Political Parties

A political party is a group of individuals who

A. Agree on all policy issues.

B. Organize to win elections and operate the government.

C. Pay monthly dues to an ideological organization.

D. Have been elected to office and have obtained positions of power.

E. Accept the decisions of the party's leaders.

A political party differs from an interest group in that

A. Political parties want to operate the government and interest groups do not.

B. Political parties do not want to operate the government and interest groups do.

C. Individuals must pay dues to belong to a political party.

D. Individuals in a political party agree on all major policy issues.

E. Political parties deal with matters of campaign finance and interest groups do not.

Today, a faction is

A. A term that means the same thing as a political party.

B. A subgroup within an interest group.

C. An umbrella term for both interest groups and political parties.

D. A subgroup within a party.

E. The percentage of Congress that must agree to a constitutional amendment.

Functions of political parties in the United States include all of the following except

A. Operating the government.

B. Acting as an organized opposition to the party in power.

C. Signing up large numbers of committed members.

D. Recruiting candidates for public office.

E. Presenting alternative policies to the electorate.

The ___________ emerged in the 1850s as an antislavery party and consisted of former northern Whigs and antislavery Democrats.

A political system in which only two parties have a reasonable chance of winning is called

The first partisan political division in the United States was between the

A. Democrats and the Republicans.

B. Whigs and the Democrats.

C. Federalists and the Anti-Federalists.

D. Whigs and the Tories.

E. Whigs and the Republicans.

George Washington viewed political parties as a

A. Necessity for the functioning of democracy.

B. Tradition from colonial times that would always exist.

C. Threat to national unity and popular government.

D. Legitimate means for interest groups to attempt to gain control of the government.

E. Vestige of politics under Great Britain and thus a thing of the past.

Under Woodrow Wilson the Democratic Party

A. Rejected the policies of progressivism.

B. Continued to adhere to the same basic policies that it did in the nineteenth century.

C. Endorsed the idea that government should become involved in the economy.

D. Shattered into three very distinct parties that were extraordinarily antagonistic toward each other.

E. Adopted a policy of isolating the United States from the affairs of the rest of the world.

Progressivism was

A. A belief that honest, impartial government could effectively curb the growing power of large corporations.

B. A belief that the conditions faced by African Americans needed improvement.

C. Limited to the Republican Party.

D. Limited to the Democratic Party.

E. A continuation of traditional Democratic Party positions.

Which of the following is true?

A. The Great Depression shattered the working-class belief in Democratic economic competence.

B. The Great Depression solidified the Republican Party as the dominant and most trusted party in American government and politics.

C. Roosevelt's relief programs were generally not available to African Americans, resulting in African American antagonism toward the Democratic Party that lasted for decades.

D. The Great Depression resulted in the final transformation of the Democrats from a party of limited government to a party of active government.

E. Republicans held the presidency from the early 1930s until the late 1960s.

During the last half-century, the Democrats have been known as the party of

During the last half-century, the Republicans have been known as the party of

Republicans have emphasized

A. The need for governmental regulation of the economy.

B. The importance of the marketplace and less emphasis on social programs.

C. Social freedoms like the proposed Equal Rights Amendment.

D. The need to increase taxes on the wealthy and large corporations.

E. National authority versus the states.

Democrats have emphasized

A. Limited government

B. A flat tax that would eliminate the progressive income tax system.

C. Social welfare and protection of senior's benefits.

D. A major reduction in most social programs that result in direct payments to individuals.

E. An ethic of self-reliance

A paradox in Republican and Democratic policies over the last 25 years has been that

A. Both parties have supported limited government in practice

B. Despite their rhetoric, the Democrats have implemented large tax cuts.

C. the Democrats are seen as supporting the less well off, while the Republicans are seen as favoring the prosperous

D. Despite their support for tax cuts, the Republicans have sometimes outdone the Democrats in voting for government spending.

E. the Democrats support universal health insurance.

A situation in which one major political party controls the presidency and the other controls the chambers of Congress is known as

When a person votes for a Republican presidential candidate and for a Democratic congressional candidate, she is

An atmosphere of party polarization

A. Is traditional in American politics

B. Has become rare in recent years.

C. Is enhanced in Congress because of the creation of safe seats, in which winning candidates need only appeal to the members of their own party.

D. Is discouraged by media commentators who argue the necessity of cooperation in government.

E. Is embraced by the majority of Americans who are intolerant of opposing political views.

The two-party system has dominated the American political landscape for all of the following reasons except

A. There has often been a single overriding issue that splits the electorate in two.

B. The election of governors and the president by the people and not by a vote of a legislative body.

C. State and federal laws favor the two major parties

D. Many people believe that the only practical way to gain power is to be a Republican or a Democrat.

E. Third parties are illegal in many jurisdictions.

In the winner-take-all system

A. Whoever gets the most votes wins.

B. One must get a majority of votes cast to win.

C. Votes are allocated on a proportional basis.

D. Only parties receiving more than five percent of the vote are allocated seats.

E. A party must have competed in a previous election to be placed on the ballot.

Third parties have influenced American politics by

A. Refusing to allow their policies to be adopted by a major party.

B. Determining whether the Republicans or Democrats win an election

C. Focusing their efforts on getting judges appointed to the bench rather than winning elections for the executive or legislative branches.

D. Winning elections to state legislative bodies

E. Gaining control of several municipal governments.

Realignment

A. Is of necessity tied to specific elections.

B. Takes place when a substantial group of voters switches party allegiance

C. Takes place when one dominant party replaces another one.

D. Took place on schedule in 2004.

E. Has been predicted as an inevitability in the foreseeable future.

Which of the following is an obstacle for third parties?

A. Established major parties need to gather fewer signatures than do minor parties.

B. All rules and procedures of Congress divide committee seats and staff on party memberships.

C. The Federal Election Commission (FEC) places restrictions on minor party candidates.

D. Major political parties absorb issues of third parties.

E. All of the above are obstacles.

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