Government of the United States Quiz

How can the government of the United States be best described?

• Direct democracy

• Monarchy

• Representative democracy

• Oligarchy

In a representative democracy, who holds the political power?

• The elected representatives

• The monarch

• The president alone

• The citizens

What do citizens do in a representative democracy?

• Govern directly

• Elect representatives to make decisions and pass laws

• Vote on every law themselves

• Serve as members of the judiciary

Which of the following is an example of a position that U.S. citizens vote for in a representative democracy?

• Members of Congress

• Members of the royal family

• CEOs of private companies

• Foreign ambassadors

Who proposed the New Jersey Plan?

• George Washington

• Alexander Hamilton

• James Madison

• William Paterson

What type of legislature did the New Jersey Plan propose?

• Bicameral (Two Houses) legislature

• Unicameral (One House) legislature

• Tricameral legislature

• Noncameral legislature

According to the New Jersey Plan, how would state representation be determined?

• Based on population size

• Equal vote for each state

• Based on state's economic contribution

• Based on state's geographic size

Which feature of the New Jersey Plan was incorporated into the final version of the Constitution?

• A strong executive branch

• Equal representation of states in the Senate

• Representation based on population

• A unicameral legislature

Who presented the Virginia Plan at the Constitutional Convention in 1787?

• George Washington and Thomas Jefferson

• Benjamin Franklin and John Adams

• James Madison and Edmund Randolph

• Alexander Hamilton and John Jay

What type of legislature did the Virginia Plan propose?

• Unicameral with equal representation for all states

• Unicameral with representation based on population size

• Bicameral with equal representation for all states

• Bicameral with representation based on population size