Chapter 9: Political Parties, Elections, and Campaigns

Test Bank

Multiple Choice

1. Although parties may seem strong in California because three-quarters of registered Californians belong to a political party, the number is deceiving because ______.

A. polls show that a majority of Californians would rather be unaffiliated with any party

B. Democrats win all the elections, so it is really a “blue state”

C. third parties are thriving, and more than 20% of voters affiliate with them now

D. most who register with major political parties are independents who have no other choice but to register with a party so that they can vote in elections

Answer Location: Introduction

2. Without ______, citizens would lack the means to hold their representatives accountable.

A. limitations on independent campaign spending

B. elections

C. campaign donations

D. term limits

Answer Location: Introduction

3. In thinking about California’s political geography, one of the most significant developments with respect to partisan politics is ______.

A. a noticeable split between a heavily liberal, Democratic north and a conservative, Republican south

B. a checkerboard of Republican and Democratic counties across the state, making it difficult to identify any geographic areas where partisans concentrate

C. solid Democratic majorities across all 58 counties

D. an east–west divide, whereby coastal regions are more liberal and Democratic, and inland regions are more conservative and Republican

Answer Location: Introduction

4. Historically speaking, political parties in California have ______.

A. always thrived

B. struggled for survival, not prospered

Answer Location: Democratic Stronghold, but Weakly Partisan

5. With respect to political party politics, California historically has been considered a ______.

A. strong party state

B. weak party state

C. one-party state

D. nonpartisan state

Answer Location: Democratic Stronghold, but Weakly Partisan

6. What early 20th-century Progressive electoral innovation is still in place today?

A. nonpartisan elections at the local level

B. primaries that are closed to independents

C. party bosses aren’t allowed to endorse candidates at any point during the election season

D. none are still visible today; Progressive “innovations” have been effectively eliminated or invalidated over the years

Answer Location: Democratic Stronghold, but Weakly Partisan

7. The category of registered voters that has been steadily rising since the 1960s is ______.

A. Democratic

B. Republican

C. green

D. no party preference (independent)

Answer Location: Party in the California Electorate

8. When a person registers to vote, he or she actually registers with ______.

A. a party’s state organization (nationwide there are 50 Democratic Party organizations, 50 Republican Party organizations, and so forth)

B. the national party organization (such as the RNC or DNC)

C. the local party

D. the DMV

Answer Location: Party Organizations

9. A political party can be conceptualized as having at least three interconnected parts: party in the electorate, party as an organization, and ______.

A. party in the house

B. party in government

C. party conventions

D. party affiliation

Answer Location: Democratic Stronghold, but Weakly Partisan

10. Which of the following is NOT a conservative position?

A. government should be limited in size and scope

B. keep taxes low/don’t raise taxes

C. abortion rights should be protected

D. strongly restrict illegal immigration

Answer Location: Party in the California Electorate

11. Which of the following is NOT a liberal position?

A. favor business over labor interests

B. support gay marriage

C. promote equal opportunity in education

D. favor universal health care

Answer Location: Party in the California Electorate

12. Which of the following is a conservative position?

A. government should be limited in size and scope

B. raise taxes on the wealthy

C. favor abortion rights

D. support drivers’ licenses for undocumented immigrants

Answer Location: Party in the California Electorate

13. If a person is more sympathetic to the concerns of employees and laborers than those of business owners, that person is most likely a ______.

A. Libertarian

B. Democrat

C. Republican

D. all of these

Answer Location: Party in the California Electorate

14. Regarding the state’s overall political party leanings, which of the following is evidence that California is slightly “purple” rather than “solidly blue?”

A. Republicans and Democrats usually work together in a bipartisan spirit of compromise.

B. There’s strong electoral competition, demonstrated by the closeness of most races for the Assembly and the Senate, and the close party split in both the Assembly and Senate (almost as many Republicans as Democrats).

C. Rising number of people who register as “no party preference” (24%) and only a plurality are Democratic (44%); polls show voters would choose a viable third party if given the chance, indicating weak connections to parties.

D. There’s no evidence that the state is anything other than overwhelmingly Democratic.

Answer Location: Party in the California Electorate

15. Which of the following statements characterizes current party registration in California?

A. Democrats have an absolute majority.

B. Independents have been declining as Republican and Democratic party registration have risen steadily over time.

C. Independent category is slowly increasing, and Republican registration has dropped below 30% for the first time in modern history.

D. Californians are evenly split among the Democratic, Republican, and no party preference categories (about 30/30/30, plus a few third parties).

Answer Location: Party in the California Electorate

16. California independents (those in the “no party preference” category) tend to vote more often for ______.

A. Republican candidates

B. Democratic candidates

C. Green Party candidates

D. other third party candidates (such as Libertarians)

Answer Location: Party in the California Electorate

17. When elected officials advance their political party’s “brand name” through policymaking and lawmaking, they represent the dimension of political parties known as ______.

A. party in the electorate

B. party in government

C. party in informal groups

D. party as an organization

Answer Location: Party in Government

18. Of the 20,000 or so elected officials in California, ______ hold statewide office, and ______ are in Washington, DC serving as U.S. Senators or Representatives.

A. 50; 50

B. 120; 60

C. 132; 55

D. 155; 66

Answer Location: Party in Government

19. Which party or parties has/have held majorities almost continuously in both the Assembly and Senate for nearly 40 years?

A. Republican

B. Democratic

C. neither; power shifts regularly

D. it doesn’t matter because the two chambers operate on a nonpartisan basis, so majority party status is irrelevant

Answer Location: Party in Government

20. California no longer allows the legislature to draw its own Assembly and Senate seats. Instead, which group is responsible for drawing the lines?

A. a panel of five retired judges

B. the governor’s staff

C. an independent commission composed of citizens

D. three voter-approved nonprofit voter organizations: Common Cause of California, the Women’s League of Voters, and NexTen

Answer Location: Party in Government

21. Who is in charge of redrawing California’s 53 Congressional districts?

A. the legislature, through the Assembly and Senate Elections & Redistricting Committees

B. the Fair Political Practices Commission

C. Congress

D. The Citizens Redistricting Commission

Answer Location: Party in Government

22. Who is in charge of redistricting California Assembly and Senate districts?

A. the legislature, through the Assembly and Senate Elections & Redistricting Committees

B. the Fair Political Practices Commission

C. Congress

D. The Citizens Redistricting Commission

Answer Location: Party in Government

23. What is the main function of a political party?

A. to grant equal representation to all groups in a society

B. to win elections and organize government to achieve their policy aims

C. to gerrymander district maps to win elections

D. to carry out orders from the national party organization, such as the RNC and DNC

Answer Location: Party in Government

24. The highest level of the state party apparatus is ______.

A. the national party organization, such as the RNC or DNC

B. the state party convention committee

C. the county central committee

D. the state central committee

Answer Location: Party Organizations

25. The federal funds generated by the Help America Vote Act of 2002 were used to ______.

A. replace outdated punch card voting systems with touch-screen or optical scan machines

B. hire more people to count and verify punch card voting systems

C. standardize all the rules regarding voting among the 58 counties in California

D. fix and bring punch-card systems up-to-date in remote areas, open more polling stations in remote places, and extend the absentee voting system

Answer Location: Elections: Continuity and Change

26. In the Top-Two primary system ______.

A. third party candidates’ chances for winning are enhanced

B. the top Democrat and the top Republican move on to the general election

C. voters choose from among all candidates, and the top two winners go on to compete in the November general election

D. voters choose from a general list of candidates, but political parties ultimately maintain control over who gets their party’s nomination (it’s their Constitutional right to freely associate)

Answer Location: Elections: Continuity and Change

27. To what does the “permanent campaign” refer?

A. the governor’s desire to establish a legacy

B. political parties’ efforts to obtain higher voter registration numbers

C. politicians’ need to campaign and fundraise year-round in order to be reelected

D. politicians’ websites

Answer Location: California Campaigns

28. Open seat elections are elections in which ______.

A. no one knows the party affiliation of the candidates

B. an incumbent faces a “sacrificial lamb,” an opponent virtually guaranteed to lose

C. an incumbent faces a serious, well-funded challenger

D. no incumbent is running for reelection

Answer Location: California Campaigns

29. Why are races for statewide offices, such as the Assembly and Senate, so expensive?

A. money is easy to obtain, so politicians spend it

B. the most efficient, but also the most expensive, way to reach large numbers of voters is through paid media (such as television advertisements)

C. campaign managers demand exorbitant fees, which drives up the cost of elections

D. wealthy candidates always participate in enough campaigns so that they drive up the cost of all elections

Answer Location: California Campaigns

30. More of California’s governors in modern times (since WWII) have been ______.

A. Republicans

B. Democrats

C. (not relevant:) there have been an even number of Republicans and Democrats

D. Progressives and Democrats

Answer Location: Party in Government

31. The top two industries (or “special interest groups”) that contributed the most money to state campaigns in 2014 were ______.

A. labor unions and business interests

B. single-issue groups and nonprofits

C. lawyers/attorneys and top law firms

D. agriculture and party committees

Answer Location: California Campaigns

32. Independent spending on campaigns usually takes the form of ______.

A. direct donations to candidates

B. mailers or television ads trying to promote a candidate or discredit the opponent(s)

C. radio spots and radio shows promoting a candidate

D. billboard advertising

Answer Location: California Campaigns

33. Wholesale campaigning involves ______.

A. enlisting many campaign volunteers to knock on the doors of potential voters

B. passing out brochures promoting a candidate to shoppers in a mall

C. “meet-and-greets” where the candidate personally introduces him or herself

D. television ads and other messages broadcast to contact voters indirectly

Answer Location: California Campaigns

34. Retail campaigning involves ______.

A. billboard advertising

B. personal, face-to-face meetings or exchanges with potential voters

C. radio ads on Spanish television

D. campaigning through the Home Shopping Network

Answer Location: California Campaigns

35. The most expensive individual political campaign in California history was run by______, who spent almost $178 million in (his/her) bid for the governorship, ultimately losing to Jerry Brown in 2010.

A. Willie Brown

B. Carly Fiorina

C. Meg Whitman

D. Abel Maldonado

Answer Location: California Campaigns

36. Candidates must report all contributions received and how they’ve spent their money, and lobbyists must register and report their spending. The entity responsible for making that information public, and also investigating and enforcing campaign finance laws is ______.

A. the Fair Political Practices Commission, FPPC

B. the Assembly and Senate Government Oversight Committees

C. the courts

D. the attorney general

Answer Location: California Campaigns

37 Which one of these is a nonpartisan office, meaning that no party labels appear next to the candidate’s name on the ballot?

A. state Assembly

B. state Senate

C. governor

D. city council and county board of supervisors

Answer Location: Democratic Stronghold, but Weakly Partisan

38. “No party preference voters,” or independents who are not registered with a political party, tend to vote for candidates representing which political party in California elections?

A. Democratic

B. Republican

C. the Independent Party

D. they evenly split their votes between Republicans and Democrats

Answer Location: Party in the California Electorate

39. What is true of special elections in California?

A. They are less prevalent now that term limits are in place.

B. They typically attract fewer than 15% of eligible voters.

C. Statewide special elections attract more voters than regular elections.

D. They don’t cost counties and cities very much money to run, because most voters participate by absentee ballot.

Answer Location: Elections: Continuity and Change

40. Under the “Motor Voter” law, citizens ______.

A. will automatically be registered to vote when they apply for or renew a driver’s license

B. must show a valid California driver’s license or California identification card to vote in person at a polling place

C. can use an expired California driver’s license or California identification card to vote in person at a polling place

D. when they vote in person at a polling place, must show some form of personal identification which includes any official document or utility bill with their name and address

Answer Location: Elections: Continuity and Change

41. Do citizens of California need to show a valid form of identification when they vote in person at a polling place?

A. Yes

B. No

Answer Location: Elections: Continuity and Change

True/False

1. According to a (2017) poll by the PPIC, a large majority of Californians are strongly associated with one of the two major political parties, Republican or Democratic.

Answer Location: Introduction

2. In California, a person can register to vote online through the Secretary of State’s website.

Answer Location: Democratic Stronghold, but Weakly Partisan

3. California is a Democratic stronghold, but is weakly partisan overall.

Answer Location: Democratic Stronghold, but Weakly Partisan

4. In California, the two parties are very competitive when it comes to elections; that is, in most districts there is a roughly equal chance for a candidate of either party to win.

Answer Location: Democratic Stronghold, but Weakly Partisan

5. As of 2017, there were about 20% more Democrats than Republicans (by party registration) in California.

Answer Location: Democratic Stronghold, but Weakly Partisan

6. To qualify a new political party in California, no more than 100 signatures need to be gathered during the process.

Answer Location: Box 9.1 How to Party in California

7. California legislators draw their own district boundaries, as is the case in the majority of states.

Answer Location: Party in Government

8. California is the only state that entrusts redistricting to a citizens’ commission.

Answer Location: Party in Government

9. More than half of all voters cast their ballots by mail in 2016.

Answer Location: Figure 9.2 Vote-by-Mail Statistics, 1976–2016

10. It will be impossible for two Democrats to run against each other in the general election under the new open primary election system.

Answer Location: Party in Government

11. On average, open seat elections are far costlier than races where incumbents are defending their seats.

Answer Location: California Campaigns

12. Based on party registration, no political party has absolute majority status in California; that is, no party can claim over 50% of registered voters.

Answer Location: Figure 9.1 Party Registration in Presidential Election Years, 1924–2016

13. California is one of several states to have signed onto the “national popular vote” law, meaning that its (presidential) electoral college votes will go to the winner of the popular vote rather than the state vote (when enough states sign onto the plan, which probably will not go into effect until 2020).

Answer Location: California Campaigns

14. Special elections are not on the rise because of term limits; there have always been many special elections because legislators periodically leave due to death, incarceration, resignation to take higher-paid positions, and so forth.

Answer Location: California Campaigns

15. By law, out-of-state individuals and special interests may not donate to state or local candidates in California.

Answer Location: California Campaigns

16. Elections involving judges are nonpartisan, meaning that a judicial candidate’s party affiliation is not indicated on the ballot as it would be for other statewide elected officials.

Answer Location: Democratic Stronghold, but Weakly Partisan

17. Thanks to the Top-Two primary, moderates from both political parties now dominate the legislature, and party polarization has almost been eliminated.

Answer Location: Party in Government

18. Democrats dominate state government today because of gerrymandering which unfairly favors their political party as well as Democratic incumbents.

Answer Location: Party in Government

19. Both the Democratic and Republican state political party organizations have virtually no control over California elections, because the national party organizations, the DNC and RNC, dominate politics so thoroughly.

Answer Location: Party Organizations

20. When it comes to spending money on campaigns, only California residents may spend money to elect or defeat California candidates who are running for office.

Answer Location: California Campaigns

21. California state elections were only minimally affected by the 2010 Citizens United v FEC ruling, because permissive independent spending laws were already in effect.

Answer Location: California Campaigns

Short Answer

1. If a person in California wants to register to vote but does not want to affiliate with a party, what category would that person “check” on the registration form?

Answer Location: Democratic Stronghold, but Weakly Partisan

2. Another label for California’s current open primary system is ______.

Answer Location: Elections: Continuity and Change

3. There are ______ U.S. House districts in California.

Answer Location: Democratic Stronghold, but Weakly Partisan | Box 1.1 Comparative FAST FACTS on California

4. The top two industries (or “special interest groups”) that spent the most money to state campaigns in 2014 were ______.

Answer Location: California Campaigns

5. An election is one in which no party labels appear next to the candidate’s name on the ballot is considered to be ______.

Answer Location: Democratic Stronghold, but Weakly Partisan

6. Counting state legislators and state constitutional executive officers, how many state elected officials are there in California?

Answer Location: Chapter 4 | Chapter 5

7. How often are Assembly, Senate, and Congressional district boundary lines redrawn?

Answer Location: Party in Government | Chapter 4: Design, Purpose and Function of the Legislature

8. The state has strong disclosure laws, meaning ______.

Answer Location: California Campaigns

Essay

1. To what does “party in the electorate” refer?

Answer Location: Party in the California Electorate

2. Describe the demographic characteristics of those who tend to affiliate with the two major parties in California.

Answer Location: Party in the California Electorate

3. Why are state legislative districts generally uncompetitive?

Answer Location: Party in Government

4. Why is it difficult for mapmakers to draw competitive districts in California?

Answer Location: Party in Government

5. How have term limits for statewide officials affected elections around the state?

Answer Location: Elections: Continuity and Change

6. What is a primary election?

Answer Location: Elections: Continuity and Change

7. What types of primary elections has California tried?

Answer Location: Elections: Continuity and Change

8. Trace the history of the primary (party nominating) system in California.

Answer Location: Elections: Continuity and Change

9. What is a “gerrymander”?

Answer Location: Elections: Continuity and Change

10. What do you consider to be the two most important electoral reforms of the past 100 years? Explain your answer.

Answer Location: Elections: Continuity and Change

11. What is the “national popular vote” law?

Answer Location: Elections: Continuity and Change

12. What is a nonpartisan election?

Answer Location: Democratic Stronghold, but Weakly Partisan

13. Explain how the Top-Two primary works in California.

Answer Location: Elections: Continuity and Change

14. What rules, reforms, and planned reforms are intended to make it easier for Californians to register to vote and to vote?

Answer Location: Elections: Continuity and Change