Deck 9: Political Parties

Question 1

________ warned Americans against the dangers of political parties in his farewell address.

A)George Washington
B)Thomas Jefferson
C)James Madison
D)James Monroe

Answer 1

A

Question 2

External mobilization occurs when

A)conflicts within the government create divided factions that try to mobilize popular support.
B)party leaders try to rally support for their platforms once they are in the government.
C)citizens deemed to be undesirable outsiders are excluded from the party.
D)a group of politicians outside government organizes popular support to win governmental power.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

At any given time in American politics, how many parties have tended to dominate politics?

A)one
B)two
C)three
D)four

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Emerging in the late 1780s, America's first two political parties were the

A)Federalists and the Washingtonian Democrats.
B)Whigs and the Antifederalists.
C)Federalists and the Whigs.
D)Federalists and the Jeffersonian Republicans.

Question 5

The American system for electing members of Congress is often referred to as "winner take all" because

A)there are very few constraints on the kinds of laws that a member of Congress can propose once elected.
B)there are no term limits that prevent long-serving representatives from remaining in office.
C)runners-up do not gain seats in government.
D)whichever political party receives the most votes in the country overall is guaranteed a majority in the House and the Senate.

Question 6

America's ________ developed during the early eighteenth century.

A)single-party mandate
B)two-party system
C)multiparty system
D)527 committees

Question 7

Third-party candidates are better off under

A)the majority system.
B)the plurality system.
C)proportional representation.
D)the spoils system.

Question 8

One important cause of the two-party system in the United States is

A)the Constitution's requirement for bipartisanship in Congress.
B)single-member, winner-take-all electoral districts.
C)multimember electoral districts.
D)proportional representation.

Question 9

The number of political parties there are in a country is determined primarily by

A)the political opinions of the country's citizens.
B)whether election campaigns are publicly or privately financed.
C)the country's electoral system and rules.
D)whether the country's media outlets are publicly or privately owned.

Question 10

Internal mobilization occurs when

A)conflicts within the government create divided factions that try to mobilize popular support.
B)party leaders try to rally support for their platforms once they are in the government.
C)citizens deemed to be undesirable outsiders are excluded from the party.
D)a group of politicians outside government organizes popular support to win governmental power.

Question 11

If a voter preferred Jill Stein (the Green Party candidate for president in 2016) to Hillary Clinton but voted for Clinton instead of Stein because Stein had little chance of winning, it
Would be an example of ________ voting.

A)strategic
B)ranked choice
C)retrospective
D)prospective

Question 12

Which of the following groups is MOST likely to affiliate with the Republican Party?

A)young Asian American voters
B)old white voters
C)African American voters
D)Latino voters

Question 13

During the early nineteenth century, the Jeffersonian Party's main base of strength was in

A)the South.
B)the West.
C)New England.
D)the western territories.

Question 14

In a proportional representation electoral system

A)seats in the legislature are allocated to political parties based on their share of the total vote cast in the election.
B)each political party receives an equal number of seats in the legislature.
C)every candidate that receives above a certain percentage of the vote (usually set at 20 percent) is awarded a seat in the legislature.
D)candidates can only win elections if they receive a majority of the overall votes.

Question 15

A political party is an organization

A)that falls under section 501(c)(4) of the U.S.tax code.
B)established by the Constitution to nominate candidates.
C)that tries to influence the government by getting its members elected to office.
D)that collects fees from its members in order to pay the salaries of government officials.

Question 16

The establishment of the Republican Party is a good example of

A)external mobilization.
B)internal mobilization.
C)elite bargaining.
D)proportional representation.

Question 17

The American system for electing members of Congress is often referred to as "first past the post" because

A)a candidate can win an election only if he or she wins a majority of the popular vote.
B)a candidate must win both a primary election and a general election before taking office.
C)seats in the House of Representatives and Senate are allocated to political parties based on their share of the total vote cast in the election.
D)the candidate with the most votes wins, even if he or she did not win a majority of the popular vote.

Question 18

Political scientists have found that on economic issues, both the Democratic and Republican parties are

A)more responsive to the preferences of the upper and middle classes than the lower class.
B)more responsive to the preferences of the lower and middle classes than the upper class.
C)more responsive to the preferences of the lower and upper classes than the middle class.
D)equally responsive to the preferences of the different classes.

Question 19

The ________ Party originated from internal mobilization.

A)Jeffersonian
B)Green
C)Reform
D)Republican

Question 20

The idea of "unequal democracy" refers to the fact that

A)women were not allowed to vote in the United States until 1920.
B)lower-income citizens have little representation by either party, except when their opinions overlap with more-affluent citizens.
C)women and African Americans are underrepresented in elected offices at the state and federal levels.
D)the electoral college gives more weight to small states than large states in selecting the president.

Question 21

The three most important tasks accomplished at a party's national convention are nominating the party's

A)Senate and House candidates, selecting the party's vice-presidential candidate, and writing state-level ballot initiatives.
B)presidential and vice-presidential candidates, drafting the party's campaign platform, and writing state-level ballot initiatives.
C)presidential and vice-presidential candidates, drafting the party's campaign platform, and approving changes in the rules governing party procedures.
D)Senate and House candidates, drafting the party's campaign platform, and approving changes in the rules governing party procedures.

Question 22

An advertisement emailed only to evangelical Christian voters about a Democratic candidate's support for abortion would be an example of

A)winnowing.
B)micro-targeting.
C)redlining.
D)message bundling.

Question 23

A ________ is a meeting of a political group's members who gather to determine strategy and select candidates.

A)convention
B)caucus
C)party
D)primary

Question 24

During the nineteenth century, party machines depended heavily on ________ in order to reward loyal party supporters.

A)527 committees
B)patronage
C)soft money
D)caucuses

Question 25

Political party leaders are

A)usually willing to provide financial backing to all candidates running for their party, regardless of whether the candidate has raised funds on their own.
B)not willing to provide financial backing to candidates who are unable to raise substantial funds on their own.
C)prevented by federal campaign contribution laws from providing financial backing to any candidate.
D)only allowed to provide financial backing for candidates that have served at least two terms in elected office.

Question 26

A party's ________ contains its philosophy, principles, and policy positions.

A)caucus
B)convention
C)platform
D)machine

Question 27

________ are independent, nonprofit groups that receive and distribute funds to influence the nomination, election, and/or defeat of a candidate.

A)Corporate interests
B)527 committees
C)Political caucuses
D)Party machines

Question 28

Soft money was made illegal as a result of the

A)1965 Voting Rights Act.
B)Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act.
C)Supreme Court's decision in Citizens United v.Federal Election Commission.
D)Supreme Court's decision in Buckley v.Valeo.

Question 29

Which statement best characterizes the influence average citizens and party elites have over the nomination process in the United States?

A)Although average citizens have some influence in the nominations process, party elites play an outsized role in selecting the candidates who will compete in the general election.
B)Although party elites have some influence in the nominations process, average citizens play an outsized role in selecting the candidates who will compete in the general election.
C)Party leaders and average citizens play roughly equal roles in selecting the candidates who will compete in the general election.
D)Party leaders are legally prohibited from playing any role in the nominations process.

Question 30

National party conventions are held every

A)year and attended by delegates from all 50 states.
B)four years and attended by delegates from all 50 states.
C)four years and attended only by delegates from states that voted for the party's candidate in the last presidential election.
D)two years and only attended by delegates from states that voted for the party's candidate in the last presidential election.

Question 31

What is the ultimate goal of a political party?

A)raising the most money
B)creating the party platform
C)winning elections
D)nominating candidates

Question 32

Which of the following statements best describes endorsements during the 2016 Republican Party presidential primary campaign?

A)Trump won the party's nomination because nearly every Republican member of Congress endorsed him for president.
B)Trump won the party's nomination despite the fact that he was endorsed by only half of the Republican members of Congress.
C)Trump won the party's nomination despite the fact that only a small handful of Republican members of Congress endorsed him for president.
D)Trump won the party's nomination despite the fact that he received zero endorsements from Republican members of Congress.

Question 33

According to political scientist John Aldrich, which of the following problems found in democratic governments do political parties help solve?

A)how to create economic growth, how to protect freedom of speech, and how to achieve equal treatment under the law
B)how to incorporate young people into the political system, how to convince citizens to trust the government, and how to minimize fiscal shortfalls
C)how to regulate the number of people seeking public office, how to mobilize voters, and how to achieve the majorities needed to accomplish legislative goals once in office
D)how to increase the number of people seeking office, how to generate widespread consensus about political problems, and how to limit corruption in government

Question 34

Which of the following statements best describes how national party conventions have changed over time?

A)Though national conventions prior to World War II were primarily devoted to debating and negotiating about who the party's nominee would be, today's conventions serve mostly as media events to promote the candidate the party has already selected.
B)Although national conventions prior to World War II were primarily media events to promote the candidate the party had already selected, today's conventions are devoted mostly to debating and negotiating about who the party's nominee will be.
C)There has been very little change in national party conventions over time, as they have always served mostly as media events to promote the candidate the party has already selected.
D)There has been very little change in national party conventions over time, as they have always been primarily devoted to debating and negotiating about who the party's nominee will be.

Question 35

If a political party wanted to change the rules that governed its selection of delegates, it would likely make this change through a(n)

A)ballot initiative presented to voters in all 50 states.
B)meeting at the party's national convention.
C)law passed by Congress and signed by the president.
D)order issued by the chairperson of the national party committee.

Question 36

One of the earliest activities in which party workers engage once the general election campaign for Congress begins is

A)redrawing each congressional district's lines.
B)forming a committee within Congress to determine campaign strategy.
C)recruiting additional candidates to run for office.
D)ensuring that citizens are registered to vote.

Question 37

A serious candidate for a U.S.House of Representatives race must raise at least several ________ dollars, while a serious candidate for a U.S.Senate race must raise at least
Several ________ dollars.

A)thousand; hundred thousand
B)hundred thousand; thousand
C)hundred thousand; million
D)million; hundred thousand

Question 38

Political parties hold primary elections or caucuses in order to

A)take nominations for leadership positions within the party.
B)vote on the party's platform.
C)select a single candidate to represent the party in the general election.
D)raise money to spend on the party's preselected candidate for the general election.

Question 39

Soft money was

A)money that was illegally given by an interest group to an elected official in return for a political favor.
B)money contributed directly to political parties and other organizations at the state and local levels for political activities that were not regulated by federal campaign spending laws.
C)nonmonetary donations made to a party in exchange for privileges that were not officially considered income, such as airplanes and hotel rooms.
D)money that was contributed by a candidate to a political party in order to receive the party's support in an upcoming election.

Question 40

________ is the practice of tailoring campaign messages to individuals in small, homogenous groups.

A)Micro-targeting
B)Winnowing
C)Message bundling
D)Redlining

Question 41

The Republican Party is currently MOST internally divided over the issues of

A)abortion and same-sex marriage.
B)government health care.
C)immigration.
D)tax policy and government spending.

Question 42

Which list of issue positions is MOST likely to be supported by the national leadership of the Democratic Party?

A)maintaining high levels of military spending, tax relief for upper-income voters, and reducing corporate taxes
B)expanding funding for education, public spending for infrastructure, and raising taxes on the wealthy and corporations
C)banning abortion, eliminating military spending, and raising taxes on the wealthy and corporations
D)ending enforcement of all immigration laws, banning abortion, and eliminating income taxes

Question 43

All of the following are responsibilities of a party's national committee EXCEPT

A)minimizing disputes within various parts of the party.
B)enhancing the party's media image.
C)determining committee assignments for members of Congress.
D)raising campaign funds for party candidates.

Question 44

At the national level, the Democratic Party currently attempts to appeal to ________, while the Republican Party currently attempts to appeal to ________.

A)educated upper-middle-class professionals; white working-class voters
B)white working-class voters; educated upper-middle-class professionals
C)white working-class voters; racial minorities
D)racial minorities; government workers

Question 45

In 2016, about ________ percent of Latino Americans voted for Hillary Clinton.

A)20
B)33
C)65
D)95

Question 46

An individual's psychological attachment to one party or another is called a party

A)ideology.
B)opinion.
C)identification.
D)tradition.

Question 47

Which of the following statements about parties in Congress is true?

A)Committee appointments of individual members are determined by a vote of the House and Senate.
B)All members are allowed to take part in the election of the Speaker of the House.
C)Granting permission to transfer to another committee is a decision of the Speaker of the House.
D)Advancement up the committee ladder toward chair is a decision made by the Speaker of the House.

Question 48

Passing the federal budget often requires cooperation between Democrats and Republicans in Congress because the

A)House of Representatives must approve the budget with a unanimous vote (435 out of 435 votes), and rarely does one party hold all 435 seats.
B)House of Representatives must approve the budget with a supermajority vote (335 out of 435 votes), and rarely does one party hold 335 seats.
C)Senate must approve the budget with a unanimous vote (100 out of 100 votes), and rarely does one party hold all 100 seats.
D)Senate must approve the budget with a supermajority vote (60 out of 100 votes), and rarely does one party hold 60 seats.

Question 49

________ referred to himself as a "New Democrat" in the 1990s.

A)John McCain
B)Bill Clinton
C)George W.Bush
D)Al Gore

Question 50

During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, strong and often corrupt urban political party organizations were called

A)gangs.
B)juntas.
C)machines.
D)corporations.

Question 51

Since the 1930s, most African Americans have identified as

A)Republicans.
B)Democrats.
C)libertarians.
D)independents.

Question 52

An individual who identifies a problem as a political issue and brings a policy proposal into the political agenda is referred to as a(n)

A)venue shopper.
B)idea capitalist.
C)policy entrepreneur.
D)whip.

Question 53

The Progressive movement of the early 1900s was motivated, in large part, by the

A)disenfranchisement of women.
B)excessive power, corruption, and abuses of party machines and their bosses.
C)growing levels of air pollution produced from rapid industrialization.
D)system of legal segregation in southern states.

Question 54

A party activist is an individual who

A)attends every social function that a political party stages.
B)writes favorable news reports for the national media.
C)commits acts of civil disobedience when asked to by a political party.
D)not only votes but also contributes time, energy, effort, and financial resources to party affairs.

Question 55

A party's platform is best understood as a

A)negotiated agreement among the various factions in the party.
B)public relations program designed for media consumption.
C)clear statement of the principles to which each party candidate will be committed.
D)set of rules for determining who can and who cannot become a member of the party.

Question 56

There are very few party machines left today because

A)local, state, and the federal governments have decreased in size to the point that almost no jobs are available to distribute as patronage.
B)the Supreme Court ruled in 1943 that party machines cannot qualify as tax-exempt organizations.
C)civil service reform and the institution of the merit system mean that party leaders can no longer control who is appointed to government jobs.
D)so many Americans identify as so-called independents rather than as members of one of the political parties.

Question 57

What were the MOST common favors political bosses distributed to loyal party members during the era of political machines?

A)money
B)jobs
C)tariffs
D)tax cuts

Question 58

Which statement about party identification in the United States is MOST accurate?

A)The number of people identifying as Republicans has outnumbered Democratic identifiers for a long time.
B)The number of people identifying as Democrats has outnumbered Republican identifiers for a long time.
C)The number of people identifying as Democrats outnumbered Republican identifiers between 1960 and 2008, but more people have identified as Republicans than Democrats since 2008.
D)The number of people identifying as Republicans outnumbered Democratic identifiers between 1960 and 2008, but more people have identified as Democrats than Republicans since 2008.

Question 59

In 2018, the federal government was shut down over disagreements between Democrats and Republicans on the issue of

A)the Affordable Care Act.
B)immigration.
C)the national debt.
D)Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Question 60

Which list of issue positions is MOST likely to be supported by the national leadership of the Republican Party?

A)maintaining high levels of military spending, instituting tax relief for upper-income voters, and reducing corporate taxes
B)expanding funding for education, increasing public spending for infrastructure, and raising taxes on the wealthy and corporations
C)banning abortion, eliminating military spending, and raising taxes on the wealthy and corporations
D)ending enforcement of all immigration laws, banning abortion, and eliminating income taxes

Question 61

Men in the United States are ________ the ________ Party.

A)overwhelmingly committed to; Republican
B)somewhat more likely to support; Republican
C)overwhelmingly committed to; Democratic
D)somewhat more likely to support; Democratic

Question 62

The Populist Party appealed to which of the following groups?

A)western mining interests, small farmers, and urban workers
B)eastern bankers, southern planters, and wealthy merchants
C)northern bankers, landowners, and factory workers
D)eastern mining interests, southern merchants, and small farmers

Question 63

Historically, electoral realignments occur

A)when new issues combine with economic or political crises to mobilize new voters and persuade large numbers of voters to reexamine their traditional partisan loyalties.
B)when Congress approves of them.
C)after midterm congressional elections but not after presidential elections.
D)only when the Constitution is amended.

Question 64

Between the Civil War and the 1960s, the ________ was a Democratic stronghold.

A)Midwest
B)West
C)South
D)Southwest

Question 65

Dealignment refers to

A)the decline of partisan attachment within the electorate, the growth in the number of voters identifying themselves as independents, and the rise of split-ticket voting.
B)the point in history where a new party becomes the dominant political force by supplanting the ruling party.
C)conflicts within the government that create divided factions, each of which tries to mobilize popular support.
D)attempts by politicians outside of government to mobilize popular support in order to win governmental power.

Question 66

From the end of the Civil War to the 1890s, the ________ Party was the party of the North, while the ________ Party was the party of the South.

A)Democratic; Republican
B)Republican; Democratic
C)Federalist; Whig
D)Whig; Federalist

Question 67

Which statement about education and voting in 2016 is MOST accurate?

A)There were no differences in the voting behavior of those with and those without a college degree in 2016.
B)College graduates voted for third-party candidates by a large margin, while those without a college degree backed Clinton by a large margin.
C)Those without a college degree backed Clinton by a large margin, while college graduates backed Trump by a large margin.
D)College graduates backed Clinton by a large margin, while those without a college degree backed Trump by a large margin.

Question 68

Women in the United States are ________ the ________ Party.

A)overwhelmingly committed to; Republican
B)somewhat more likely to support; Republican
C)overwhelmingly committed to; Democratic
D)somewhat more likely to support; Democratic

Question 69

The Jeffersonian Republicans were best known for their support of

A)a weak national government, with the states retaining most powers.
B)a strong national government, with little role for state governments.
C)women's suffrage.
D)abolishing slavery.

Question 70

Party activists are ________ likely to contribute time to party affairs and ________ likely to hold more extreme views than the party's rank-and-file voters.

A)less; less
B)less; more
C)more; more
D)more; less

Question 71

During the late 1840s and early 1850s, both the Democratic and Whig parties were divided by

A)conflicts over slavery.
B)fiscal policies imposed during the tariff crisis.
C)the westward expansion of the United States.
D)the appropriate amount of government regulation of the economy.

Question 72

The United States has had ________ party systems since 1789.

A)2
B)6
C)9
D)12

Question 73

Solid support for the Republican Party currently comes from the

A)South and Mountain West.
B)South, Northeast, and Midwest.
C)Northeast, Midwest, and West.
D)Northeast and South.

Question 74

The first party system was characterized by conflict between the ________ and the ________.

A)Federalists; Jeffersonian Republicans
B)Whigs; Democrats
C)Whigs; Jeffersonian Republicans
D)Whigs; Federalists

Question 75

What issue led to the demise of the Whig Party?

A)slavery
B)the admission of California into the Union
C)the death of Andrew Jackson
D)industrialization

Question 76

The two major parties in the United States during the 1830s and 1840s were the ________ and the ________.

A)Federalists; Jeffersonians
B)Federalists; Whigs
C)Democrats; Whigs
D)Democrats; Republicans

Question 77

Between 1812 and 1830, the United States had

A)three political parties: the Federalists, the Jeffersonian Republicans, and the Whigs.
B)two political parties: the Federalists and the Jeffersonian Republicans.
C)one political party: the Jeffersonian Republicans.
D)one political party: the Federalists.

Question 78

The Federalist Party disappeared, in part, as a result of

A)Lincoln's election in 1860.
B)the War of 1812.
C)Alexander Hamilton being killed by Aaron Burr.
D)the Civil War.

Question 79

Reconstruction after the Civil War was led by the ________ Party.

A)Democratic
B)Republican
C)Whig
D)Free Soil

Question 80

The Alien and Sedition Acts

A)were struck down by the Supreme Court in 1801.
B)were enacted by the Jeffersonian Republicans in the late 1790s.
C)made it illegal to criticize the government.
D)allowed the Whigs to expand their political power in the 1830s.