Review Questions – Family Feud – Regular Round
15 Multi Answer Questions – 13 Follow Up Questions
What are the four types of Minor Parties? – 100 pts
1. Economic Protest
2. Ideological
3. Single Issue
4. Splinter
Follow up bonus: Give one example or definition for each – 100 pts
What are the 8 Roles of the Political Parties? – 200 pts
1. To provide a link between the people and the government
2. To be a moderate representation of the people’s views/interests
3. Bring conflicting groups together
4. Responsible for nominating candidates
5. Informing and activating supporters and those unsure of how they will vote
6. Must govern what goes on in congress
7. Being a watchdog of the party that is in power
Follow up bonus ‘ - 100 pts each
How do the parties provide a link between the people and the government?
People can petition to their party, etc
Why would a party want to be a moderate representation, rather than being more extreme?
Most people are moderate, and the extremist views may scare people away from the
party, thus causing it to lose votes
What is the danger of a party not being unified? How could this be detrimental to the party?
People look at it as if it’s weak – could lose votes in the election
What are 4 traits that a party looks for in a candidate? – 100 pts
1. Moderate
2. Good public speaker
3. No skeletons in his closet
4. Professional looking – Cool under pressure, etc
Follow up bonus – Why would these things be critical in selecting a candidate? – 100 pts
Appeal to as many people as possible, etc
What are some methods that parties use to get out the word on their candidates? – 150 pts
1. Pamphlets
2. Bumper stickers
3. Television Ads
4. Radio Ads
5. Posters
6. Debates
Follow up bonus – When helping run incumbents, the incumbents have a clear advantage thanks to
something given to them in the constitution. What is it? – 150 pts
Franking Privilege
What are three formal ways in which a party can act as a watchdog (or have its members act as
watchdogs)? – 100 pts
1. Have its candidates vote against bills
2. Have its candidates make speeches against policy
3. Have its candidates filibuster on bills to bring attention to the fact that they don’t agree
Follow up bonus – What is an informal example of a party being a watchdog?
Media outlets
In Washington’s farewell address, he warns the American people about three things… - 100 pts
1. Foreign alliances
2. Overgrown military
3. Political Parties
Follow up bonus – What was his reason for warning against political parties?
Feared it would divide the country and cause it to fail
What are four reasons for America having a two party system? – 100 pts
1. Historical
2. Tradition
3. Electoral System
4. American Ideological Consensus
Follow up bonus – What were the first two political parties to emerge and who headed them?
Federalists – Hamilton, Anti-Federalists – Jefferson
What are the characteristics of the Federalist Party? (Who were they? What did they want? Who did
their views appeal to?)– 100 -pts
1. Party of the rich and well born
2. Strong national government
3. Appealed to financial, manufacturing and commercial people
What are the characteristics of the Anti-Federalist Party? – 100 pts
1. Sympathetic to the common man
2. Believed in strict construction of the constitution
3. Appealed to small shopkeepers, laborers, farmers
There were four major political eras controlled by particular parties (1800 to 1860, 1860 to 1932, 1932
to 1968, and 1968 to now). Which party controlled each? – 100 pts
1. Democrats
2. Republicans
3. Democrats
4. Back and forth
Follow up bonus – Since 1968, the role has been different. Yes the parties go back and forth and a big
reason for this is peoples changing opinions with the media, etc. What else makes it unique from the
other eras in terms of party control?
While one party controlled the presidency, generally the other controlled the houses
What are some difficulties minor parties face in getting on the ballot?
1. Registration fees
2. Petition Requirements
3. Debate rules exclude minor parties
What are the three components of the Party?
1. The Party organization
2. The party in the electorate
3. The party in government
Follow up question – What is the biggest factor in determining which party people will id with?
Family
The Parties have members who hold what 3 types of positions?
1. Leaders
2. Loyal members and voters
3. Officeholders
What are the four basic elements of National Party Machinery?
1. The national convention
2. The national committee
3. The national chairperson
4. The congressional campaign committees
Follow up questions – What are the roles of each of these?
National Convention – Pick the presidential candidates
National Committee – handle the party affairs, focus on staging the convention
National Chairperson – leader of the national committee, directs work of party hq and
work to strengthen the party
Congressional Campaign Committee – work to reelect incumbents and make sure
retiring seats are to remain in the party, unseat members of other party
What can be attributed to the weakened state of political parties now?
1. Sharp drop in the number of voters willing to identify themselves as either Rep or Dem
2. Increase in Split ticket Voting
3. Structural changes – lead to parties being more open, led to greater internal conflict and
disorganization (direct primary, finance laws)
4. Changes in technology of campaigning for office (TV and Internet) – candidates less dependent
on party organization
5. Growth of single issue organizations
Follow up question – Single issue organizations tend to last for how long?
Short lived
Review Questions – Family Feud – Speed Round
36 Questions
Q: A ward is what?
A: A way/ unit that cities are divided for the
election of city council members
Q: Most ideological parties are formed along
this basic school of thought?
A: Marxist
Q: Casting ballots for candidates from different
parties for different offices in the same
election is called?
A: Split-ticket voting
Q: When a bill is passed that receives support
from both major parties, it is considered what
kind of bill?
A: Bipartisan
Q: A precinct is the largest unit of election
administration, True or False?
A: False, it is the smallest – a voting district
Q: The Populist party, from the primary source
exercise was an example of this type of party?
Why?
A: Economic Protest Party
Q: What is a pluralistic society?
A: A society consisting of several different
cultures and groups
Q: In an election what candidate gets a
plurality?
A: The winner
Q: What exactly is a plurality?
A: Number of votes the leading candidate gets
over the next highest candidate
Q: A party that is not widely supported is
known as a?
A: Minor Party
Q: The democrats and the republicans are
known as what in the US?
A: Major Parties
Q: You (if you’re over 18), your parents, Mr.
Grosso, etc are all known as what in a given
election?
A: Electorate
Q: A political party is a group of people who
seek to control government by doing what?
A: Winning Elections
Q: What makes a splinter party a splinter
party?
A: Break away from a major party
Q: A ________ is reached when there is a
general agreement among various groups on
fundamental matters.
A: Consensus
Q: The more common term for a one-party
system is a?
A: Dictatorship
Q: The political system in the United States can
be
classified
generally
as
what?
a) One-party system
b) Two- party system
c) Multi- party system
A: b) Two- party system
Q: The major political parties in the United
States always vote together right? So when
they vote they never show a display of this
(which means the parties voting along party
lines)?
A: Partisanship
Q: What is a coalition?
A: A temporary alliance of several groups who
came together to form a working majority
Q: One of the downsides to a coalition is that it
creates a weak government, True or False?
A: True
Q: The parties, when informing an activating
supporters, try to inform supporters to their
own advantage, while taking positions that do
what?
A: Attract as many voters as possible/ offend as
few voters as possible
Q: The head of the Anti-Federalist party was
who? (Nominated for President in 1800)
A: Thomas Jefferson
Q: Which party in 1800 would be more likely to
say the following statement? “A government
ought to contain in itself every power requisite
to the full accomplishment of the objects
committed to its care, and to the complete
execution of the trusts for which it is
responsible, free from other control but a
regard to the public good and to the sense of
the people.”
A: Federalists – Alexander Hamilton, Federalist
number 31, January 1st 1788
Q: The first, and only to this date, party to go
from a minor to a major party was which
party?
A: The Republican Party
Q: There have been four major eras in politics.
Which party has controlled the majority of
these?
A: Democrats, 1800-1860 and 1932-1968
Q: The bonding agent function does what?
A: Binds the candidate and the party together. If
the party does something unpopular, it can
reflect on the candidate and vice versa.
Q: Which party was George Washington the
founder of?
A: None
Q: Which party, Anti-Federalists or Federalists,
lasted longer? (Hint: It’s the party that became
the Democratic Party)
A: Anti-Federalists
Q: When there is a major shift in the parties,
what is a reason that is common?
A: Dissatisfaction with the party in power and
desire for a change
Q: The most recent era, starting in 1968, has
seen a consistent shifting in which party holds
Presidential power. The difficulty in saying
which party holds power is based on
something else, which can lead to the
Presidents difficulty to get things passed?
A: While one party holds the power at the
Presidential level, another party holds the
power in house, etc
Q: To win an election in the United States, the
winner must receive a majority of the votes,
True or False?
A: False, a plurality
Q: Both major parties in the United States are:
a) Extremely Liberal
b) Moderate
c) Extremely Conservative
A: b) Moderate
Q: People like Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, and
Al Franken can be considered what?
A: Extremists
Q: What is the realistic goal of minor parties?
A: Have a major party adopt their issues as their
own.
Q: True or False: The constitution mandated
political parties as a necessity for government
to function efficiently.
A: False
Q: How do people choose which party they
belong to?
A: Personal preference