

A majority system, which is used on a limited basis in the United States, requires that a candidate must win ______ to win an election

50 percent plus one of all votes cast

Primary elections were introduced by the _______ in order to weaken the power of party leaders.

Progressives

Which of the following is a difference between Democratic and Republican primaries?

The Democratic Party requires that state presidential primaries allocate delegates on the basis of proportional representation while the Republican Party does not.

which of the following statements about campaign spending in Senate elections is true?

Incumbents generally spend more money than challengers in Senate campaigns.

Which of the following is not covered by the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act?

Individual contributions to 501c(4) and 527 committees

Politicians attempt to "balance the ticket" with members of many important groups because

voters tend to prefer candidates who are closer to themselves in terms of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, geography, and social background

Why did many members of Congress vote to ban advocacy groups from running ads that mention a candidate's name within thirty days of a primary election and sixty days of a general election?

They thought that the ban would make it less likely for wealthy advocacy groups to flood the media with ads and unfairly influence the outcome of elections

Partisan loyalty is likely to be highest in the election of

a state legislator

When a voter must be registered with a party prior to voting in that party's election, it is called a(n)

closed primary

Before the post-World War II era, dark-horse candidates were most likely to arise at a national convention when

deadlocks between major factions developed

Plurality and majority systems tend to

decrease the number of political parties.

Which of the following politicians was recalled from office?

California Governor Gray Davis (2003)

Karl Rove was the _______ for George W. Bush

Chief political strategist

The result produced when voters cast a ballot for the president and then automatically vote for the remainder of the party's candidates is called?

Coattail effect

At a party convention, when an entire state delegation votes for a single candidate supported by the majority of its delegates, it is called the

Unit Rule

Which of the following statements is true?

Voting equipment varies form county to county throughout the united states

Which of the following statements is most accurate?

When voters are satisfied with their economic prospects, they tend to vote for the party in power.

when the Supreme Court announced the principle of "one person, one vote" what did it mean?

Within a state, electoral districts must have roughly equal populations.

Money contributed directly to a political party to be used for voter registration or party building is called

soft money

If you voted for a Republican for president and a Democrat for senator, you engaged in

split-ticket voting

The primary responsibility for conducting public elections rests with

state and local governments.

When American Voters support only one party's candidates, they are said to be voting a

straight ticket

what is a referendum?

t is the practice of voting directly for proposed laws.

The boundaries of legislative districts in the United States are to be redrawn every

ten

Smaller and weaker parties are most likely to have electoral success under which system of elections?

the proportional representation system

The "Americanization of politics" refers to

the spread of American campaign techniques and political consultants to elections conducted around the rest of the world

"King Caucus" refers to

the use of each party's congressional caucus to nominate presidential candidates during the early nineteenth century.

Early presidential primaries and caucuses are more important because

they can help a candidate secure media attention and financial support.

What year marked the first time a major political party held a convention?

1832

The principle of "one person, one vote" was established by the Supreme Court in the

1960s

Which of the following do modern political campaigns not depend on?

A large army of volunteers from the party

By using donor lists or magazine subscription lists, candidates are able to engage in

Direct-mail solicitations

Party activists who are elected to vote at a party's national convention are called

Delegates

While traditional party conventions were ______, contemporary party conventions are _______.`

Deliberative assemblies to determine nominations; simple ratifications of nominations that have already been determined

Which of the following statements concerning the public funding of presidential campaigns is incorrect?

Federal law requires the presidential candidates from the major parties to use public funding during the general election.

The majority of PACs represent

business and professional groups

The effort by political candidates and their staff to win backing and support by voters in the quest for political office is known as a(n)

campaign

What is the first step in running for president?

forming an exploratory committee

When candidates for office sponsor hearings, undertake inspection tours of disaster areas, or meet with foreign dignitaries, the form of publicity they receive is called

free media

When states vie for influence by holding their nominating processes earlier, it is called

frontloading

The practice of ________ means that district boundaries have been purposefully drawn to unfairly advantage one group or party.

gerrymandering

When a congressional election is held that does not coincide with a presidential election, it is called a(n)

midterm election

When does public opinion polling take place during a campaign?

throughout the entire campaign

A ______ is a media format in which candidates meet with ordinary citizens, without the input of journalists or commentators.

town hall meeting

which of the following were not major contributors to George w. bush's 2000 presidential campaign?

trial lawyers

A runoff election is likely to occur when

turnout in the election is very low. there is only one candidate running in the election. there are more than two candidates running in the election.

Split-ticket voting

increases partisan divisions in government.

The right of candidates to spend their own money on running for office

is protected absolutely by the First Amendment, according to the Supreme Court.