The people who are represented by a legislator are the ________.
constituents
A legal harm caused by civil wrongdoing is called a(n) ________.
tort
The largest share of state and local government staff are involved in ________.
elementary education
The lieutenant governor's formal duties are most directly comparable to those of ________.
the vice president of the United States
Focusing media attention on key policy priorities in order to influence the public requires governors to serve as a(n) ________.
opinion leader
The determination of wages, hours, and working conditions through negotiations with employee unions is called ________.
collective bargaining
Which of the following refers to laws with fixed termination dates that call for periodic reexamination by the state legislature?
sunset laws
Most of America's cities elect their local officials using the ________.
nonpartisan ballot
Which of the following processes empowers voters to remove an elected official before the end of his or her term?
a recall
The patronage system is based on ________.
political loyalty
Which of the following is the general term for the process of drawing geographical boundaries of representatives' districts?
districting
Which of the following is a legislative power that usually requires a two-thirds vote of both houses
veto override
Which of the following is a "pocketbook" issue
any issue that is economic in nature
Which of the following is NOT a function of state legislatures?
electing governors
_________ elections are deliberately designed to minimize the effects of presidential voting trends on state governor's elections.
Off-year
Except in Florida, to obtain a conviction in criminal cases involving the death penalty, petit juries must ________.
be unanimous
Most public employee unions are not legally allowed to strike but are mandated by state law to bring their grievances to ________.
arbitration
Which of the following is often a reason for legislators to introduce bills with no real expectation of passage?
The legislators simply seek to "go on record" as working toward a particular goal
A document that grants a community the power of local self-government is called a ________.
city charter
Which of the following most closely embodies the principles of direct democracy?
New England town meetings
What form of government is most common in under-10,000 population cities where both the mayor and the council serve on a part-time basis?
weak mayor-council
The Supreme Court decision Baker v. Carr established the concept of ________.
one person, one vote
Interested groups that are not party to a particular case may submit ________ in order to influence the court's decision.
amicus curiae briefs
Incrementalism refers to the tendency of bureaucrats and elected officials to focus on ________ programs and ________ spending.
new; increases in
An electoral system that allows for voters to cast a ballot for one representative in a geographically defined district in which both the candidate and voter reside is called a ________.
single-member district system