AP Gov Political Parties

political parties seek to gain control of government, while interest groups seek to influence public policy

A major difference between political parties and interest groups is that

the president delivering the State of the Union speech

All of the following are examples of a linkage institution influencing the policy process EXCEPT

a plurality election

An election involving more than two candidates in which the person who receives the most votes is the winner is called

domination of the legislature by two political parties

An electoral system based on single-member districts is usually characterized by

Trump or Clinton could have adopted issues that were popular with Stein's and Johnson's voters in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin as part of their campaigns.

Based on the data in the chart and your knowledge of presidential elections, which of the following is the best strategy that Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump could have used to pull votes away from the third-party candidates, Jill Stein and Gary Johnson?

The third-party vote in the three states depicted in the chart helped Donald Trump acquire enough electoral votes to win the election.

Based on the data in the chart, which of the following best explains a likely impact of third-party votes in the 2016 election?

Lobbying state legislatures to shift from a winner-take-all system to a proportional voting system

Based on the data in the chart, which of the following strategies would best help third-party candidates like Jill Stein and Gary Johnson increase their chances of winning elected office?

when groups of voters have changed their traditional patterns of party loyalties

Critical elections in the United States typically have occurred

Parties solicit funds from private donors who oftentimes contribute large sums of money.

In which of the following ways do political parties primarily rely on to finance their election activities?

linking citizens to the political process

Interest groups and political parties both promote United States democracy by

the single-member district electoral system

One reason for the persistence of a two-party system in the United States is

I. Informing the public about political issues II. Mobilizing voters and getting them to the polls III. Organizing diverse interests within society

Political parties serve which of the following functions in the United States?

become more focused on individual candidates

Since 1972, voters in presidential elections have

White southerners

Since the 1960s, support for the Democratic Party has declined the most among which of the following groups?

evangelical Christians

Since the early 1980s, the Republican Party platform has been increasingly influenced by

party realignment

The concept of "critical elections" is most closely associated with

the social bases of the parties' voting support

The concept of realignment refers to changes in

single-member legislative districts

The development and persistence of the two-party system in the United States is best accounted for by

There is an ongoing debate between political parties over the power and scope of the federal government, even as economic and demographic changes have altered party coalitions.

The graphic illustrates which of the following statements about political parties?

collect and manage large databases of information on specific groups of voters

The practice of "microtargeting" described in the passage is an even more powerful campaign tool for parties if they are able to

a winner-take-all electoral system makes it difficult for new parties to emerge and survive

The primary reason for the current existence of only two major political parties in the United States is that

The largest percentage increase in political identification between 1952 and 1994 occurred among independents.

The table above supports which of the following conclusions?

General elections in the United States are based on the winner-take-all principle.

Which of the following best accounts for the lack of success generally encountered by minor political parties in electing members to the House or Senate?

Political parties usually recruit and train people at the local level they believe are most fit to run for office.

Which of the following best explains how most candidates are recruited to run for office?

Parties send volunteers to knock on doors to register voters.

Which of the following best explains how parties link citizens to the electoral process?

Political parties represent broad arrays of issues, whereas interest groups are more likely to focus on narrow sets of issues.

Which of the following describes a fundamental difference between political parties and interest groups?

The candidate who receives the most votes in the election wins.

Which of the following describes the result in a winner-take-all, single-member-district plurality system?

Interest groups are better able to articulate specific policy positions than are political parties.

Which of the following factors best accounts for the rise of interest groups and the decline of political parties in recent years?

The splitting of the two major parties into a multiparty system

Which of the following is LEAST characteristic of the history of political parties in the United States during the twentieth century?

Major Parties The rules of the electoral college favor the major-party candidates in presidential elections. Third Parties Winner-take-all voting districts hinder the electoral success of third-party candidates.

Which of the following is an accurate comparison between the relative functions and electoral success of the two major political parties (Democratic and Republican) and third parties?

The events that shaped the generation turning 18 after the year 2000 tended to create more liberal-minded voters who supported Democrats.

Which of the following is the best explanation for the trend in voting behavior after the 2000 election?

The percentage of voters identifying themselves as either Democrats or Republicans has been declining since the 1970's.

Which of the following is the most accurate statement about political parties in the United States?

Voter mobilization

Which of the following political processes or behaviors is most directly affected by the development described in the passage?

A decrease in the role of political parties in campaign management

Which of the following represents a consequence of candidate-centered electoral campaigns?

Political parties will rely increasingly on social media advertising to reach different coalitions of voters.

Which of the following scenarios reflects the most direct effect of the practice described in the passage on the electoral process?

The issue of political parties is not addressed in the Constitution.

Which of the following statements about political parties and the United States Constitution is true?

Separate and largely independent party organizations exist at national, state, and local levels.

Which of the following statements best describes the organization of the two major political parties in the United States?

Latinos of Cuban descent are more supportive of the Republican Party than are Latinos of Mexican or Puerto Rican descent.

Which of the following statements is best supported by the data in the table above?

The Republican Party initially emerged as an antislavery political party.

Which of the following statements regarding political parties is true based on the graphic?