---
title: Elections and voting: ballots, counting and winning — how Mova does on the tests · Politics
description: Lesson 2 of the politics course of Mova's primary school: 5 of 11 tests right, exam 3 of 4, every question with the options, the student's choice, the right answer and why it chose.
---

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# Elections and voting: ballots, counting and winning

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**Tests:** 5 of 11 right · **Exam:** 3 of 4 right · **Kind:** plain · **Understood:** 10 of 15 · **Run:** 2026-10-18, commit `f3c23ea72`

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Lesson 2 of the politics course of Mova's primary school, as Mova's small model took its tests: it had read this lesson and the ones before it and learned from their exercises. Each test shows the options in the order the student saw them, its choice, the right answer, the score of every option and why it chose. The lesson itself, sentence by sentence with trees and pragmatics: [the lesson in the corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/).

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Every question of this lesson and each of its options parsed by Mova, with trees and pragmatics: [the lesson's questions in the corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/).

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### Test 1 · wrong ✗ {#t1}

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Your mate goes, "u can just tell the counter who u voted for innit, it's no big deal." What should you say?

- **1.** He's wrong, telling anyone is a crime forever — no support
- **2.** He's right, everyone must say their vote out loud — **← Mova's choice** · score 11
- **3.** The vote is secret, so nobody can push you, but you can share it if you want — **✓ the right answer** · score 11
- **4.** The counter already knows, because he reads your mind — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 2 with score 11, tied with another option at 11 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 2, line 12: «In the US presidential election, each state gives its votes to the winner in that state (two small states split theirs); this is the Electoral College, and TV…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+5); the same thing acted on «votes» (+4); a different action (counts against) (+1); a different doer (counts against) (+1). The right option, 3, scored 11. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/t1/)

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### Test 2 · wrong ✗ {#t2}

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Grandad, a Geordie, says, "Howay man, we're gannin' to the count, it's canny exciting!" ("Howay" means come on, "gannin'" means going, "canny" means really.) What will he see?

- **1.** People counting paper votes by hand while party watchers check — **✓ the right answer** · score 6
- **2.** The king choosing the winner from a hat — **← Mova's choice** · score 10
- **3.** The candidates counting their own votes in secret — score 6
- **4.** A computer printing the winner's name on a screen in a single second — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 2 with score 10, against 6 for the next best. Its support: lesson 2, line 18: «People disagree about the Electoral College: some say it makes candidates care about smaller states, others say the winner should simply be whoever gets the mo…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+5); the same thing acted on «winner» (+4); a different doer (counts against) (+1). The right option, 1, scored 6. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/t2/)

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### Test 3 · right ✓ {#t3}

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Finn asks, "Why don't they just use a computer?" Which is the best answer?

- **1.** Hand counting is slow, but anyone can watch it and trust it — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **2.** Computers are banned from every building in the UK — no support
- **3.** Hand counting is actually faster than any computer could ever be — no support
- **4.** Computers are only used to count votes for kids — no support

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**Why:** No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/t3/)

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### Test 4 · right ✓ {#t4}

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In the US, cousin Jake texts, "y'all, our state flipped red, it's lowkey wild." ("Flipped red" means the Republican won the state.) What does this mean for the race?

- **1.** The state's votes are thrown away completely — score 1
- **2.** The state has left the United States — no support
- **3.** The Republican candidate won that state's Electoral College votes — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 6
- **4.** Everyone in the state changed their T-shirts to red — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 3 with score 6, against 1 for the next best. Its support: lesson 2, line 14: «A campaign is everything a candidate does to win votes, like posters, speeches and knocking on doors (canvassing); damaging someone's poster is wrong even if y…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «win» (+3); the same doer «candidate» (+3). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/t4/)

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### Test 5 · right ✓ {#t5}

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Your sister says, "The loser asked for a recount, so they must be a cheat, fr." ("fr" means "for real".) What's wrong with that?

- **1.** Recounts are only for winners who want even more votes than they got — no support
- **2.** Nothing, asking for a recount proves cheating — no support
- **3.** Recounts are illegal in every country — no support
- **4.** A recount is a normal fair check when a result is very close — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 4

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**Why:** It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 4 with score 4, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 2, line 10: «A recount is counting the votes again because the result is very close; it is a normal check, not cheating, and the result rarely changes.», reached through a sentence linked to the one the question matched. What matched: the same doer «result» (+2); the same property (+1); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+1). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/t5/)

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### Test 6 · wrong ✗ {#t6}

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What would happen if losing candidates never accepted fair results?

- **1.** Handing power to the winner could become a fight instead of peaceful — **✓ the right answer** · score 4
- **2.** Nothing at all would change after elections — no support
- **3.** Elections would get faster and calmer — no support
- **4.** The losing candidate would win automatically — **← Mova's choice** · score 8

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**Why:** It took the question to ask what happens next. It chose option 4 with score 8, against 4 for the next best. Its support: lesson 2, line 14: «A campaign is everything a candidate does to win votes, like posters, speeches and knocking on doors (canvassing); damaging someone's poster is wrong even if y…», reached through what followed the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «win» (+4); the same doer «candidate» (+4). The right option, 1, scored 4. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/t6/)

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### Test 7 · wrong ✗ {#t7}

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Grandad grumbles, "Exit poll says Party A, so it's done, turn the telly off, it's a right bummer." Is it done?

- **1.** Yes, the exit poll is the official result, announced on telly — **← Mova's choice** · score 6
- **2.** No, it's a guess; only the full count gives the result — **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **3.** No, because exit polls are only about the weather that day — no support
- **4.** Yes, because exit polls are never wrong about the winner — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 6, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 2, line 16: «An exit poll asks some voters how they voted as they leave, then guesses the result; it is often close to the real result, but not always right.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «exit poll» (+4); the same thing acted on «result» (+2). The right option, 2, found no support in what it remembers. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/t7/)

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### Test 8 · wrong ✗ {#t8}

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Your Aussie mate says, "Me nan voted early at the arvo booth, then had a sausage." ("Arvo" means afternoon.) What kind of voting did nan do?

- **1.** Early voting, before the main election day — **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **2.** Postal voting, with a sausage in the envelope — no support
- **3.** Double voting, once early and once on the day — no support
- **4.** No voting, because early votes are thrown out — **← Mova's choice** · score 11

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**Why:** It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 4 with score 11, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 2, line 12: «In the US presidential election, each state gives its votes to the winner in that state (two small states split theirs); this is the Electoral College, and TV…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+5); the same thing acted on «votes» (+4); a different action (counts against) (+1); a different doer (counts against) (+1). The right option, 1, found no support in what it remembers. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/t8/)

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### Test 9 · wrong ✗ {#t9}

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A kid on TikTok says, "landslide = the winner got buried in mud." What does it really mean?

- **1.** Winning by one single vote — **← Mova's choice** · score 16
- **2.** An election held in the mountains — no support
- **3.** Winning by a very big amount — **✓ the right answer** · score 4
- **4.** Losing by a very big amount — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 1 with score 16, against 4 for the next best. Its support: lesson 1, line 18: «Some people say the bigger group should always win a vote; others say a smaller group should sometimes get its turn, or it will always lose.», reached through what was said in the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+6); the same action «win» (+4); the same thing acted on «vote» (+4); the same circumstance (+4). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-2). The right option, 3, scored 4. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/t9/)

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### Test 10 · right ✓ {#t10}

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In a video game, the hero wins an election by ripping down everyone else's posters. What is wrong?

- **1.** Damaging others' posters is wrong; real campaigns persuade with speeches, leaflets and visits — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 4
- **2.** Only the king is allowed to rip posters — no support
- **3.** Posters do not exist in real elections — no support
- **4.** Nothing, ripping posters is how real campaigns work — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 4, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 2, line 14: «A campaign is everything a candidate does to win votes, like posters, speeches and knocking on doors (canvassing); damaging someone's poster is wrong even if y…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «damage» (+2); the same thing acted on «poster» (+2). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/t10/)

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### Test 11 · right ✓ {#t11}

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Mum, a bit dry, says, "Kindly note that my vote is my own business." What is she reminding you?

- **1.** Voting is secret, and she does not have to tell anyone — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 6
- **2.** She did not bother to vote at all this year, so it is private — score 3
- **3.** Her vote does not count unless she tells someone who it was for — no support
- **4.** She will vote for whoever you choose for her next time — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 1 with score 6, against 3 for the next best. Its support: lesson 2, line 3: «Your vote is secret, so nobody can bully or pay you to vote their way; Mum can tell you who she chose if she wants to, but she never has to.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «tell» (+3); the same doer «mum» (+3). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/t11/)

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### Exam question 1 · formal language · right ✓ {#e1}

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Identify the principal reason for which the secrecy of the ballot is maintained.

- **1.** The protection of the voter from intimidation and from inducement — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **2.** The prevention of candidates from learning of their own candidacy — no support
- **3.** The concealment of the total number of votes cast — no support
- **4.** The acceleration of the counting process — no support

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**Why:** No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/e1/)

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### Exam question 2 · formal language · wrong ✗ {#e2}

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It is given that the margin between two candidates is exceedingly narrow. Which of the following most accurately characterises a subsequent recount?

- **1.** An admission of fraud on the part of the candidate requesting it — **← Mova's choice** · no support
- **2.** An unlawful attempt to reverse the will of the electorate — no support
- **3.** A customary verification of the result, implying no impropriety — **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **4.** A procedure available exclusively to the declared winner — no support

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**Why:** No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/e2/)

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### Exam question 3 · formal language · right ✓ {#e3}

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Select the response consistent with the established facts concerning an exit poll.

- **1.** An estimate derived from the responses of a sample of voters departing polling stations — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **2.** A record of all persons who have voted by post — no support
- **3.** The definitive result, declared upon the completion of the count — no support
- **4.** A barrier erected at the exit of a polling station — no support

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**Why:** No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/e3/)

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### Exam question 4 · formal language · right ✓ {#e4}

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Determine the number of Electoral College votes requisite for election to the presidency of the United States.

- **1.** Two hundred and seventy — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **2.** Two hundred and sixty-nine — no support
- **3.** Five hundred and thirty-eight — no support
- **4.** Four hundred and thirty-five — no support

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**Why:** No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/politics/2-elections-and-voting-ballots-counting-and-winning/e4/)

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- ← previous: [1. What politics is: deciding things together](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/politics/1-what-politics-is-deciding-things-together/)
- next →: [3. Who can vote, and why children cannot](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/politics/3-who-can-vote-and-why-children-cannot/)
- ↑ back to [Politics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/politics/)