Government and Politics in Africa Review Questions
Course Introduction
This course offers an in-depth exploration of government structures, political processes, and contemporary issues across African nations. Students will examine the legacy of colonialism, the evolution of political institutions, patterns of democratization and authoritarianism, and the role of ethnicity, religion, and civil society in shaping political outcomes. The course also addresses Africas engagement with the global community, challenges of state-building, conflict and peacebuilding dynamics, and the impact of economic development on governance. Through case studies and comparative analysis, students will develop a nuanced understanding of the complexities driving African politics today.
Recommended Textbook
Cases in Comparative Politics Fifth Edition by Patrick H. ONeil
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14 Chapters
420 Verified Questions
420 Flashcards
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Chapter 1: Introduction
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30 Verified Questions
30 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Political scientists use which term to describe the norms and rules regarding individual freedoms and collective equality, the locus of power, and the use of that power?
A)legitimate authority
B)political regime
C)constitution
D)government
E)federal regime
Answer: B
Q2) The act of a local nonprofit organization trying to promote better schools for children is an example of which of the following?
A)clientelism
B)co-optation
C)civil society
D)patron-client relations
E)party systems
Answer: C
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Page 3
Chapter 2: United Kingdom
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30 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) In which of the following ways did Tony Blair's policies as prime minister differ from those of Margaret Thatcher?
A)He was more accepting of his party's status quo mode of operation.
B)He devolved more power to regional governments.
C)He moved the country away from free-market policies.
D)He sought to strengthen the power of trade unions.
E)He sought a cooperative but more distant relationship with the United States.
Answer: B
Q2) As the United Kingdom democratized, which institution lost power?
A)House of Lords
B)House of Commons
C)prime minister
D)cabinet
E)regional legislatures
Answer: A
Q3) What does it mean for the United Kingdom's political regime to be majoritarian? What about the structural relationship among the legislature, judiciary, and executive encourages majoritarianism, and what effect has it had on electoral politics in the United Kingdom?
Answer: Answers will vary.
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Chapter 3: United States
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30 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The U.S. president serves as head of:
A)state and government.
B)government and the judiciary.
C)state and chair of the electoral college.
D)the judiciary and head of state.
E)his party and leader of the legislature.
Answer: A
Q2) The financial crisis in the United States in 2008 was largely triggered by:
A)the costs of the Iraq War.
B)a decline in the housing market.
C)the collapse in technology stocks.
D)unequal trade with China.
E)excessive welfare spending.
Answer: B
Q3) What is the state of America's participatory civil society? How does it relate to the level of populist sentiment in the United States?
Answer: Answers will vary.
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Chapter 4: France
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30 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Referenda in France have been used less frequently after the 1960s, often with regard to:
A)electoral reform.
B)increasing the power of local government.
C)eliminating the upper house of the legislature.
D)changes to the European Union.
E)membership in NATO.
Q2) Charles de Gaulle's political legitimacy rested in part on his: A)having descended from Napoleon's family.
B)role in bringing the Reign of Terror to an end.
C)long-standing role in preventing the French state from growing too powerful.
D)role in the resistance movement during World War II.
E)religious credentials.
Q3) In which of the following ways did President Sarkozy's policies differ from those of current President Hollande?
A)Sarkozy campaigned on the promise of a balanced budget.
B)Sarkozy favored tax increases on business.
C)Sarkozy favored pension reform.
D)Sarkozy favored lowering the retirement age.
E)Sarkozy sought to maintain government payrolls at current levels.
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Chapter 5: Germany
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30 Verified Questions
30 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The regime established by Hitler is best described as:
A)a social democracy.
B)a Communist dictatorship.
C)an illiberal democracy.
D)a theocracy.
E)a fascist totalitarian dictatorship.
Q2) The German policy of codetermination refers to:
A)consulting both East and West Germans before implementing major policies.
B)coordinating EU and German national policies.
C)forced seating of union leaders on the corporate boards of private firms.
D)devolving authority for economic policies from the federal level to state policy makers.
E)the requirement that German states approve all federal legislation.
Q3) The lower house of the German parliament is called the:
A)Bundestag.
B)Volkschamber.
C)Bundesrat.
D)Landeshaus.
E)Representative Chamber.
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Chapter 6: Japan
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following statements about Japan's Liberal Democratic Party is accurate?
A)It has demonstrated a strong but unrealized commitment to expanding Japanese defense forces.
B)It has traditionally been marked by a very democratic internal party process.
C)It represents the "half" of Japan's former one-and-a-half party system.
D)It is the most left-leaning of Japan's major parties.
E)It maintains a largely nonideological commitment to winning elections.
Q2) The iron triangle of Japan, Inc. has come under increased criticism and scrutiny recently because of:
A)the inability of Japan, Inc. to dominate new Chinese and South Korean tech producers.
B)revelations of scandals within the triangle.
C)the growing Chinese military dominance in the region.
D)the collapse of the DPJ government.
E)the Fukushima nuclear disaster.
Q3) Why is Japan's bureaucracy so powerful, and what prevents its reform? Should Japan take radical measures to eliminate its powerful iron triangle?
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Page 8
Chapter 7: Russia
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Sample Questions
Q1) How has the Communist Party developed in Russia since the collapse of the Soviet Union? How is the Communist Party of the Russian Federation different from other postcommunist parties in Eastern Europe?
Q2) After Stalin's death in 1953, Soviet leadership made which of the following changes?
A)The nomenklatura lost their authority over the daily life of citizens.
B)Economic control was taken away from the central planning bureaucracy.
C)Use of centralized power was reduced.
D)Power was taken away from the Politburo.
E)The Duma was established to share legislative powers.
Q3) In which institution does most political power lie in Russia?
A)the Duma
B)the prime minister
C)the president
D)the Federation Council
E)local government and political parties
Q4) What were the central factors that allowed for the 1917 revolution, and why did communism eventually fail in the Soviet Union? What legacies, if any, survive from the era of the tsars?
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Page 9
Chapter 8: China
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Sample
Questions
Q1) Which of the following best describes the purpose of the "Three Represents" policy?
A)harmonizing the diplomatic relations of Hong Kong, Taiwan, and China
B)co-optation of wealthy entrepreneurs into the Chinese Communist Party
C)expanding civil society by funneling state money into private or nonprofit organizations not affiliated with the Communist Party
D)broadening the scope of the special economic zones to include major industrial centers like Beijing
E)extending rudimentary civil rights and voting opportunities to ethnic minorities like Tibetans, Mongolians, and Uighurs
Q2) The Chinese Communists' disastrous attempt in the late 1950s to depart from the Soviet model by rapidly establishing locally directed communes was known as:
A)the Cultural Revolution.
B)the Hundred Flowers Campaign.
C)reform and opening.
D)the Great Leap Forward.
E)the household responsibility system.
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Chapter 9: India
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Sample Questions
Q1) Partition in India:
A)granted Muslims the right of abode.
B)legalized the caste system.
C)established a bicameral legislature.
D)created the states of East Pakistan, West Pakistan, and India.
E)established federalism upon independence.
Q2) Why has one-party dominance given way to rule by coalition government since the early 1990s? Has this trend produced a stable, workable government, and why?
Q3) Discuss both the costs and benefits of British colonialism to Indian development, and assess the net influence of this colonial legacy.
Q4) Which of the following has been a result of greater reliance on coalition governments?
A)strengthening of the policy influence of the prime minister
B)greater use of emergency rule
C)more frequent declarations of presidential rule
D)devolution of power to regional parties and states
E)weakening of regional parties
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Chapter 10: Iran
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Sample Questions
Q1) Mohammad Khatami's presidency is best known for his:
A)leadership during the Iran-Iraq war.
B)attempts at political reform.
C)attempts to roll back earlier political reform.
D)widespread use of violence during the early years of the Islamic Republic.
E)role in restarting Iran's nuclear weapons program.
Q2) The Revolutionary Guard is:
A)a paramilitary force controlled by the supreme leader.
B)the upper house of the legislature.
C)the body that selects the supreme leader.
D)comprised of religious leaders who have been approved by the government to preach.
E)the name given the opposition forces that oppose the supreme leader.
Q3) The White Revolution refers to:
A)the overthrow of the monarchy and the creation of the Islamic Republic.
B)the attempts at modernization led by the shah in the 1960s.
C)the overthrow of Iran's democratically elected government in 1953.
D)the conservative policies enacted by President Ahmadinejad since 2005.
E)the conservative backlash following the green movement in 2009.
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Page 12
Chapter 11: Mexico
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which factors explain how the PRI's base of power began to erode? Has the reintroduction of genuine political competition into Mexican national politics brought with it genuine improvements in government?
Q2) Emiliano Zapata and Pancho Villa were:
A)Spanish conquistadores of Mexico.
B)indigenous independence leaders.
C)peasant leaders of the Mexican Revolution.
D)prominent twentieth-century Mexican conservatives.
E)Texans who sought independence from Mexico.
Q3) Mexican elections for the lower house of the legislature use which electoral system?
A)proportional representation
B)single-member district with plurality
C)binomial elections
D)mixed proportional representation and single-member district
E)single transferable vote
Q4) How has the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) affected the Mexican economy? Who have been its detractors and supporters, and why?
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Chapter 12: Brazil
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Sample Questions
Q1) What has been a major problem for the Federal Supreme Court since the return of democracy?
A)declining independence
B)a crushing caseload
C)an inability to overturn legislation
D)an overzealous prosecution of human rights abuses
E)extreme partisanship
Q2) Democratization in Brazil during the 1980s resulted from:
A)a civil war.
B)a popular uprising.
C)the rapid collapse of the military.
D)a gradual, controlled process.
E)foreign intervention.
Q3) The Estado Nôvo was:
A)Brazil's first democratic republic.
B)a Communist dictatorship.
C)the creation of a capital city in the interior.
D)a dictatorial regime led by Vargas.
E)a breakaway coastal state.
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Page 14
Chapter 13: South Africa
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following was an action taken by President F. W. de Klerk that hastened the transition to democracy and the end of apartheid?
A)passing the Reservation of Separate Amenities Act
B)legalizing the ANC
C)jailing prominent apartheid proponents
D)forcing the transition to proportional representation
E)dismantling the PAC
Q2) The Great Trek was:
A)an Afrikaner migration to the interior of South Africa to escape the British, which later gained mythical status.
B)a long march by Bantu kingdoms to escape European colonization.
C)an epic battle between Afrikaners and the English.
D)a bloody battle between Xhosa and Afrikaners.
E)the legendary Dutch voyage from Europe to Africa.
Q3) To what degree has South Africa developed a political party system and a political culture that is independent of the history of apartheid? What level of influence do the current social and economic divisions have on the current makeup of political parties?
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Page 15
Chapter 14: Nigeria
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Sample Questions
Q1) Nigeria's Fourth Republic has been characterized by:
A)the establishment of independence from Britain.
B)successive military coups.
C)successive peaceful democratic elections.
D)the establishment of a parliamentary legislative system.
E)devolution of authority to regional legislatures.
Q2) Nigeria's federal character principle refers to:
A)the remarkable unity of the Nigerian people.
B)the quota system for political appointments in Nigeria.
C)British colonial justification for Nigerian territorial divisions.
D)eligibility requirements for political candidates.
E)constitutional limits on the national judiciary.
Q3) Nigerian ethnic groups that are predominantly Muslim include the:
A)Igbo and Yoruba.
B)Zulu and Inkatha.
C)Hausa and Fulani.
D)Iijaw and Oyo.
E)Hutu and Tutsi.
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