Elections and Voting: Practice Questions

B. midterm elections: Midterms occur two years into a president's term.

D. only voters registered with a party may vote in that party's primary: In Florida, generally only registered party members vote in party primaries.

A. 40: The Florida Senate has 40 members; the Florida House has 120.

C. 270: There are 538 electors; a majority is 270.

B. state and local governments: Elections are run by states and counties, such as Florida's county supervisors of elections.

C. being at least 18 years old: The Twenty-sixth Amendment set the age at 18; poll taxes and literacy tests are banned.

A. 29 days: Florida's registration 'book closing' is 29 days before an election.

C. 60 percent: Florida requires 60% voter approval for constitutional amendments.

D. the House of Representatives, with each state delegation casting one vote: The Twelfth Amendment sends the election to the House.

D. They give legitimacy to representatives by reflecting the consent of the governed.: Elections are how the people grant authority to their representatives.

A. higher levels of education: Turnout rises with education, age, and income.

D. four years: Florida governors serve four-year terms with a two-consecutive-term limit.

A. the Supervisor of Elections: Each Florida county elects a Supervisor of Elections.

B. They let citizens choose their leaders and remove them peacefully.: Elections are the main way the people exercise authority over government and hold officials accountable.

B. Voters can choose freely without fear of pressure or retaliation.: Secret ballots protect voters from intimidation and vote-buying, helping make elections free and fair.

D. Voters can replace officials whose performance they dislike.: Because officials must face voters again, they have reason to listen to the people they represent.

C. Working as a poll worker on Election Day: Poll workers, campaign volunteers, and voter-registration drives all help elections function, a form of active citizenship.

C. Incumbent: Incumbent is an official who currently holds the office and is running for reelection.

C. An official who currently holds the office and is running for reelection.: Incumbent: an official who currently holds the office and is running for reelection.

D. The Court held that federal courts may hear challenges to the apportionment of state legislative districts.: In Baker v. Carr, the Court held that federal courts may hear challenges to the apportionment of state legislative districts.

D. Article I: Article I, Section 2 provides for the census.

B. apportion seats in the House of Representatives among the states: Article I requires a census to apportion House seats.

C. gerrymandering: The term comes from Gov. Elbridge Gerry's 1812 district map.

D. Every ten years: Article I, Section 2 requires an "actual Enumeration" every ten years so that House seats can be apportioned by population.

D. Distributing the 435 seats in the House among the states based on population: After each census, House seats are reapportioned so that states with more people get more representatives.

A. Redrawing the boundaries of election districts, usually after each census: When population shifts, district lines are redrawn so districts have roughly equal populations.

D. Drawing election district lines to give an unfair advantage to one party or group: The term comes from Massachusetts Governor Elbridge Gerry, whose party drew a salamander-shaped district in 1812.

D. 435: Congress fixed the size of the House at 435 voting members in the early 1900s. The seats are reapportioned among the states after each census.

A. gerrymandering: Gerrymandering manipulates district boundaries for partisan or other advantage.

D. Every ten years: Article I requires an "actual Enumeration" every ten years.

C. Reapportionment: Reapportionment is redistributing the 435 House seats among the states after each census.

B. Redistributing the 435 House seats among the states after each census.: Reapportionment: redistributing the 435 House seats among the states after each census.

B. Redistricting: Redistricting is redrawing the boundaries of election districts.

B. Redrawing the boundaries of election districts.: Redistricting: redrawing the boundaries of election districts.

B. Gerrymandering: Gerrymandering is drawing district lines to give one party or group an unfair advantage.

B. Drawing district lines to give one party or group an unfair advantage.: Gerrymandering: drawing district lines to give one party or group an unfair advantage.

C. recall: A recall election removes an official by popular vote.

B. choose among the nominees of different parties for an office: Primaries pick nominees; general elections decide officeholders.

B. To choose a political party's nominee for the general election: Primaries narrow the field. The winners represent their parties in the general election.

D. The election in which voters choose among all parties' nominees to fill an office: In a general election, the nominees of the parties (and independent candidates) compete, and the winner takes office.

D. The governor calls a special election.: Article I, Section 2 says that when House vacancies occur, the state's executive "shall issue Writs of Election" to fill them. House members are always elected, never appointed.

C. Remove an elected official from office before the end of his or her term: Some states and localities allow recalls. There is no recall procedure for federal officials.

D. In an initiative, citizens propose a measure by petition; in a referendum, the legislature refers a measure to voters.: Both are forms of direct democracy. Florida voters can amend the state constitution through citizen initiatives that gather enough petition signatures.

B. 60 percent: Since 2006, amendments to the Florida Constitution placed on the ballot generally need at least 60 percent voter approval.

C. In a caucus, party members meet in person to discuss and choose candidates instead of casting ballots throughout the day.: Some states use caucuses, local meetings of party members, to award delegates for presidential nominations. Most states, including Florida, use primaries.

C. Primary election: Primary election is an election in which voters choose a party's candidates for the general election.

B. An election in which voters choose a party's candidates for the general election.: Primary election: an election in which voters choose a party's candidates for the general election.

D. Closed primary: Closed primary is a primary in which only voters registered with a party may vote for that party's candidates.

C. A primary in which only voters registered with a party may vote for that party's candidates.: Closed primary: a primary in which only voters registered with a party may vote for that party's candidates.

C. General election: General election is the election in which voters choose among the candidates of different parties for an office.

B. The election in which voters choose among the candidates of different parties for an office.: General election: the election in which voters choose among the candidates of different parties for an office.

C. Special election: Special election is an election held outside the normal schedule, such as to fill a vacant seat.

A. An election held outside the normal schedule, such as to fill a vacant seat.: Special election: an election held outside the normal schedule, such as to fill a vacant seat.

A. Referendum: Referendum is a process in which voters approve or reject a law or constitutional change directly.

C. A process in which voters approve or reject a law or constitutional change directly.: Referendum: a process in which voters approve or reject a law or constitutional change directly.

D. Twelfth Amendment: The Twelfth Amendment requires electors to cast separate ballots for president and vice president.

C. its number of U.S. senators plus its number of U.S. representatives: Electors equal the state's total congressional delegation.

B. Article II: Article II describes the Electoral College method of choosing the president.

C. the candidate who wins the state's popular vote: 48 states and D.C. use winner-take-all; Maine and Nebraska split by district.

A. It equals the state's number of U.S. representatives plus its two senators.: Article II gives each state electors equal to its total number of senators and representatives.

B. 270 of 538: There are 538 electors (435 House seats, 100 Senate seats, and 3 for D.C.). A majority is 270.

C. The Twenty-Third Amendment gave it electors, but no more than the least populous state.: The Twenty-Third Amendment (1961) lets D.C. residents vote for president, with electors equal to the smallest state's number, currently three.

A. Maine and Nebraska: Maine and Nebraska give two electoral votes to the statewide winner and one to the winner of each congressional district.

C. 30: After the 2020 census, Florida gained a House seat, giving it 28 representatives plus 2 senators, for 30 electoral votes.

B. 2000: In 2000, George W. Bush won the Electoral College after the Florida recount dispute, while Al Gore won more popular votes nationally. This also happened in 2016.

D. having Congress choose the president and having the people elect the president directly.: Delegates debated selection by Congress versus direct popular election and settled on electors chosen in each state as the legislature directs.

B. its number of U.S. representatives plus its two senators: Each state's electors equal its total seats in Congress.

C. enforces federal campaign finance laws: The FEC regulates campaign finance.

D. An organization that raises and spends money to help elect or defeat candidates: PACs collect contributions from members and give money to candidates within limits set by federal law.

D. The Federal Election Commission (FEC): The FEC, created in 1974, administers and enforces federal campaign finance law, including contribution limits and disclosure.

C. Recruiting and nominating candidates for public office: Parties nominate candidates, organize campaigns, inform voters, and organize government. They are not mentioned in the Constitution.

C. A super PAC may raise and spend unlimited amounts but may not give money directly to or coordinate with candidates.: After Citizens United (2010) and a related lower-court decision, groups that only make independent expenditures can accept unlimited contributions.

B. A super PAC: After Citizens United (2010) and SpeechNow.org v. FEC, super PACs may raise unlimited funds for independent expenditures.

D. Political action committee (PAC): Political action committee (PAC) is an organization that raises and contributes money to candidates, subject to contribution limits.

D. An organization that raises and contributes money to candidates, subject to contribution limits.: Political action committee (PAC): an organization that raises and contributes money to candidates, subject to contribution limits.

D. Each state's legislature, although Congress may make or change the rules: The Elections Clause gives state legislatures the first say over how congressional elections are run, while Congress may "make or alter such Regulations."

D. The Florida Secretary of State: Florida law makes the Secretary of State the chief election officer. County Supervisors of Elections run elections locally.

B. The county Supervisor of Elections: Each Florida county elects a Supervisor of Elections, who registers voters, sets up polling places, and counts ballots.

B. The Tuesday after the first Monday in November: Federal law sets the date for choosing presidential electors and members of Congress as the Tuesday after the first Monday in November.

C. Generally, only voters registered with a party may vote in that party's primary.: In Florida's closed primaries, registered Republicans choose Republican nominees and registered Democrats choose Democratic nominees, with limited exceptions such as universal primaries.

C. The county Supervisor of Elections: Each Florida county has an elected Supervisor of Elections; the Secretary of State oversees statewide.

C. "One person, one vote": Baker v. Carr let federal courts hear apportionment challenges. Later cases such as Reynolds v. Sims required districts of roughly equal population.

D. Fifteenth (race), Nineteenth (sex), Twenty-Fourth (poll taxes), Twenty-Sixth (age 18): The Fifteenth was ratified in 1870, the Nineteenth in 1920, the Twenty-Fourth in 1964, and the Twenty-Sixth in 1971.

A. keep Black citizens and poor citizens from voting despite the Fifteenth Amendment.: These devices were applied unfairly to disenfranchise Black voters. The Twenty-Fourth Amendment and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 eventually outlawed them.

D. A rule exempting men from literacy tests or poll taxes if their grandfathers could vote before the Civil War era, which effectively excluded Black voters: Because the grandfathers of most Black citizens had been enslaved and could not vote, these clauses protected white voters while barring Black voters. The Supreme Court struck one down in 1915.

A. A party primary that excluded Black voters, later struck down by the Supreme Court: In the one-party South, the primary was often the decisive election, so excluding Black voters from it disenfranchised them. The Court struck down the white primary in Smith v. Allwright (1944).

C. The Voting Rights Act of 1965: Passed after the Selma marches, the Voting Rights Act enforced the Fifteenth Amendment and led to large increases in Black voter registration.

C. The government may not limit independent political spending by corporations and unions.: The Court held that independent expenditures are protected speech under the First Amendment. Limits on direct contributions to candidates remained.