quiz 2

Question 1

voting barriers

Answer 1

restrictions that make it harder for people to vote, such as voter ID laws, lack of polling places, voter roll purges, and limited early voting

Question 2

felon voting rights

Answer 2

laws regarding whether convicted felons can vote; some states allow voting after release, while others have permanent disenfranchisement

Question 3

voting rights in the Constitution

Answer 3

the US Constitution does not explicitly guarantee a right to vote, but amendments (15th, 19th, 24th, & 26th) prohibit discrimination in voting based on race, gender, poll taxes, and age (18+)

Question 4

types of barriers to ballot access (4)

Answer 4

1. restrictive voter registration laws
2. strict ID requirements
3. gerrymandering
4. difficulty accessing polling places

Question 5

voting instruments accused of fraud (2)

Answer 5

1. mail-in ballots
2. electronic voting machines

Question 6

primary

Answer 6

a state-level election where voters choose a party’s nominee for the general election

Question 7

caucus

Answer 7

a local party meeting where members select delegates who later vote for the nominee at conventions

Question 8

delegates

Answer 8

party representatives who vote for candidates at national conventions, awarded based on primary/caucus results

Question 9

superdelegates

Answer 9

unpledged party delegates (elected officials and party leaders) who have the power to support any candidate at the convention

Question 10

primary calendar

Answer 10

the schedule of state primaries and caucuses, beginning with Iowa and New Hampshire

Question 11

primary rule (delegate selection)

Answer 11

each party has rules for awarding delegates (proportional for Democrats; winner-take-all or proportional for Republicans)

Question 12

electoral college

Answer 12

the system used to elect the US president; each state gets electors based on congressional representation (House + Senate seats)

Question 13

electors: what do they do?

Answer 13

cast the official votes for president and vice president

Question 14

electors: how are they chosen?

Answer 14

selected by political parties in each state, typically pledged to the party’s candidate

Question 15

Electoral Count Act of 1887

Answer 15

a law clarifying the process of counting electoral votes, resolving disputes over contested results

Question 16

history of primary rule evolution (2)

Answer 16

1. originally, party leaders selected nominees based on whose primary loyalty was to the party, its positions, its programs, and especially its state and national leadership
2. reforms made primaries more democratic and representative, particularly after 1968

Question 17

1968 Democratic Nominating Convention (2)

Answer 17

1. led to rule changes after protests over the nomination process when Vice President Hubert Humphrey won without campaigning in any of the party’s primary elections
2. resulting in the McGovern-Fraser reforms (more transparent primaries, reduced power of party leaders)

Question 18

delegate allocation in primaries

Answer 18

Democrats: proportional system based on votes in each state
Republicans: mix of proportional and winner-take-all rules

Question 19

electoral college: original design/intent

Answer 19

created as a compromise to balance power between large and small states, and as a safeguard against uneducated voting masses

Question 20

electoral college: evolution of the institution

Answer 20

shifted from elite-controlled to popular vote-influenced selection of electors

Question 21

federal legislation affecting the electoral college (2)

Answer 21

1. the 12th amendment (separate votes for president and vice president)
2. the Electoral Count Act

Question 22

attempts to abolish the electoral college

Answer 22

numerous proposals, including the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact

Question 23

why hasn’t the electoral college been abolished? (2)

Answer 23

1. requires a constitutional amendment (hard to do)
2. smaller states benefit from the system, making it unlikely to pass

Question 24

democratizing the presidential primary

Answer 24

over time, states increased the role of primaries over caucuses, reducing the influence of party elites

Question 25

the transition to a more democratic system in the US meant (4)

Answer 25

1. broader suffrage 2. organized parties 3. professional politicians 4. politicians were no longer people who had money; they have to RAISE money

Question 26

early attempts to reform the use of money in politics (5)

Answer 26

1. Tillman Act (1907) 2. Corrupt Practices Act (1912) 3. Federal Elections Campaign Act (1971 - amendments in 1973 & 1974) 4. Buckley v. Valeo (1976) 5. Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act (McCain - Feingold 2002)

Question 27

soft money (unregulated)

Answer 27

a contribution to a political party not accounted as going toward a particular candidate - thus avoiding various legal limitations

Question 28

hard money

Answer 28

held to the strict regulations under the FEC (per the FECA regulations)

Question 29

what BCRA did (4)

Answer 29

1. eliminated soft money contributions 2. banned electoral electioneering 3. media & incumbents advantaged by these limitations 4. national parties downsized

Question 30

buckley v. valeo (1976) (2)

Answer 30

1. upheld reporting and contribution limits 2. equated money to political speech and extends 1st amendment protection to campaign contributions

Question 31

political action committee (PACs) (2)

Answer 31

1. a committee organized for the purpose of raising and spending money to elect or defeat a candidate 2. can contribute directly to a candidate's campaign

Question 32

527 political committees

Answer 32

a type of tax-exempt organization created to influence the election or defeat of a federal, state, or local candidate for public office

Question 33

501 (c) 3 groups

Answer 33

an affiliated PAC; meaning affiliated/attached to an organization not authorized to raise and spend campaign donations

Question 34

501 (c) groups - (2)

Answer 34

1. filed with IRS as a tax-exempt "social welfare organization" 2. not primarily political under the code, but in practice operates as a political fundraising/expenditure group for specific ideological purposes

Question 35

super PACs (2)

Answer 35

1. 501 (c) 4 groups: tax-exempt groups organized for "social welfare" and may operate to promote such causes - but usually are political in nature 2. independent expenditure-only groups: can raise/spend unlimited amount of money; cannot engage with a candidate directly, but can spend money on behalf of a candidate/cause

Question 36

sources of campaign funding (5)

Answer 36

1. individual candidates can self-finance (unlimited funds) 2. private citizens can give money to campaigns ($2,700 limit per election) 3. political parties can raise funds for specific purposes 4. PACs ($5,000 limit per election) 5. super PACs (unlimited)

Question 37

dark money (2)

Answer 37

1. sources of money used by super PACs does not need to be disclosed, so the course of the money is unknown 2. protected as political speech (so far)