Multiple-Choice Questions.
To assess your knowledge and skills in government and politics answer these sample multiple-choice questions. Here are some questions on political parties, campaigns, and elections. The correct answers will appear below the questions once you’ve had time to answer. 1. Which of the following is an accurate comparison of the Democrat and Republican parties?
1. Which of the following is an accurate comparison of the Democrat and Republican parties?
| Democrat Party | Republican Party | |
| (A) | Has more delegates at their conventions to fairly reflect of their voters | Has shifted party ideology from a liberal to more conservative stance over time |
| (B) | Dominates most southern congressional seats | Was strengthened by the creation of the New Deal coalition. |
| (C) | Has received solid support from the Asian American community for decades | Receives more support from younger voters |
| (D) | Believes the law should prevent abortions | Is more open to immigration |
2. Which of the following issues was NOT a determining factor in the shifts of ideology of the Republican and Democrat parties?
(A) The Democrats evolving views on civil rights for African Americans.
(B) The Republicans alignment with big business and an affinity for lassez faire approach to governing.
(C) Southern Democrats becoming Republicans in the post-1964 era.
(D) A stark difference of opinion on the administration of the Vietnam War.
3. Which of the following is a plank from the 2012 Democrat party platform?
(A) “States should have the option of imposing the death penalty.”
(B) Support for “a woman’s right to make decisions regarding her pregnancy.”
(C) “Marriage, the union of one man and one woman, must be upheld as the national standard.”
(D) A belief in a “fundamental right to keep and bear arms for self-defense.”
4. In a ______ primary, voters can decide as late as election day which party’s primary they wish to participate in.
(A) blanket
(B) open
(C) closed
(D) runoff
5. Throughout the 1970s, the general thrust of the Democratic rules commissions considering delegate selection was to
(A) create a more unified national organization.
(B) weaken the influence of party leaders and enlarge the role of the rank and file.
(C) decrease intra-party competition for the delegate seats.
(D) decrease the size of the delegations to strengthen the voice of party elites.
6. The term “superdelegate” refers to
(A) official delegates attending the Democrat party convention who are not required to pledge themselves in advance to a presidential candidate.
(B) the delegates at the Republican convention who end up voting for the winning nominee
(C) electors from swing states
(D) those attending the long caucus meetings in Iowa
California Presidential Primary Election Results, 2016
(Top Five Vote-Getters)
| Democrats | Votes | Percent | Republican | Total Votes | Percent |
| Clinton | 2,745,302 | 53.1 | Donald Trump | 1,665,135 | 74.8 |
| Sanders | 2,381,722 | 46 | John Kasich | 252,544 | 11.3 |
| Wilson | 12,014 | 0.2 | Ted Cruz | 211,576 | 9.5 |
| Steinberg | 10,880 | 0.2 | Ben Carson | 82,259 | 3.7 |
| De La Fuente | 8,453 | 0.2 | Jim Gilmore | 15,691 | 0.7 |
Source: California Secretary of State, 2016
7. Using your knowledge of presidential primary politics, and the data in this table, which statement reflects how delegates to the 2016 Democratic Convention were allocated in the State of California?
(A) Due to winner-take-all rules, Hillary Clinton received all of California’s delegates
(B) Since neither candidate earned a super-majority of votes, each candidate received half of the delegates
(C) Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders received delegate allocation in proportion to the vote the earned in the California primary
(D) Party bosses will use the data from the California primary to determine delegate allocation.