Political Systems - Modified Test

Name_____________________________

POLITICAL SYSTEMS

Final Assessment

I. Read each definition and then underline the correct meaning of the word.

1. The special way a nation governs itself (a) monarchy (b) political system (c) judicial

2. The political system in which a government has total power (a) totalitarianism

(b) executive (c) pure democracy

3. A government ruled by a king or queen (a) monarchy (b) dictatorship (c) republic

4. A government in which citizens elect representatives to make laws for them (a) oligarchy (b) totalitarianism (c) republic

5. The branch of the U.S. government that enforces the law (a) judicial (b) republic (c) executive

II. Print T for True and F for False

_____ 1. In a dictatorship, the leader is born into power.

_____ 2. In a democracy, the people rule.

_____ 3. A republic can also be called a representative democracy.

_____ 4. People in the United States govern themselves by voting, freely speaking their mind,

and running for public office.

_____ 5. In an absolute monarchy, the prime minister is the chief leader.

_____ 6. In England, the queen used to have much more power than she does today.

_____ 7. Political systems are different by the amount of power the government has.

_____ 8. In the United States, we are free to say what we want as long as we don't ruin

somebody's reputation or life.

_____ 9. In Greece, there was a pure democracy because every citizen could meet to make the

laws.

_____ 10. Our form of government in the United States today is a republic.

_____ 11. A monarch comes into power because the people vote him in.

_____ 12. In a totalitarianism system, the government owns all of the buildings, land, and newspapers.

_____ 13. The Congress appoints the nine members of the Supreme Court.

_____ 14. The legislative branch of the government is very large and makes the laws.

_____ 15. The system of sharing power in the U.S. government is called checks and balances.

III. Answer the following question in a well-written paragraph. Be sure that your paragraph:

· sticks to the question

· has a topic sentence

· has a concluding sentence

· has a beginning, middle, and end

· looks like a paragraph

· includes complete sentences.

· convinces the reader that you know a lot about the subject

Why is our government in the United States today not considered a pure democracy?