GED Social Studies : Political Parties
Study concepts, example questions & explanations for GED Social Studies
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Example Questions
Example Question #1 : Civics And Government
On a traditional political spectrum, which of these groups would appear furthest to the left?
Radicals
Reactionaries
Liberals
Conservatives
Moderates
Radicals
The traditional political spectrum (from left to right) goes like this: Radical; Liberal; Moderate; Conservative; Reactionary. So the furthest to the left would be a radical. A radical would support complete, dramatic, and immediate overhaul of existing social or political norms. Radicals might resort to violence in order to achieve their goals.
Example Question #1 : Civics And Government
In the contemporary American political landscape, the number of independent voters is __________.
climbing steadily
climbing rapidly
falling rapidly
falling steadily
fairly consistent
climbing steadily
For many Americans, party loyalty is the least pronounced it has ever been. Recent elections have seen a greater and greater number of voters who would declare themselves independent. This mirrors another contemporary trend in the American political landscape: more and more Americans are voting based on the candidate and his orher policies rather than simply voting along party lines; however, it is worth nothing that the majority of voters still vote very consistently for the same party.
Example Question #3 : Content Areas
Which of these political parties has never existed in United States history?
Whigs
Federalists
Liberal-Democrats
Progressive
Democratic-Republicans
Liberal-Democrats
Of these answer choices, only the Liberal-Democrats (a British political party) have never existed in United States political history.
Example Question #4 : Content Areas
Which American political party passed the Alien and Sedition Acts?
Democrats
Whigs
Federalists
Republicans
Democratic-Republicans
Federalists
The Alien and Sedition Acts were passed by the Federalists in 1798 during the presidency of John Adams. The stated reason for passing the Alien and Sedition Acts was to provide greater security for the young nation in the wake of rising tensions with the French. The Alien Act made immigration more difficult for people from certain nations, and the Sedition Act made it illegal to speak out against the government or to incite rebellion against the government. The Acts were heavily criticized by Thomas Jefferson and the Democratic-Republicans.
Example Question #3 : Civics And Government
On the traditional political spectrum, which of these groups would appear furthest to the right?
Moderates
Conservatives
Radicals
Reactionaries
Liberals
Reactionaries
The traditional political spectrum (from left to right) goes like this:
Radical - Liberal - Moderate - Conservative - Reactionary
So, the furthest to the right would be a reactionary. Someone who holds reactionary ideas passionately (and sometimes violently) opposes some kind of political or social change. Reactionaries may even want to return to a previous social or political order.
Example Question #2 : Civics And Government
How many major parties are there in US politics?
4
1
2
3
2
The correct answer is "2." Currently, those two parties are the Democrats and the Republicans (and have been since the Civil War). That's not to say that there are NO other parties in the US, simply that there are only two major parties. This is partially due to our electoral system (that is, the way that we vote).
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