Ivy Global. Reading Passage 3: History with Graph Practice for the New SAT (2016)

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1 Reading Passage 3: History with Graph Practice for the New SAT (2016)

2 Problem Set 3: 11 Questions Reading: Social Science/History Passage with Graph Line Questions are based on the following passage. The following passage is adapted from a 1907 book on the political technique known as gerrymandering. Gerrymandering is the practice of altering electoral district boundaries with the intent to create partisan advantage in elections, and the term gerrymander is also sometimes used to refer to the districts themselves. While examples of what is now called gerrymandering stretch back nearly to the founding of the United States, and even before the first US Congress was formed in 1789, the term was only coined in the 19th century, to describe the redistricting of Massachusetts under Governor Elbridge Gerry. In 1811, the leading political parties were the Federalists and the Democratic-Republicans, or simply the Republicans. The Republicans, for only the second time in the history of the state, gained control of all branches of the Massachusetts state government. Massachusetts was normally Federalist and the Republican Party then in the ascendency cast about for a way of retaining its unusual power. The method decided upon was that of redistricting the state to its own advantage. It was highly essential that the state Senate remain Republican, both for the purposes of state legislation and also to aid in electing Republican Senators to Congress. To this end the state was divided into eighteen districts, which among them would elect forty state Senators. In each district, Senators would be elected by a simple majority. And because it was known which of the existing districts more strongly favored one party or another, it was possible to create certain advantages by redrawing them. Because only a slim majority was needed to win any district and elect its Senators, the district map could be rearranged so that Republicans would win a slim majority of the vote in a large number of districts, and the Federalists could have large majorities but in only a small number of districts. This would ensure that Republicans could win a majority of districts and elect a majority of Senators even if a majority of voters favored Federalist candidates. The Federalists were not unaware of the intention of this districting bill, and offered various amendments in an attempt to resolve the inequalities created by the bill. Every Federalist voted for every one of the amendments, and every Republican voted against them, and every amendment failed. Before the bill was passed, it was predicted that three-fourths of the Senate would, as a result of the redistricting, belong to one party although the people of the state were evenly divided. The House passed the measure by a vote of 278 to 231. The minority in the House signed a protest against the law; the number of signatures amounted to 224. People in conventions throughout the state drew up and passed resolutions denouncing the measure soon after its passage. Editorials were run in newspapers, and Governor Eldridge Gerry was harshly criticized. One of the districts was so contorted that it was said to resemble a salamander, and the word gerrymander (a portmanteau of Governor Eldridge Gerry s last name and the word salamander ) was used for the first time in the Boston Gazette on 26 March, 1812 to describe the district. Although there were a variety of protests and petitions, the redistricting law stood, and in the following election the results were clear. Of 101,390 votes for Senators, Federalists received 51,766 votes and Republican received 50,164. But of 40 Senators elected by the state, 29 were Republican and only 11 were Federalist. The vote for Governor at the same election was 52,696 for Strong, the Federalist candidate, and 51,326 for Gerry, resulting in a Federalist win. Likewise, the elections for the US House of Representatives were won mostly by Federalists. The state as a whole was decidedly Federalist, and yet the majority of its state Senators were Republican. This instance of gerrymandering, presided over by its namesake, was one of the most successful on record. Overall Vote Count Senators Elected STATE SENATE ELECTIONS Federalists Republicans The above graph shows the proportion of total votes for each party s Senate candidates in the 1812 election, and shows the proportion of total Senators elected by each party.

3 GUBERNATORIAL AND US HOUSE ELECTIONS Gubernatorial Vote Count Representatives Elected Federalists Republicans The above graph shows the share of votes won by each The above graph shows the share of votes won by each party s gubernatorial candidate, as well as the number of party s gubernatorial candidate, as well as the number of Representatives elected by each party to the US House. Representatives elected by each party to the US House. 1. The passage most strongly suggests that Governor Eldridge Gerry was (A) powerless to prevent the Republicans from passing a redistricting bill which would ultimately cost them victory in the 1812 election. (B) the person most responsible for the first known example of redistricting for political advantage. (C) personally blamed in newspaper editorials for the redistricting bill passed by his party. (D) only able to win the 1812 election because of the advantage created by gerrymandering. 2. Which choice provides the best evidence for the answer to the previous question? (A) Lines 4-9 ( While examples Elbridge Gerry. ) (B) Lines ( Massachusetts was unusual power. ) (C) Lines ( The Federalists the bill. ) (D) Lines ( Editorials were harshly criticized. ) 3. Based on information in the passage and graphs, we can conclude that (A) Federalists used gerrymandering to secure more seats in the US House of Representatives. (B) the overall number of votes for the Federalist gubernatorial candidate was higher than the number of votes for all candidates for the US House of Representatives. (C) Republican gerrymandering did not have the same impact on gubernatorial and U.S. House elections as on the state Senate elections. (D) Federalists were even more successful in their own gerrymandering efforts than the republicans had been. 4. Which of the following claims about gerrymandering is NOT made in the passage? (A) Gerrymandering is used to create an advantage for one party over another in elections. (B) The term gerrymandering can refer to any unfair strategy for winning elections. (C) Federalists understood the purpose of Republican gerrymandering before the election of (D) Gerrymandering had occurred even before the Republican redistricting of Massachusetts. 5. As it is used in line 16, retaining most nearly means (A) absorbing. (B) maintaining. (C) remembering. (D) employing. 6. Which choice best summarizes paragraphs 4-5? (A) Republicans were able to pass the redistricting bill in spite of Federalist protests. (B) Federalists were at first unaware of the purpose of the redistricting bill, but soon began to protest it. (C) Although Federalists resisted, Republicans were able to gain control of Massachusetts government. (D) Federalists fiercely opposed Republican redistricting efforts. 7. As it is used in line 38, resolve most nearly means (A) rectify. (B) divide. (C) determine. (D) vote. 8. The main rhetorical effect of the repetition of the word every in lines 38-40( Every Federalist ever Republican every amendment ) is to (A) show how every member of the government contributed something to the redistricting bill. (B) convey the absolute party division in the state government, and the total control enjoyed by the Republicans. (C) contrast the strong position of the Federalists with the traditionally weak position of the Republicans. (D) highlight the unanimous agreement of both parties on the importance of the amendments.

4 9. The prediction in lines serves to show that (A) the intention and likely effects of the redistricting bill were clear even before the election. (B) Federalists had greatly exaggerated the likely effects of the redistricting proposal. (C) even without gerrymandering, election results can still be skewed by other factors. (D) the Massachusetts Republicans had successfully concealed the likely effects of the redistricting bill from the Federalists. 10. The election of 1812 is most likely characterized as a successful example of gerrymandering because (A) it was in 1812 that the term gerrymandering was first used. (B) the proportion of Senate seats won by Republicans was much greater than the proportion of overall votes for Republican Senators. (C) Eldridge Gerry lost the gubernatorial election, in spite of his efforts to gain an advantage by gerrymandering. (D) the districts created in the 1812 election were some of the most unusually shaped districts ever created by redistricting. 11. What is the main evidence offered in this passage for the claim that the state as a whole was decidedly Federalist (line 65)? (A) Harsh editorials in newspapers strongly criticized the Republican governor, and favored the Federalist position. (B) Republicans were in control of the Massachusetts state government for only the second time in history. (C) The gubernatorial election, US House elections, and the total vote count in the State Senate elections all favored Federalists. (D) The redistricting bill had passed the House with the unanimous support of the majority party.

5 Summary 11 Questions 638 Word Passage Social Science / History Passage Complexity: College-ready Reading Level Estimated Time: 13 minutes Answers Answers Topic Other Topics 1) C Information and Ideas Implicit Meaning 2) D Information and Ideas Citing Textual Evidence 3) C Synthesis Quantitative Information 4) B Rhetoric Analyzing Claims 5) B Information and Ideas Words in Context 6) A Information and Ideas Summarizing 7) A Information and Ideas Words in Context 8) B Rhetoric Word Choice 9) A Rhetoric Analyzing Purpose 10) B Information and Ideas Implicit Meaning

6 11) C Rhetoric Analyzing Evidence