Practice Test GeeksMCAS - Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System Test Practice Test
← All MCAS Flashcard Decks

MCAS Civics and Government Flashcards

7 cards from real MCAS practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.

Read the first 7 MCAS Civics and Government flashcards as text

  1. What is federalism?

    Answer: A system that divides power between national and state governments

    Federalism is a system of government in which power is divided between a central national government and regional state governments.

  2. How many justices currently serve on the U.S. Supreme Court?

    Answer: 9

    The U.S. Supreme Court has nine justices: one Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices, a number set by federal law since 1869.

  3. What is the minimum age to vote in federal elections in the United States?

    Answer: 18

    The 26th Amendment, ratified in 1971, lowered the federal voting age to 18 for all U.S. elections.

  4. Which branch of the U.S. government has the constitutional authority to formally declare war?

    Answer: Congress (Legislative Branch)

    Under Article I of the Constitution, only Congress has the power to formally declare war, though the President serves as Commander-in-Chief of the military.

  5. What is a constitutional amendment?

    Answer: A formal change or addition to the Constitution requiring supermajority approval

    A constitutional amendment is a formal change or addition to the Constitution, requiring approval by two-thirds of Congress and ratification by three-fourths of states.

  6. What is the significance of the phrase 'We the People' in the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution?

    Answer: It establishes that government authority comes from the citizens

    'We the People' establishes popular sovereignty, meaning that all government authority derives from the consent of the governed citizens.

  7. Which founding document states that governments derive 'their just powers from the consent of the governed'?

    Answer: The Declaration of Independence

    The Declaration of Independence, written by Thomas Jefferson in 1776, contains this phrase establishing that government legitimacy comes from the people.