Unit 5: Political Participation

A political science professor is researching the effects that the Fifteenth and Twenty-Sixth Amendments have had on the American political system. Which of the following is the most likely reason the professor is researching these amendments?

• To study the expansion of the right to equal protection under the law

• To study the expansion of due process rights

• To study the expansion of voting rights

• To study the expansion of federal authority over states

Which of the following describes the Twenty-Fourth Amendment?

• It eliminated poll taxes.

• It reduced barriers to political participation on the basis of gender.

• It required elections for the United States Senate.

• It desegregated places of public accommodation.

Which of the following demographic groups has voted most consistently for the Democratic Party in national elections over the last three decades?

• African Americans

• Hispanics

• Wealthy White males

• Southern White males

The agenda-setting function of the media refers to the power to

• endorse specific candidates for political office

• favor the position of one interest group over another

• mobilize economic interests in favor of a particular candidate

• decide which issues are important enough to bring to public attention

Typically, presidential candidates implement their campaign strategies by

• applying their resources evenly among the states, because they must win popular votes in a majority of the states to be elected

• focusing on larger, competitive states, because they might tip the balance of the electoral college

• focusing on small states, because these states have proportionally more electoral votes than more populous states have

• ignoring the electoral college, because the popular vote determines the outcome of the election

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

• Most candidates who run for office are recruited by political leaders to do so because they are famous.

• Candidates for office usually first work as lawyers for political parties before running for office.

• Most candidates running for office are selected after earning merit working for the government.

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

Answer explanation

Political parties usually seek out individuals they know through local networks and recruit them to run for office.

Item 14When party members meet to nominate a candidate for office, they participate in which of the following?

• General election

• Caucus

• Open primary

• Closed primary

A chief executive officer (CEO) of a corporation believes that the Republican candidate for president will enact policies that are more beneficial to her business. The CEO donated the maximum amount allowed by law directly to the candidate’s campaign fund. To increase the candidate's chances for election, the CEO also directed her corporation to donate funds to an independent political action committee to create ads criticizing the opposing candidate. According to the decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010), which provision of the Constitution protects her actions?

• Reserved powers in the Tenth Amendment

• Due process clause in the Fifth Amendment

• Freedom of association in the First Amendment

• Freedom of speech in the First Amendment

Answer explanation

The Citizens United decision extended free speech rights in the First Amendment to corporations, labor unions, and interest groups.

Which of the following statements about voting behavior in the United States is correct?

• Voters under the age of 25 are more likely to vote than are those in any other age group.

• College graduates are more likely to vote than are those who have at most a high school diploma.

• Since 1920, the proportion of women who have voted is approximately the same as the proportion of men who have voted.

• During the twentieth century, the proportion of African Americans who voted was approximately the same as the proportion of White Americans who voted.

Which of the following best describes the concept of political efficacy?

• It is the belief that the media must provide unbiased information for citizens to be able to make well-informed choices.

• It is the belief that one can make a difference in politics by expressing an opinion and acting politically.

• It is the belief that an intelligent voting decision cannot be made without information.

• The belief that politicians must keep the electorate well-informed if they are to govern efficiently.