The American Electoral Process

According to the article, which of the following is a way in which the government has influenced voting in the U.S.? Choose all that apply.

• ensuring that the candidate with the highest popular vote wins an election

• intervening when states deny individual voters' rights

• expanding the right of suffrage to women and African-Americans

• allowing individual states to selct their own method of voting for the president

What is one difference between the Democratic and Republican process for choosing candidates?

• the Democrats need the support of more party delegates to win an election

• the Republicans need the support of more party delegates to win an election

• the Republicans also have caucuses in addition to primaries

• Democrats are always elected by popular vote

According to the author, what is NOT a flaw of the U.S. electoral system?

• Smaller states can have more power than larger states to influence an election.

• The election of the president of the U.S. is not reflective of the individual votes of citizens.

• The election process is too outdated and complicated.

• It forces presidential candidates to pay attention to rural states with lower populations instead of focusing on urban areas.

The author concludes that the American electoral system is...

• in need of reform, but it is an important component in America's success.

• fair and representative, and an important part of America's success.

• archaic; the popular vote should determine the winner of presidential elections.

Which statement BEST describes the central idea of the text?

• It is inherently unfair that the votes of citizens from populous states should count less than the votes of citizens from rural states.

• The American Electoral College system - though somewhat effective - is flawed and excessively complex.

• The biggest flaw of the Electoral College system is that it forces presidential candidates to devote significant economic resources to their campaigns.

• The process by which we elect our president has been rendered irrelevant by modern technological innovations.

Which TWO quotes from the text best support the main idea of the article?

• "We gripe that [the electoral college system] is more complicated than the Rubik's cube; it takes too much time; it's too expensive; and it is unfair. And, in fact, it is all of the above."

• "...because every state, regardless of the size of its population, has two senators, the voters in small states have - per capita - greater electoral power than their big-state counterparts."

• "One consequence of our byzantine electoral system is that it is extremely expensive and time consuming. In 2012, for example, the presidential candidates spent $2.6 billion and almost two years of intensive work before... Election Day."

• [The system] has helped create history's most stable, free, and affluent society, and it has had the consent of the governed - the bedrock of society."