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Answer: An ideal response will:
1. Highlight the strategy of ignoring/skipping early state
contests (Iowa) and focusing on states where the
candidate’s strength lies (often a result of party control of
the state).
2. Discuss the role of strategy in campaigning.
Topic: Running for President
Learning Objective: LO 8.4: Describe the stages in U.S.
presidential elections and the diferences in elections at each
stage.
Page Reference: 243
Skill Level: Apply What You Know
Diiculty Level: Diicult
100. What “magic words” would you need to avoid in your campaign
ads to qualify them as issue ads not subject to disclosure under
FECA?
1. Deine issue ads as ads that focus on issues, not the
candidates.
2. Highlight the magic words that require disclosure, such
as: “vote for,” “elect,” “support,” and “cast your ballot
for.”
3. Explain the signiicance of FECA and issue ads for
campaigning.
Topic: Money in U.S. Elections
Learning Objective: LO 8.5: Evaluate the inluence of money
in American elections and the main approaches to campaign
inance reform.
Page Reference: 252
Skill Level: Apply What You Know
Diiculty Level: Diicult
101. What role do individual citizens play in elections? How will new
technologies likely afect citizens’ involvement in elections in
the future?
1. Explain that individuals can participate in elections in
numerous ways, including being active in selecting
275
candidates, working for political parties, contributing
money to campaigns, and organizing groups.
2. Discuss how new technologies, such as various smart
phone applications, can increase citizen involvement.
Topic: Improving Elections
Learning Objective: LO 8.6: Assess concerns regarding
presidential elections and reforms that have been proposed.
Page Reference: 257, 260
Skill Level: Apply What You Know
Diiculty Level: Diicult
102. What are electors? Discuss the ways they are currently selected
in the United States.
1. Discuss the Electoral College and the number of
electors equaling each state’s number of representatives
2. Distinguish elector vote from popular vote.
Topic: Elections: The Rules of the Game
Learning Objective: LO 8.1: Assess the implications of election
rules in the United States.
Page Reference: 230
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
Diiculty Level: Moderate
103. How does a party’s success in congressional elections
correspond to the party of presidential candidates and sitting
presidents?
1. Discuss the signiicance of party ailiation for candidate
appeal, partisan efect on voting behavior during general
elections, and coattail efect (the boost that candidates
may get in an election because of the popularity of
candidates above them, especially the president).
2. Explain the signiicance of political parties to elections.
Topic: Running for Congress
Learning Objective: LO 8.3: Explain how congressional
elections work and why they are generally not competitive.
276
Page Reference: 234 – 238
Skill Level: Analyze It
Diiculty Level: Diicult
104. What is soft money, and how did the Bipartisan Campaign
Reform Act afect it?
1. Deine soft money as money raised in unlimited
amounts by political parties.
2. Highlight that the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of
2002 limits in various ways the amount of money given to
candidates for campaigning.
3. Explain the signiicance of the Bipartisan Campaign
Reform Act.
Topic: Money in U.S. Elections
Learning Objective: LO 8.5: Evaluate the inluence of money
in American elections and the main approaches to campaign
inance reform.
Page Reference: 250 – 251
Skill Level: Analyze It
Diiculty Level: Diicult
105. Describe the proposed regional presidential primaries system
and explain the pros and cons of it.
1. Describe the regional presidential primaries system.
2. Highlight pros (brings more coherence to the process
and encourages regional concerns) and cons (emphasizes
the role of money and the media).
3. Compare the proposed regional presidential primaries
system with the current system.
Topic: Improving Elections
Learning Objective: LO 8.6: Assess concerns regarding
presidential elections and reforms that have been proposed.
Page Reference: 258 – 259
Skill Level: Analyze It
Diiculty Level: Diicult
277
Essay Questions
106. List the three basic strategies that reformers have used to try to
prevent abuse in making campaign contributions. How
successful has each strategy been?
1. Highlight the three basic reform strategies: (1) impose
limits on giving, receiving, and spending of political
money, (2) require public disclosure, and (3) give
governmental subsidies that reduce reliance on campaign
contributors.
2. Explain the success or failure of these strategies using
speciic examples such as the Federal Election Campaign
Act (1971), the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (2002),
or Super PACs.
Topic: Money in U.S. Elections
Learning Objective: LO 8.5: Evaluate the inluence of money
in American elections and the main approaches to campaign
inance reform.
Page Reference: 249 – 256
Skill Level: Analyze It
Diiculty Level: Diicult
107. You want to run for public oice but have not yet decided
whether to try for a House seat or a Senate seat. What are three
diferences between House and Senate campaigns you would
have to consider? Which race would be more challenging? Why?
1. Highlight three diferences between House and Senate
campaigns. Elections for the Senate are more contested,
more inanced, and are more high-proile than elections
for the House.
2. Explain whether a House or Senate seat would be more
challenging based on their diferences as well as on
concerns about running against incumbents or party
controlled districts.
Topic: Running for Congress
278
Learning Objective: LO 8.3: Explain how congressional
elections work and why they are generally not competitive.
Page Reference: 234 – 238
Skill Level: Apply What You Know
Diiculty Level: Diicult
108. You are running for president as a Republican candidate. What
types of voters would you have to appeal to? Would you have to
appeal to the same demographics in the general election? Why
or why not?
1. Highlight that presidential candidates must irst appeal
to voters within their political party to win their party’s
nomination in the presidential primaries.
2. Describe the types of conservative partisans to whom
Republican candidates must appeal to gain the
nomination. For example, in 2012, voters in caucuses and
primaries were more likely to be white and male, to have a
college education, and to make more than $100,000. Most
supported the Tea Party, and more than half were
Evangelical Christians.
3. Point out that candidates have to alter their approach to
appeal to the general population during the general
election.
Topic: Running for President
Learning Objective: LO 8.4: Describe the stages in U.S.
presidential elections and the diferences in elections at each
stage.
Page Reference: 240 – 248
Skill Level: Apply What You Know
Diiculty Level: Diicult
109. Explain how winner-take-all and proportional representation
systems work and evaluate their signiicance for party systems.
1. Deine both winner-take-all (a single winner by majority
or plurality vote) and proportional representation (winners
split based upon the proportion of votes).
2. Highlight and discuss the signiicance of America’s
winner-take-all voting system for its political parties.
279
Topic: Elections: The Rules of the Game
Learning Objective: LO 8.1: Assess the implications of election
rules in the United States.
Page Reference: 229 – 230
Skill Level: Analyze It
Diiculty Level: Diicult
110. Explain three reasons why elections for the House of
Representatives are generally NOT competitive.
1. Highlight three reasons that House seats are generally
not competitive, which may include party control,
incumbency, partisan gerrymandering, safe seats, or lack
of organization/inance.
2. Discuss the signiicance of House seats being less
competitive than Senate seats.
Topic: Running for Congress
Learning Objective: LO 8.3: Explain how congressional
elections work and why they are generally not competitive.
Page Reference: 234 – 238
Skill Level: Analyze It
Diiculty Level: Diicult
280
