Deck 22: Political Choices

Question 1

When voting preferences become more complicated than those assumed by the median-voter theorem:

A)the way in which votes are cast becomes important.
B)the policies preferred by the average voter become more important.
C)politicians become more extreme in their views.
D)economists cannot analyze voting preferences successfully.

Answer 1

the way in which votes are cast becomes important.

Question 2

Which of the following is not a criterion for an ideal voting system, according to economist Kenneth Arrow?

A)Unanimity
B)No dictator
C)Transitivity
D)Fairness

Answer 2

Fairness

Question 3

The "no dictator" criterion for an ideal voting system means that:

A)one person cannot have the power to enact his or her own preferences.
B)those in power must be forced to listen to the will of the people when enacting policy.
C)the presence of pure democracy is needed, so everyone gets a vote.
D)one person cannot have his or her preferences represented in what voters decide upon.

Answer 3

one person cannot have the power to enact his or her own preferences.

Question 4

Which economist defined the characteristics of an ideal voting system?

A)Gary Becker
B)Kenneth Arrow
C)Adam Smith
D)Milton Friedman

Question 5

What does unanimity as a criterion for an ideal voting system indicate?

A)If the median in the group prefers option X to option Y, then X beats Y.
B)If the majority of the group prefers option X to option Y, then X beats Y.
C)If everyone in the group prefers option X to option Y, then X beats Y.
D)Even if no one in the group prefers option X to option Y, it is still possible for X to beat Y.

Question 6

The median-voter theorem can help explain why politicians tend to change their position on a given issue over the course of an election from:

A)extreme to moderate.
B)moderate to extreme.
C)extreme to more extreme.
D)one extreme to the other.

Question 7

The _______ theorem suggests that politicians maximize their votes by taking the policy position preferred by the median voter, under certain conditions?

A)average voter
B)mid-voter
C)median-voter
D)moderate voter

Question 8

The median-voter theorem suggests that the reason politicians go from extreme to moderate positions on an issue over the course of an election is because they are appealing to the _______ in the primary election and the _______ in the general election.

A)average voter in their party; average of all voters
B)majority of voters in their party; majority of all voters
C)median voter in their party; median of all voters
D)voters in their party; voters in the opposing party

Question 9

An ideal voting system cannot have:

A)a person who has the power to single-handedly enact his or her own preferences.
B)a person who can convince everyone to vote for his or her preferences, and not their own.
C)a vote for a one-dimensional issue.
D)transitivity of preferences.

Question 10

Which of the four criteria for an ideal voting system is demonstrated when everyone in a town prefers to spend the budget on improved public transportation systems instead of new public parks, and transportation spending wins the vote?

A)No dictator
B)Unanimity
C)Transitivity
D)Independence of irrelevant alternatives

Question 11

An ideal voting system will not function if a _______ is present who has the power to enact his or her own preferences.

A)congress
B)representative
C)consul
D)dictator

Question 12

According to the median-voter theorem, the chosen policy will be the one preferred by the:

A)median voter.
B)youngest voters.
C)average voter.
D)majority of voters.

Question 13

Suppose a political candidate is running for office, and the primary policy issue at stake is the fraction of the locality's budget that will be allocated toward public schools. Forty percent of voters prefer the amount to be 10 percent of the budget, 15 percent of voters prefer 20 percent, and 45 percent of voters prefer 25 percent. According to the median-voter theorem, the candidate will be in support of public school spending as _______ percent of the budget.

A)10
B)18
C)20
D)25

Question 14

The median-voter theorem suggests that:

A)politicians maximize their votes by taking the policy position preferred by the median voter, under certain conditions.
B)politicians always receive more votes in general elections when they appeal to extremists in their party.
C)the middle voter is generally influenced by the side that provides more information about an issue.
D)voters tend to vote with a "mob-mentality," all voting the same.

Question 15

Suppose a vote is taken among 7 district representatives to determine how much of the city budget should be spent on tourism advertising. Two individuals vote for 10 percent, two more vote for 15 percent, and three vote for 50 percent. According to the median-voter theorem, the chosen amount to spend on tourism advertising will be _______ percent of the budget.

A)10
B)15
C)50
D)30

Question 16

Which of the following is not one of the conditions that must exist for the median-voter theorem to hold?

A)There is a single one-dimensional policy question.
B)Candidates win by majority vote.
C)There are only two candidates.
D)The policy being voted on must be uncontroversial.

Question 17

Which of the following is one of the conditions that must exist for the median-voter theorem to hold?

A)There is a simple in-favor/not-in-favor position held by each candidate.
B)Candidates win by majority vote.
C)There must be a runoff election in the event of a tie between two or more candidates.
D)Voters must vote individually for all policies.

Question 18

Which of the four criteria for an ideal voting system is violated if everyone in a town prefers to spend the budget on improved libraries instead of new public parks, and public park spending wins the vote?

A)No dictator
B)Unanimity
C)Transitivity
D)Independence of irrelevant alternatives

Question 19

When considering voting options, if option X beats Y, and Y beats Z, then transitivity says that:

A)Z beats X.
B)Y beats X.
C)X beats Z.
D)Z beats Y.

Question 20

Suppose a vote is taken in a small town of 11 people to determine how much of the budget should go toward education spending. Five individuals vote for 10 percent, five others vote for 80 percent and one person votes for 25 percent. According to the median-voter theorem, the chosen amount to spend on education will be _______ percent of the budget.

A)10
B)80
C)45
D)25

Question 21

Plurality voting _______ of the criteria for an ideal voting system.

A)meets all
B)fails one
C)fails two
D)fails all

Question 22

One of the merits of plurality voting is:

A)its simplicity.
B)it has all four criteria for an ideal voting system.
C)it guarantees the best option will win.
D)it produces a result that most participants are happy with.

Question 23

Another name for plurality voting is:

A)instant runoff voting.
B)first-past-the-post voting.
C)pairwise majority voting.
D)approval voting.

Question 24

Pairwise majority voting entails:

A)voting on options that is done in pairs, and the majority vote wins.
B)one vote with many options, and the option with the most votes wins.
C)voters ranking all available options, and the most approved of option wins.
D)None of these describe pairwise majority voting.

Question 25

Commentators on the presidential election between Bush and Gore in 2000 believe that the presence of Nader, a third-party candidate:

A)drew votes away from Gore, causing him to lose the election.
B)pushed more people to vote for Bush, causing him to win the election.
C)drew votes away from Bush, causing him to lose the election.
D)drew votes away from Bush, causing him to win the election.

Question 26

Suppose everyone in a town prefers to spend the budget on improved public transportation systems over public parks, but also prefers spending on public parks over building a public zoo. A voting system that ensures zoo funding would never beat spending on transportation would demonstrate which criteria for an ideal voting system?

A)No dictator
B)Transitivity
C)Independence of irrelevant alternatives
D)Unanimity

Question 27

If a group is voting on option X versus option Y, this decision should not depend on any information or preference about another unconnected option, Z. In other words, which of the following criterion must be present in this ideal voting system?

A)Independence of irrelevant alternatives
B)Transitivity
C)No dictator
D)Unanimity

Question 28

Plurality voting fails which of the criteria for an ideal voting system?

A)Transitivity
B)No dictator
C)Unanimity
D)Independence of irrelevant alternatives

Question 29

Suppose everyone in a town prefers to spend the budget on improved public transportation systems over public parks, but also prefers spending on public parks over building a public zoo. An ideal voting system would ensure that:

A)public transportation spending could beat zoo funding.
B)zoo funding could beat public transportation spending.
C)public park spending could beat transportation spending.
D)zoo funding could beat public park spending.

Question 30

Consider an election with three candidates: X, Y, and Z. Suppose 52 percent of voters prefer X over Y and Y over Z, 48 percent of voters prefer Y over Z and Z over X, and 4 percent of voters prefer Z over Y and Y over X. The voting system is such that there is one round of voting, and the candidate with the most votes wins. If every voter votes for their most preferred candidate, candidate X will win. This voting system does not meet the criteria for an ideal voting system because the _______ criterion is violated.

A)transitivity
B)no dictator
C)unanimity
D)independence of irrelevant alternatives

Question 31

Consider an election with three candidates: X, Y, and Z. Suppose 52 percent of voters prefer X over Y and Y over Z, 48 percent of voters prefer Y over Z and Z over X, and 4 percent of voters prefer Z over Y and Y over X. In an ideal voting system, candidate _______ should win the election.

A)X
B)Y
C)Z
D)This cannot be answered without more information.

Question 32

Most elections in the United States use a(n)_______ voting system.

A)pairwise majority
B)first-past-the-post
C)approval
D)instant runoff

Question 33

Suppose everyone in a town votes that they prefer improved public transportation systems over new public parks. According to the criteria of ________________, that preference should not change even if a third option, like a new public zoo, is introduced.

A)transitivity
B)no dictator
C)unanimity
D)independence of irrelevant alternatives

Question 34

In considering the criteria for an ideal voting system, an irrelevant alternative refers to:

A)when an option that is unrelated to the issue being voted on is added to a vote.
B)a different voting method that could alternatively be used, but would not change the outcome.
C)when an option that has no realistic chance of winning is added to a vote.
D)a different voting method that could alternatively be used and could change the outcome.

Question 35

Pairwise majority voting eliminates the:

A)majority options problem.
B)swing vote problem.
C)misalignment problem.
D)third-party problem.

Question 36

First-past-the-post voting entails:

A)a series of votes with two options; the winner of the first vote is paired with another option until all options have been voted on in pairs and there is one winner.
B)voters ranking all available options, and the most approved of option wins.
C)one vote with many options, and the option with the most votes wins.
D)one vote with many options, and the option that gets to at least 51 percent wins.

Question 37

Arguably, the simplest voting system is:

A)instant runoff voting.
B)pairwise majority voting.
C)first-past-the-post voting.
D)approval voting.

Question 38

Suppose everyone in a town votes that they prefer to spend the budget on improved public transportation systems over public parks. According to the criterion of independence of irrelevant alternatives, if a third option not likely to win, like building a new public zoo, is included in the vote, the preference for public transportation spending should _______.

A)stay the same
B)change in favor of the new option
C)change, although we cannot know what the new preference would be
D)change in favour of park spending

Question 39

Pairwise majority voting meets the _______ criterion for an ideal voting system, but fails the _______ criterion.

A)unanimity; independence of irrelevant alternatives
B)independence of irrelevant alternatives; unanimity
C)transitivity; unanimity
D)independence of irrelevant alternatives; transitivity

Question 40

The "independence of irrelevant alternatives" criterion is also known as the:

A)majority options problem.
B)third-party problem.
C)swing vote problem.
D)misalignment problem.

Question 41

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held, and the first pair to be voted on is public transportation and a public zoo, which option will win overall?

A)Public transportation
B)Public parks
C)A public zoo
D)Public parks and a public zoo

Question 42

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held, and the first pair to be voted on is public parks and transportation, which voter(s)will be happiest with the outcome?

A)Abby
B)Carlos
C)Anoop
D)Anoop and Carlos

Question 43

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held, and Sabrina sets the agenda for votes, which pair will she put up for vote first?

A)Libraries and safety
B)Education and libraries
C)Education and safety
D)Any combination will make Sabrina happy.

Question 44

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held to determine which school project gets funded, and Enrique sets the agenda for votes, which pair will he put up for vote first?

A)Library and lab
B)Computer lab and gym
C)Gym and library
D)Any pair, as it doesn't affect the outcome.

Question 45

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held, and the first pair to be voted on is a public zoo and public transportation, which voter(s)will be happiest with the outcome?

A)Bohai
B)Chloe
C)Ana
D)Ana and Bohai

Question 46

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held, and Bohai sets the agenda for votes, which pair will he put up for vote first?

A)A public zoo and public parks
B)Public transportation and a public zoo
C)Public parks and public transportation
D)Any pair, as it will not affect the outcome of the voting.

Question 47

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a first-past-the-post vote is taken by the school board to determine which project gets funded, which option is most likely to win?

A)Computer lab
B)Library
C)Gym
D)A three-way tie will result.

Question 48

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held to determine which school project gets funded, which pair must be voted on first in order for the library to win overall?

A)Computer lab and gym
B)Library and computer lab
C)Gym and library
D)The order will not affect the outcome of the vote.

Question 49

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held, which option will win the first round of voting?

A)Public transportation
B)A public zoo
C)Public parks
D)It depends on which pair is considered first.

Question 50

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held, which option will win overall?

A)Public transportation
B)A public zoo
C)Public parks
D)It is impossible to predict which option will win.

Question 51

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held, and Chloe sets the agenda for votes, which pair will she put up for vote first?

A)A public zoo and public parks
B)Public transportation and a public zoo
C)Public parks and public transportation
D)Any pair, as it will not affect the outcome of the voting.

Question 52

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held, and the first pair to be voted on is public libraries and public safety, which option will win overall?

A)Public education
B)Public safety
C)Public libraries
D)Both public libraries and public safety.

Question 53

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held, and Yanir sets the agenda for votes, which pair will he put up for vote first?

A)Libraries and safety
B)Education and libraries
C)Education and safety
D)None of these pairs will make Yanir happy.

Question 54

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held to determine which school project gets funded, and the first pair to be voted on is the gym and library, which option will win overall?

A)Library
B)Computer lab
C)Gym
D)It is impossible to predict which option will win.

Question 55

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held, and Anna sets the agenda for votes, which pair will she put up for vote first?

A)A public zoo and public parks
B)Public transportation and a public zoo
C)Public parks and public transportation
D)Any pair, as it will not affect the outcome of the voting.

Question 56

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held, and the first pair to be voted on is public parks and a public zoo, which option will win overall?

A)Public transportation
B)Public zoo
C)Public parks
D)Both public parks and public zoo.

Question 57

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held to determine which school project gets funded, which pair would David like to see voted on first?

A)Library and computer lab
B)Computer lab and gym
C)Gym and library
D)It doesn't matter which options are considered first.

Question 58

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held to determine which school project gets funded, and the first pair to be voted on is the lab and the library, which voter will be happiest with the outcome?

A)Enrique
B)Fiona
C)David
D)None of these voters would be happy with a vote on the lab and library first.

Question 59

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

Which of the following statements is true?

A)The preferences of each member are transitive.
B)The collective preferences of the group are transitive.
C)The outcome of the vote will not change regardless of the voting method used.
D)The most efficient outcome for the group will occur if pairwise majority voting is used.

Question 60

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

If a pairwise majority vote is held, which of the following is true?

A)The preferences of each member are transitive.
B)The collective preferences of the group are not transitive.
C)The outcome of the vote will change depending on the order of the vote.
D)All of these statements are true.

Question 61

The Condorcet paradox can arise when _______ is used.

A)first-past-the-post voting
B)approval voting
C)a runoff election
D)pairwise majority voting

Question 62

Despite the fact that most votes have virtually no impact on the outcome of an election, and knowing people incur opportunity costs to vote, we recognize that some people vote because they: feel pressure to fulfill their civic duty. altruistically decide to contribute to the democratic process by voting. gain utility from participating in a civic event.

A)II only
B)II and III only
C)I and III only
D)I, II, and III

Question 63

If we think of good governance as a public good created by well-informed voters, we can predict that it will be:

A)oversupplied.
B)undersupplied.
C)in market equilibrium, if left unchecked.
D)in market equilibrium, despite market interference.

Question 64

Arrow's impossibility theorem tells us that:

A)most voting systems meet the criteria for an ideal system, yet politicians cannot seem to change the way in which elections are held.
B)no voting system can aggregate the preferences of voters of three or more options while meeting all of the criteria of an ideal system.
C)political pressures will always corrupt a voting system, making none ideal.
D)no voting system can ever attain all four criteria of an ideal voting system.

Question 65

Which theorem tells us that no voting system is perfect?

A)Arrow's impossibility theorem
B)Median-voter theorem
C)Condorcet paradox
D)Bowman's problematic theorem

Question 66

Mail-in ballots are designed to:

A)increase your ability to fulfill your civic duty.
B)increase the utility derived from voting.
C)decrease the costs associated with voting.
D)increase the accuracy of the voting process.

Question 67

Research has shown that the chance of one vote making a difference in an election is _______ percent.

A)0.001
B)0.10
C)0.01
D)99.999

Question 68

Pairwise majority voting _______ of the criteria of an ideal voting system.

A)fails to meet one
B)fails to meet two
C)fails to meet all
D)meets all

Question 69

How does the free rider problem affect politics?

A)The social benefit of political engagement is large, while the individual benefit is small, leading to inefficiently low levels of political engagement.
B)There are not enough people who benefit from political engagement.
C)There is very little benefit to political advocacy and engagement; therefore it's not efficient to participate in these activities.
D)Political advocacy and political engagement are not affected by the free rider problem.

Question 70

Pairwise majority voting fails to meet which of the following criteria of an ideal voting system?

A)Transitivity
B)Independence of irrelevant alternatives and transitivity
C)No dictator and transitivity
D)No dictator and independence of irrelevant alternatives

Question 71

Research has shown that voters are more likely to turn out in elections with _______ electorates and when the election is likely to be _______.

A)small; very competitive
B)large; very competitive
C)small; not very competitive
D)large; not very competitive

Question 72

When people are reluctant to voluntarily pay for goods and services that provide benefits for everyone, including those who don't pay, _______ exists.

A)the drop in the bucket hypothesis
B)rational ignorance
C)moral hazard
D)the free rider problem

Question 73

The use of mail-in ballots may actually cause voter participation to fall because:

A)the reduction in the benefit of being seen voting is larger than the reduction in the opportunity cost of voting.
B)the reduction in the opportunity cost of voting is larger than the reduction in the benefit of being seen voting.
C)mail-in ballots are more confusing than in-person ballots.
D)the costs of obtaining a mail-in ballot are larger than the benefit of voting.

Question 74

The consequence for society of the free rider problem is:

A)valuable goods and services are oversupplied.
B)valuable goods and services are undersupplied.
C)goods and services not valued by the society will be oversupplied.
D)valuable goods and services are under demanded.

Question 75

Research demonstrates that elections can be swayed by politicians:

A)shaking hands.
B)eating food at a county fair.
C)mudslinging.
D)All of these can sway a vote.

Question 76

The table shown displays voters' preferences in an election.

Suppose a pairwise majority vote is held. If the first pair voted on is libraries and education, the overall winner would be _________ the overall winner if the first pair voted on was libraries and safety. This illustrates _______.

A)the same as; Arrow's ideal voting system
B)the same as; the Condorcet paradox
C)different from; Arrow's ideal voting system
D)different from; the Condorcet paradox

Question 77

The Condorcet paradox is a situation in which the preferences of each individual member of a group are _______ and the collective preferences of the group are _______.

A)not transitive; not transitive
B)transitive; not transitive
C)transitive; transitive
D)not transitive; transitive

Question 78

When voting systems fall short of the ideal by violating the principle of transitivity, the _______ is sometimes crucial in shaping final outcomes.

A)order in which voters cast their votes
B)order in which the votes get tallied
C)power to set the agenda for votes
D)ability to express how much one option is preferred over others

Question 79

An unintentional consequence of using mail-in ballots in a small community is:

A)decreased costs associated with voting.
B)decreased pressure from others to fulfill their civic duty.
C)increased costs associated with tallying the votes.
D)increased pressure from the government to vote.

Question 80

A voter who chooses to remain ignorant when the opportunity cost of gathering information outweighs the benefit is displaying:

A)irrational voting.
B)trigger mechanisms.
C)rational ignorance.
D)instinct theorem.