Politics of the United States MCQs Flashcards

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

1. Parties in this country are relatively new, having emerged only after the Civil War.
2. Parties today are relatively strong, but they are not strong in all areas of the country.
3. Parties in this country have never been as strong, or meant as much, as in many European countries.
4. Parties today are relatively weak, but they are not weak in all areas of the country.
5. Parties are relatively strong today although loyalties are spread more widely.

Party identification among voters is one way of gauging the strength of a party. Another cited by the text is the

1. number of parties that appear on the ballot in a national election.
2. use of a party label or symbol on ballots in municipal elections.
3. strength of the organization that recruits and campaigns for candidates.
4. protection offered to individual parties by the U.S. Constitution.
5. amount of attention given to parties by the media.

One reason why political parties in the United States today are weaker than in Europe is that, in the United States,

1. party leaders do not typically select people to run for office.
2. local party leaders rarely have as much power as national ones.
3. political parties organizations are highly centralized.
4. Congress reserves the right to select the chief executive of the government.
5. party leaders have become less ideological.

In most states, candidates for office are chosen by

1. primary elections.
2. the people.
3. party leaders.
4. conventions.
5. delegations.

George Washington's view of parties may have been influenced by

1. the absence of a strong federal court system.
2. the success of the electoral college in the first two elections.
3. the constant quarreling between Hamilton and Jefferson in his cabinet.
4. the failure of the first national bank.
5. his experiences with treaties.

The Founders saw political parties as
1.) important to democracy
2.) effective only in raising money for campaigns
3.) appropriate for a direct democracy but not a republic.
4.) a means for communicating public opinio to the president.
5.) factions motivated by ambition and self-interest

According to the text, when did political parties in the United States develop a comprehensive organizational form and appeal?
1.) Since the new deal
2.) From founding in the 1920s
3.) From the time of president jackson to the time of the civil war
4.) From the civil war to the 1930s
5.) Since the kennedy administraiton

In the Jacksonian era, for the first time a party system was built
1.) From the bottom up
2.) on economic interests
3.) from the top down
4.) on ideological concerns
5.) without interest to the interests of voters

Prior to 1824, presidential candidates were nominated by

1. regional party conventions.
2. delegates selected by state legislatures.

3.) popular vote from a slate of candidates drawn up by the two national parties.

1. caucuses comprising of members of Congress.
2. delegates selected by members of the state judiciary.

Which of the following statements about the modern Republican party is correct?

1. It was founded by Thomas Jefferson to oppose the policies of Alexander Hamilton.
2. It was originally called the Antifederalist party.
3. It emerged as a major party only after the Civil War.
4. It emerged around 1824 with Andrew Jackson's first run for the presidency.
5. None of these.

The progressives favored all of the following except

1. nonpartisan elections.
2. strict voter registration requirements.
3. civil service reform.
4. better relations with business.
5. primary elections.

Procedures such as the initiative and the referendum arose as efforts to give

1. Congress a way of controlling the president.
2. citizens a direct say in making laws.
3. courts a system for prosecuting election fraud.
4. governors more power in relation to legislatures.
5. party regulars a say in nominating candidates.

Scholars have identified ____ critical or realigning periods in American politics.

1. 2
2. 3
3. 4
4. 5
5. 6

The elections of Ronald Reagan could not have represented a realignment because

1. they featured low voter turnout.
2. they left control of Congress in the hands of the Democratic party.
3. they did not involve salient economic issues.
4. the vote of the electoral college was actually quite close.
5. Republican governors were rarely reelected

One would generally expect split-ticket voting to occur more often when

1. states adopt the office ballot.
2. political parties provide voters with ballots.
3. states adopt the party-column ballot.
4. states adopt the Indiana ballot.
5. voters can vote for more than one candidate with a single mark.