DRILL

1
1. Which of the following is usually true about the relationship between presidential
and vice-presidential candidates?

(A) They are from different parties.

(B) They are from different states.
(C) They are from the same state.
(D) The vice-presidential candidate usually makes most of the campaign decisions.
(E) The vice-presidential candidate served in the prior administration’s cabinet.

2. Which of the following is NOT a tactic used by interest groups to persuade elected
members of government?

(A) Lobbying for issues

(B) Endorsing candidates
(C) Voting directly on bills
(D) Filing lawsuits in the courts
(E) Making political donations to candidates

3. Which of the following best describes an informal government action?

(A) Elections for national offices

(B) Judicial nominations
(C) Impeachment proceedings
(D) Congressional votes on legislation
(E) Conversations with lobbyists

4. The increasing use of presidential primaries in the past four decades has had
which of the following effects?

(A) Decreased spending on political campaigns

(B) Decreased spending by PACs
(C) More control over the presidential nomination process by the elite political class
(D) Elimination of national party conventions
(E) Decreased importance of state conventions

5. Which of the following is a function of political parties?

(A) Congressional lobbying

(B) Giving citizens a link to the political process
(C) Writing opinions for the Supreme Court
(D) Ensuring that the elite class runs the government
(E) Suppressing minority rights

6. Which of the following categories of campaigns do NOT have the option to be

partially financed by public money?

I. Congressional
II. Gubernatorial
III. Presidential
(A) I only
(B) II only
(C) I and II only
(D) II and III only
(E) I, II, and III

7. An election that changes the balance of government power from one party to the
other in America’s two-party system is called
(A) party dealignment
(B) a critical election
(C) a primary election
(D) split ticket voting
(E) a coalition

8. Politicians use all of the following tactics to generate positive media stories
EXCEPT

(A) holding meetings to address pressing issues

(B) extra-marital affairs
(C) television interviews
(D) press releases
(E) photo-ops

9. Which of the following factors contributes most directly to split-ticket voting in

America?

(A) More third party candidates with little public support

(B) More voter decisions based on party identification
(C) Stronger national party organizations and weaker state party organizations (D)
Decreasing voter identification with the Democratic and Republican parties (E)
Higher reliance on parties support by candidates

10. Interest groups presently represent which of the following causes?

I. Environmentalism
II. The Right to Bear Arms
III. The Right to Forbid the Quartering of Soldiers
IV. The Right to Free Speech
(A) II only
(B) IV only
(C) I, II, and III only
(D) I, II, and IV only
(E) I, II, III, and IV

11. Which of the following was true before the 1960s’ increase in popularity of
states using primary election systems to select presidential candidates?

(A) Political parties didn’t exist.

(B) The cost of running for office was higher.
(C) U.S. voters played a larger role in the nomination process.
(D) State party organizations played a smaller role in the nomination process.
(E) State party leaders had more control over the nomination process.

12. Which of the following is a function of the two major political parties in the
United States?

(A) To act as a check on the other party

(B) To represent a single political issue
(C) To de-emphasize their national conventions
(D) To select juries in criminal trials
(E) To represent a narrow portion of the electorate

13. All of the following describe the organization of the major parties in the United
States EXCEPT:
(A) Party decisions are top down from the national level to the local level.
(B) The majority of a party’s leaders are local activists.
(C) All levels of a political party are represented at the party’s convention.
(D) Local and state participants may exercise power in their national party system.
(E) National elected officials frequently campaign for local candidates in their parties.

14. Advising legislators on the technical components of particular issues is the

primary job of
(A) the media
(B) lobbyists
(C) campaign coordinators
(D) the courts
(E) cabinet members