AP US Government : AP US Government

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for AP US Government

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Example Questions

Example Question #291 : Ap Us Government

A poll watcher is tasked with __________.

Possible Answers:

projecting the results of a campaign in the months leading up to an election

ensuring that campaign finances are kept within legal limits

determining the results of exit polls for the media

ensuring that the election process is fair and involves no chicanery

counting the votes manually in the event of a miscount or misconduct in the electoral proceedings

Correct answer:

ensuring that the election process is fair and involves no chicanery

Explanation:

The primary responsibility of a poll watcher is to ensure that the election process is fair, honest, and involves no attempts at trickery or manipulation of the voting. Poll watchers are vital part of a fair and open modern democracy because they prevent chicanery.

Example Question #4 : Election Laws

How old do you have to be to serve office in the House of Representatives and in the Senate?

Possible Answers:

Twenty-five in the House; thirty in the Senate.

Thirty-five in the Senate; forty in the House.

Twenty-three in the House; thirty-five in the Senate.

Twenty-five in the Senate; thirty in the House.

Thirty in the House; thirty-five in the Senate.

Correct answer:

Twenty-five in the House; thirty in the Senate.

Explanation:

Because the Senate is considered the senior government body in the legislature, it makes sense that you would have to be older to serve in the Senate than in the House. The correct answer is that you have to be at least twenty-five to serve in the House and thirty to serve in the Senate. Most members are usually significantly older than this minimum threshold.

Example Question #1 : Elections

How many electoral votes are needed for a candidate to earn an absolute majority in the Electoral College and be elected President of the United States?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

To earn an absolute majority and be elected President of the United States, a candidate needs  out of an available  electoral votes.

Example Question #6 : Election Laws

Which position requires that the holder be a natural born citizen of the United States of America?

Possible Answers:

President

Secretary of State

Speaker of the House

Chief Justice of the Supreme Court

Correct answer:

President

Explanation:

A person must be a natural born citizen in order to be eligible to be president. This means that either the person was born within the United States or was born in a foreign country and had at least one parent with American citizenship. None of the other offices require that the holder be a natural born citizen, and if a member of the Cabinet is not a natural born citizen then that person is skipped on the presidential line of succession.

Example Question #7 : Election Laws

Which office can a candidate run for even if the candidate does not live within that district?

Possible Answers:

U.S. Representative

U.S. Senate

National Postal Advisory Board Member

Federal Election Commission District Representative

Correct answer:

U.S. Representative

Explanation:

The only requirements to run for the office of U.S. Representative are that one must be at least 25 years old, have been an American citizen for at least 7 years, and reside in the state that the district is in. There is no actual requirement that a candidate has to live in the district that the candidate is trying to represent, only that the candidate live within the same state. Candidates for Senate do actually have to live in the state that they want to represent.

Example Question #6 : Election Laws

Which of the following was not one of the historic party-convention-reforming outcomes of the 1968 McGovern-Fraser Commission?

Possible Answers:

Party conventions became more open to mass public influence and more equitable in representation

Party leadership was no longer allowed exist and was entirely dismantled

States were required to select delegates based on either the primary or caucus methods

Convention delegates were no longer allowed to be chosen in secrecy

Correct answer:

Party leadership was no longer allowed exist and was entirely dismantled

Explanation:

While the Commission introduced many sweeping reforms to the political party convention system, the leaders of each of the two main parties were allowed to remain in power, so long as they agreed to cooperate with the Commission’s new restrictions. These reforms forced party leaders to make their appointments of convention delegates a matter of public record, with the entire process done with greater transparency. Party conventions underwent a similar overhaul, with new rules preventing the exclusion of minorities from the leadership and delegate levels. The states were also affected – each state was required to alter its delegate selection process so that all participants were able to be included.

Example Question #7 : Election Laws

Which of the following is not a currently legally allowable method of campaign financing?

Possible Answers:

Soft money

Political Action Committees

Correct answer:

Soft money

Explanation:

In 2002, soft money (money set aside for campaigns at the grass-roots level by party members) was ruled as an illegal source of campaign contributions by the McCain-Feingold Act. Soft money is seen as unacceptable because these funds are generically collected by political parties, with no clear designated spending purpose, and so were often used as unregulated “donations” to candidates. 527 groups were declared legal by the Federal Election Commission in 2004, while 501(c) groups were established in 2010. Political action committees (aka PACs) have been legally allowed since 1974 and have experienced vast increases in popularity and usage since 2008.

Example Question #8 : Election Laws

Which of the following is not one of the outcomes of the 1974 Federal Election Campaign Act?

Possible Answers:

Full disclosure of campaign expenditures to the Federal Election Commission became mandatory for all candidates

Candidates were banned from accepting donations from any large corporations or union sponsorships

Strict limitations were placed on individual monetary contributions to both presidential and congressional campaigns

Partial public financing and matching funds were provided for presidential primaries

Correct answer:

Candidates were banned from accepting donations from any large corporations or union sponsorships

Explanation:

While the FEC Act was intended to reduce corrupting influences within the campaign finance system, candidates are still permitted to accept funds from any large companies or unions, so long as these donations remain at or below the prescribed contribution threshold (which adjusted along with inflation). Similarly, candidates are also permitted to accept funds from private individuals, so long as these funds, too, fit within the threshold, and all donations must be reported back to the Federal Election Commission. In addition, the Act established a mechanism to provide partial funding and matching contributions to qualified candidates.

Example Question #71 : Political Parties And Elections

Which of the following statements about the Electoral College is false?

Possible Answers:

If no candidate receives an Electoral College majority, the election is thrown to the Supreme Court for the final decision.

The less populated states are overrepresented due to a Constitutional provision granting each state two electors (regardless of population).

The Electoral College vote usually, but not always, reflects the current popular majority vote.

The winner-take-all nature of the Electoral College forces candidates to focus on winning those states where polls indicate a close contest is taking place among voters.

Correct answer:

If no candidate receives an Electoral College majority, the election is thrown to the Supreme Court for the final decision.

Explanation:

If no candidate receives a majority of Electoral College votes, then the election decision is placed in the hands of the members of the House of Representatives. The House members are charged with choosing the next president from among the top three electoral vote winners, with each state delegation possessing one combined vote amongst all their respective members. This is a very rare occurrence– the last election to be decided by the House was in 1824, between Democratic-Republicans John Quincy Adams and Andrew Jackson.

Example Question #72 : Political Parties And Elections

America has always had free and open elections in which everyone could vote.

Possible Answers:

None of these

False, universal suffrage was not passed in the US until the 1950s

False, for much of US history women and less than half of the free adult male population could vote

True, for most of US history universal suffrage has been in place

Correct answer:

False, for much of US history women and less than half of the free adult male population could vote

Explanation:

The answer is “false.” Out of everyone in the entire US at the time immediately after the Revolution, only the males could vote. Out of the males, only free white males could vote. Out of free white males, only those who weren’t Catholic or Jewish, and who had property could vote. Thus, in the beginning, only about half of the free adult male population was eligible to vote.

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