Are you a well-informed Ohio citizen? Thanks for taking our 3 ½ minute quiz on basic knowledge every good citizen should know about their government and how it functions.
This self-assessment Civics Essential survey is made possible with a Renewing Democracy grant from the Solutions Journalism Network that encourages reporting about how people and institutions are attempting to reinvigorate democracy in communities across the country.
Support for Ohio Civics Essential is provided by a strategic grant from the Ohio State Bar Foundation to improve civics knowledge of Ohio adults.
The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent those of the Ohio State Bar Foundation.
Answers follow:
Drawing boundaries for political districts to gain a voter advantage for one party’s candidates is called:
__X_ Gerrymandering*
___ Political Spoils System
___ Patronage
___ Nepotism
*The word gerrymander (originally written Gerry-mander) was used for the first time in a Boston newspaper in 1812 after Governor Elbridge Gerry signed a bill that redistricted Massachusetts to benefit his Democratic-Republican Party. One of the contorted districts resembled the shape of a mythological salamander.
Blocking passage of a Senate bill by debating it at length or offering procedural motions to keep it from coming to a vote is called:
__X_ Filibustering
___ Lobbying
___ Sandbagging
___ Delay of Game
The First Amendment guarantee of free speech bans any censorship by:
__X_ government*
___ private companies
___ both
___ none of the above
*The First Amendment specifically prohibits Congress, but not private entities, from making any “law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
Which duty or privilege applies to both citizens and non-citizens in the United States?
___ Can serve on a jury.
___ Can vote in a federal election.
_X__ Must pay taxes*
___ All of the above
*Both citizens and non-citizens, even illegal immigrants, must pay taxes. The most recent IRS data, from 2015, shows the agency received 4.4 million income tax returns from workers who don’t have Social Security numbers, which includes a large number of undocumented immigrants. That year, they paid $23.6 billion in income taxes.
Freedom of religion includes the freedom not to believe in God.
__X_True*
___ False
*Our Constitution bars the government from interfering in anyone’s religious beliefs, even if they are atheists or believe in no religion at all.
Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the federal government and others to the states. Match the power to the form of government, either Federal, State, Both, Neither
_State__ provide police protection
_State__ provide fire safety
_State__ issue a driver’s license
_State__ approve zoning/land use
_Federal__ make treaties
_Federal__ print money
_Federal__ declare war
_Federal__ create an army
Match the branch of government with its official duty.
Legislative _2__
Executive _3__
Judicial _1__
None of these
Reviews and interprets laws.
Creates new laws.
Enforces the laws.
Match the offices to the number of years they are elected to serve.
U.S. President _A__
U.S. Senator _C__
U.S. Representative _B__
Governor of Ohio __A_
4 years
2 years
6 years
No term limits
How many justices are on the Supreme Court?
___ 5
___ 7
_X__ 9
___ 11
Name all of the following who are currently U.S. Senators from Ohio.
__X_ Sherrod Brown
__X_ Rob Portman
___ Mike DeWine*
___ John Kasich
___ Richard Cordray
___ Jon Husted
___ Betty Sutton
___ Ted Strickland
___ Marcy Kaptur
*Mike Dewine is the current Ohio Attorney General and the Republican candidate for Governor of Ohio; John Kasich is the current Governor of Ohio; Richard Cordray is the Democratic candidate for Governor; Jon Husted is the current Ohio Secretary of State and the Republican candidate for Ohio Lt. Governor. Betty Sutton served as U.S. Representative for Ohio's 13th congressional district and is the Democratic candidate for Ohio Lt. Governor. Ted Strickland was the 68th Governor of Ohio. Marcy Kaptur, now in the House for just over 35 years as the Representative for Ohio’s 9th congressional district, has set the mark for the longest tenure by a woman.
If both the President and the Vice President can no longer serve, who becomes President?
__X_ the Speaker of the House
___ the Senate Majority Leader
___ the Secretary of State
___ the President’s spouse
Who is the Commander in Chief of the military?
___ The Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
__X_ The President*
___ The Director of the CIA
___ The Secretary of Defense
*The President can dismiss military leaders at will. He ultimately approves all military action on behalf of the United States. President Truman removed General MacArthur as military head of the Korean War because MacArthur refused to retreat from the Chinese border.
Who does a U.S. Senator represent?
_X__ All people of the state*
___ Half the people of the state
___ The major cities in a state
___ Only their own Senatorial District
*Each state is allotted two senators, both of whom represent everyone in that state.
Why do some states have more Representatives than other states?
_X__ They have more people*
___ Gerrymandering
___ The Electoral College
___ They have more voters
*Under our Constitution, the number of Representatives is based on the population of each state. Population is determined by the most recent U.S. Census.
In Ohio, residents must have a photo ID in order to vote.
___ True
_ X__ False*
*Ohio accepts a photo ID for registration and voting but does not require it. Instead, you may use a current phone bill, utility bill or paycheck stub that includes your name and address. Visit MyOhioVote.org for more details.
How many U.S. Senators are there?
__X_ 100*
___ 50
___ 435
___ 25
*Our Constitution allots two senators to represent each state, no matter how small or large.
How you rate:
A perfect score? Fly the flag! You’re a Yankee Doodle Dandy!
One wrong? You’ve been recruited by Commodore Perry, the hero of The Battle of Lake Erie.
Two wrong? You still qualify as a Patriot. As Perry would have said: “Don’t give up the ship!”
Three wrong? Well, we won’t disinvite you from the Boston Tea Party.
Four wrong? Time to refresh your memory on high school civics class.
Five wrong? George Washington may be rolling in his grave.
Enjoy this story?
Sign up for free solutions-based reporting in your inbox each week.