Voting & Elections Quiz

Suffrage is crucial to a functioning democracy. Many groups throughout American history fought to gain the right to vote and have their voices counted in political elections.

In 1971, the voting age was reduced to 18 from 21 by the Twenty-Sixth Amendment.

While most states require voter registration before the election day, 5 states allow same-day registration and North Dakota doesn't require voters to register at all. Currently, 33 states enforce voter identification requirements. There is no requirement in any state that voters demonstrate knowledge of the candidates or their positions.

The “Motor Voter” law, as it is sometimes called, was passed in 1993 to make voter registration more convenient. The NVRA requires states to offer voter registration when citizens apply for or renew a driver’s license. This same law also offers voter registration through the application for public assistance programs. In each of these cases, citizens must provide sufficient proof of identification to meet voter registration standards.

Primary elections narrow a field of candidates down to a single individual that will represent a political party in a general election.

Closed primaries only allow registered members of a political party to vote for the nominee to represent their party. Open primaries allow any registered voter to participate, regardless of their political affiliations.

American voter turnout is lower than in other democratic nations. Presidential elections draw the most voters, whereas local government elections often have paltry participation.

While the Constitution spells out the process by which federal officials are elected, individual state governments are responsible for conducting elections at the local, state, and federal levels.

These three policies make it easier for citizens to vote by reducing barriers and expanding options. The additional voters are more likely to vote for Democrats, so the Democratic Party generally works to expand these initiatives while the Republican Party works to limit them.

The FEC’s primary duty is to enforce campaign finance laws. In an effort to ensure the FEC remains impartial and nonpartisan, the commission’s membership rules ensure that no political party can make up a majority of the six-member panel and that at least four votes are required to take any action.

Campaign finance laws place limits and disclosure requirements on campaign donations. These laws are meant to prevent corruption and restrict the influence of wealthy donors in the electoral process.

While some campaign finance laws could help challengers, they are often designed to protect incumbents. Incumbents are usually well known, able to get to a lot of free media exposure, and have taxpayer-funded offices and staffs. These advantages make them less dependent on donations than challengers. Campaign finance laws do not restrict personal expenditures that candidates make.

Citizens United opened the door for unlimited election spending by corporations. Most of this spending is done through groups known as Super PACs. These political action committees can raise funds from individuals, corporations, unions, and other groups without any legal limit on donation size. Super PACs are prohibited from coordinating directly with candidates or political parties.

Soft money refers to funds raised and used to shape voters’ opinions on issues; In other words, advertisements and campaign materials purchased with soft money must stop shy of endorsing a specific candidate. Soft money sidesteps much of the FEC regulations on traditional or “hard money” campaign contributions.

A referendum allows citizens to directly participate in the law-making of their state or municipality by casting a ballot on a specific issue. Should a binding referendum pass, it becomes law.

Recall elections allow citizens to remove government officials from their positions. While rules for recall elections vary by state, most require the submission of a petition with a set number of signatures as part of the process.

States hold special elections when a vacancy occurs before a regularly scheduled election.

Presidential elections are held every four years. Article II of the Constitution grants Congress the authority to set Election Day. Traditionally, this election is held on the first Tuesday after November 1, or the Tuesday following the first Monday in November.

The Constitution established an indirect presidential election process through the creation of the Electoral College. Citizens vote in each state to choose a slate of "electors" who have pledged to vote for a particular presidential candidate. The candidate who receives a majority of electoral votes is elected president.

Elections decided by popular vote elect the candidate who receives the most votes. Although the popular vote is an important statistic in American presidential elections, it does not determine the winner of the presidential race. Indeed, five presidents have been elected without winning the popular vote.

Secret ballots are crucial to free and fair elections. Without secret ballots, citizens are easily intimidated or outright abused to guarantee their vote.

Voting for a straight ticket allows party loyalists to vote for those candidates who share their own political affiliations. Some voting machines even allow for the selection of a straight ticket with a single button press.

As voters leave their polling places, political operatives and members of the media often ask voters how they voted. These results are used to predict the larger outcome of an election.

A presidential candidate must win a majority of the 538 possible Electoral College votes. If no candidate receives the required 270 votes, the United States Constitution requires that the House of Representatives select the president from the top three candidates in the Electoral College vote.

Voting is not the only way to affect the electoral process. The age limits placed on casting a ballot have no counterparts in campaigning.

The Iowa caucuses traditionally mark the beginning of the presidential nomination process. The Democratic and Republican parties handle the Iowa caucus voting differently, but each starts the race for the Presidential primary in Iowa.