# Wow, I didn't realize how little some voters know about government! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 21, 2024, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015 "2024-08-21T20:58:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/41 "2024-08-22T04:06:43Z")
10 out of 10! I got questions about how many senators there are, how many amendments, what an amendment is, and such-like. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/42 "2024-08-22T04:29:39Z")
I got 10 out of 10 too. Some interesting questions. What is an amendment, what is a right from the First Amendment, how many Representatives in the House of Representatives; and then, “Where is the Statue of Liberty?” ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/43 "2024-08-22T04:30:51Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > > [@Max\_S](#): > > > > I think most people know there are three branches of government, legislative, judicial, executive. Maybe they won’t articulate it that way but if you mention Congress, the Supreme Court, and the President, > > I have heard- House Senate and President. I mean, it is not that wrong. Yes well, there are test skills and then there are practical skills. What I meant was, outside of a test setting, if you talk with someone they will generally understand that the President, Congress, and Supreme Court exist and are distinct. Most people, I think, would agree that: - the President runs the government - President is commander in chief - Congress writes laws (though some may also say the President and/or Supreme Court make law, which is not entirely false) - House of Representatives exists, part of Congress, represents population - Senate exists, part of Congress - the President can veto laws (though some may not appreciate this can only happen instead of signing it) - the President nominates judges to the Supreme Court (though probably not distinguishing between nominating and picking) - the Supreme Court rules on lawsuits - the Supreme Court can rule a law unconstitutional - Supreme Court justices serve for life - the President cannot overrule the Supreme Court - some concept of a right to freedom of speech - some concept of a right to freedom of religion - right to freedom of speech and/or religion are “first amendment rights” - individual right to bear arms is a “second amendment right” - some kind of right to remain silent when arrested ~Max ---
**Author:** ![Nyvaak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Nyvaak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nyvaak)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/44 "2024-08-22T04:33:46Z")
Oh dear. I’m not surprised (but _am_ appalled!) at how ignorant some people are about their own country, but I’m a bit rattled to find how close to home that hits. I got 10 out of 10 on the practice test. My 15-year-old got 10. My 12-year-old got … ulp! … 4. I see we’re going to have to do some extra reading and discussing above what the schools provide. (Heck, I’ve always known that, but I thought we were already doing enough. Nope.) ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/45 "2024-08-22T04:35:32Z")
12 years old, has she had civics yet? I remember we had civics in middle school, 8th grade I think, and then government in high school, 12th grade. Though a lot of it was covered in US History too, 11th grade. ~Max ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/46 "2024-08-22T04:51:27Z")
I’ve seen practice citizenship tests in the past that were far more difficult. Did they make them easier recently? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/47 "2024-08-22T04:55:14Z")
Do they still have civics they way we had them in school? You can’t learn what you aren’t taught. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/48 "2024-08-22T05:01:17Z")
There was never a class called “civics” when I was in school. US history was covered in 5th, 8th, and 11th grade. ---
**Author:** ![Nyvaak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Nyvaak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nyvaak)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/49 "2024-08-22T05:03:49Z")
> [@Max\_S](#): > > 12 years old, has she had civics yet? > [@Czarcasm](#): > > Do they still have civics they way we had them in school? Yes and no. Yes, she has had “civics” classes of one sort or another, but no, not the way we had them. The fact is, I want to know more about what is in my kids’ classes, but am frustrated because all the material seems to be on-line or computer based in some fashion. This makes it a lot harder to keep abreast of what they’re learning than it was when kids brought books home to do their assignments and had things on paper that parents could check. (But . . . no excuses. These are future voters; their education in such matters is critical.) ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/50 "2024-08-22T05:09:35Z")
Oh boy. I took the test and got 10/10. But I got some _tough_ questions. **Q: What are two rights of everyone living in the United States?** - right to bear arms and right to serve on a jury - freedom of speech and freedom to run for federal office - freedom of speech and freedom of assembly - freedom of religion and right to vote without poll taxes Tough because it’s easy to miss the significance of the word _everyone_. **Q: Name one war fought by the United States in the 1800s.** - Spanish-American War - Korean War - World War I - War of Independence Tough because it involves dates (1800s versus 1800 versus 18th century, knowledge of the dates of all those wars) and also the term “War of Independence” as opposed to American Revolutionary War &etc, the fact that war was so close to the 1800s, the fact that a “second war of independence” took place in 1812-1815, the fact that there was another similarly named war (Texan war of Independence), &etc. **Q: What is one thing Benjamin Franklin is famous for?** - president during the Civil War - purchased the Louisiana Territory from France - fought for civil rights - writer of “Poor Richard’s Almanac” Yeah, I had to do this one by process of elimination and it was a tough call. After all, Franklin played a big role as Ambassador to France (though I remembered the Louisiana purchase was Jefferson’s presidency, after 1800, and Franklin was too old to have lived to then). He played a part in the Declaration of Independence and Revolutionary War, which arguably counts as fighting for civil rights. That he wrote Poor Richard’s Almanac is like a useless trivia question not particularly important compared to remembering his other accomplishments involving electricity, libraries, the post office, French relations, and of course the Declaration of Independence. ~Max ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/51 "2024-08-22T05:31:51Z")
10/10, but that feels like saying I passed a _“Person, Woman, Man, Camera, TV”_ test. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/52 "2024-08-22T06:06:45Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > What countries did the US fight in WWII? > [@DrDeth](#): > > 2- Quite a few- sure Japan, Germany, Italy, but there was also Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Finland and a few others. IMHO if you get the first three right, you’d be okay. I do not think I could list all of them. You already listed all of them plus one extra. The US declared war on 6 countries in WWII; Finland was not one of them. This is getting off topic, but … xkcd386… ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/53 "2024-08-22T06:33:54Z")
It sounds like your grandmother and mine would have got along famously. I vote in every election because of her influence. And I never asked who she voted for although I’m pretty sure it was Republican. She did have a McCain/Palin sticker on her wheelchair. But she first voted for president in 1928, and the last time in 2012. She voted with the aid of her great granddaughter that last time, and died just before the election, and less than two months before her 108th birthday. At the time I could have voted for McCain but when I looked up Palin I voted for the other guy. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/54 "2024-08-22T06:46:40Z")
> [@Max\_S](#): > > Tough because it’s easy to miss the significance of the word _everyone_. That tripped up more than a few of my classmates in my first year Constitutional Law class. Not me, I’m glad to say. But there were a number of headslaps and “Gosh, I should have thought of thats” when the professor explained. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 8:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/55 "2024-08-22T08:33:12Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > 10/10. I expected to do really bad but these were all $100 level Kid’s Jeopardy questions. Is this _really_ what is asked on the citizenship test? 🤨 Especially with giving a choice of four answers. Even if you weren’t sure the correct answers were obvious. > > “What is the Capitol of the US?” Answer: The Capitol. Did you say D.C. ? ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 9:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/56 "2024-08-22T09:52:43Z")
I had to start the test over. I got the first question right, then it asked **Name one state that borders Canada** - Texas - Louisiana - Pennsylvania - Arizona Seriously. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/57 "2024-08-22T10:39:24Z")
Do they ask Geography questions on the real test? ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 10:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/58 "2024-08-22T10:57:39Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > Name one state that borders Canada What’s wrong with that question? Pennsylvania borders Canada in one area around Erie, PA. The border is technically in the middle of Lake Erie, with Canada on one side and PA on the other, so you can make an argument that there is no land border, but technically there’s a border there. The “Erie Triangle” was originally claimed by multiple states, which required the U.S. Government to step in and take control of that area. The U.S. Government then sold the Erie Triangle to PA sometime in the 1790s. The point of selling it to PA was to let PA have access to Lake Erie. Without the Erie Triangle, PA would not have had any direct access to trade on the Great Lakes. Seems like an easy question considering that none of the other states are even close to Canada. The only thing that might trip some folks up is that they might be thinking of a land border and not a border in the middle of the Great Lake. ---
**Author:** ![vbob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vbob/32/4439_2.png) [@vbob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vbob)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 10:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/59 "2024-08-22T10:58:17Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > …and so I proceeded to tell him the story of the Alice’s Restaurant Massacree, with full orchestration and four-part harmony… Where did you get notarized copies of the 8x10 glossy photographs with circles and arrows and a paragraph on the back of each one? ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015/60 "2024-08-22T11:17:43Z")
> [@engineer\_comp\_geek](#): > > What’s wrong with that question? Pennsylvania borders Canada in one area around Erie, PA. The border is technically in the middle of Lake Erie, with Canada on one side and PA on the other, so you can make an argument that there is no land border, but technically there’s a border there. In the first place, that is a bit of a tricky answer. Even if you can locate Pennsylvania on a map, it isn’t obvious that there is a border with Canada. In the second place, the other three answers are so obviously wrong that Pennsylvania must be the correct one. When it’s multiple choice, it’s a sort of easy question. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-i-didnt-realize-how-little-some-voters-know-about-government/1006015.md?page=4)