US Civics and Government

Massachusetts Government

• Massachusetts has an unspecified number of cities and towns.

Municipalities

• A municipality must have more than 12,000 people to be considered a city.

Citizenship

• If neither you nor your parents were born in the U.S., you can still become a citizen through naturalization.

U.S. Government

• The U.S. has 2 main ways to become a citizen by birth: by being born in the U.S. or being born abroad to parents who are U.S. citizens.
• A presidential candidate must win at least 270 electoral votes to become president.
• The number of electoral votes per state is determined by the state's population.

Presidential Election

• Presidential elections are always held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November.

Amendments and the Constitution

• The 13th Amendment abolished slavery.
• The 14th Amendment granted citizenship to former slaves.
• The 15th Amendment granted voting rights to African American men.
• The 19th Amendment granted women's suffrage.

Bill of Rights

• The 1st Amendment guarantees freedom of speech, religion, and assembly.
• The 2nd Amendment guarantees the right to bear arms.
• The 4th Amendment protects against unreasonable searches and seizures.
• The 5th Amendment guarantees due process and protects against self-incrimination.
• The 6th Amendment guarantees the right to a fair trial.
• The 7th Amendment guarantees the right to a jury trial.
• The 8th Amendment prohibits cruel and unusual punishment.

Historical Documents

• The Articles of Confederation was the first U.S. constitution.

Government Structure

• The 3 branches of government are the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches.
• The Executive branch is headed by the President, responsible for enforcing laws.
• The Legislative branch is Congress, responsible for making laws.
• The Judicial branch is the Supreme Court, responsible for interpreting laws.

Political Concepts

• Daniel Shays was a leader of Shays' Rebellion, a protest against high taxes and debt.
• Checks and balances are the system of limits on each branch of government to prevent abuse of power.
• Ratify means to approve or confirm a treaty or amendment.

Government Powers

• The President has the power to declare war.
• The Senate must approve all presidential appointments.
• Congress consists of the House of Representatives (435 members) and the Senate (100 members).
• If the President and Vice President die, the Speaker of the House becomes President.

Impeachment

• The Senate acts as a court during impeachments.

Electoral Process

• There are 27 amendments to the U.S. Constitution.