ap gov argument essay college board

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Lesson Plan: AP Government: Argumentative Essay Practice

The Federalist Papers

Boston College professor Mary Sarah Bilder gives a brief overview backgrounding the Federalist Papers

Description

This is intended as an end-of-course review activity for practice with the argumentative essay format included on the AP United States Government and Politics exam since the 2018 redesign. Eleven practice prompts are provided, reflecting content from Units 1-3.

ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAY PROMPT ANALYSIS

• Review the provided Argumentative Essay Prompts in either an individual or jigsaw format.
• Write a thesis statement for your selected prompt(s) and identify the selection you would make from the provided list and the second piece of evidence you would choose.
• If there are prompts for which you struggle to develop a thesis, or items on the bulleted lists with which you are not conversant, use the hyperlinked C-SPAN Classroom resources to extend your understanding of the required founding documents and SCOTUS cases that you found challenging.

ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAY

• Chose one or more of the provided Argumentative Essay Prompts , as assigned, and use the planning and exploration you did above to write a full essay in response to your designated prompt(s) in 25 or fewer minutes , since that's the time limit you'll face on the AP Exam!
• Exchange essays with a classmate and evaluate each others' work.
• 1st Amendment
• Branches Of Government
• Constitution
• House Of Representatives
• Separation Of Powers
• Supreme Court

Choose Your Test

Sat / act prep online guides and tips, the complete guide to ap us government frqs.

Advanced Placement (AP)

Free-response questions, or FRQs, on the AP US Government exam are more straightforward than those on some other AP tests, but they can still be tough if you're not ready for them. In this guide, we will lay out a simple step-by-step method for answering AP Government FRQs , go through a real example, and tell you where you can find additional practice resources.

AP Government Free-Response Section Format

The free-response section lasts one hour and 40 minutes and consists of four questions , each of which is worth 12.5% of your total score. So as a whole, the free-response section accounts for half your total AP Gov score (the other 50% comes from the multiple-choice section). Each FRQ is worth 3-6 raw points.

Here are the four types of FRQs you'll get on the AP Government exam:

• Concept Application (3 raw points)
• Quantitative Analysis (4 raw points)
• SCOTUS Comparison (4 raw points)
• Argument Essay (6 raw points)

The free-response questions will ask you to integrate your knowledge of the various content areas covered by the course. This includes analyzing political events in the US, discussing examples, and demonstrating your understanding of general principles of US government and politics. You'll also be asked to examine data from charts, define key terms, and explain the roles that different parts of our government play in the political system.

The following chart shows specifically what you must do for each FRQ on the AP Government test. All info below comes from the 2020 AP US Government and Politics Course and Exam Description .

AP Government FRQs: 5-Step Solution Process

This section provides a step-by-step process for answering any question on the AP US Government exam. Here's a sample question from the 2020 AP Gov Course and Exam Description that I'll reference throughout so you can see how these steps might work in practice:

Step 1: Read the Introductory and Concluding Sentences

Free-response questions #1 and #3 will include passages, while question #2 will have an image or a chart with data. Skim the first and final sentences of the passage (or title of the graphic for #2) before you get to the tasks (labeled A-C or A-D). This will help you get a rough sense of what to expect in the rest of the question.

It's a good idea to read the intros and conclusions to all the FRQs before choosing which one to begin with. Doing this might help build up your confidence and improve your efficiency to start with a question that's easier for you.

In the sample question above, you would read the title of the graphic ("Public Education Spending: Amount Spent per Pupil by State in 2014") and then skim the image itself to get a sense of what it's asking you to analyze.

Step 2: Identify (and Underline, If You Want) the Command Verb

For each task in each FRQ, you're given specific instructions on the type of answer that is expected; these instructions include command verbs that tell you what to do. It's important to be aware of exactly what the question is asking so you can earn full points.

These command verbs are the first words you should zero in on as you approach a question. If you think it'll help keep you focused, you can underline these verbs .

Here are the most commonly used task verbs, as described in the AP Gov Exam Description :

Compare: Provide a description or explanation of similarities and/or differences.

Define: Provide a specific meaning for a word or concept.

Describe: Provide the relevant characteristics of a specified topic.

Develop an argument: Articulate a claim and support it with evidence.

Draw a conclusion: Use available information to formulate an accurate statement that demonstrates understanding based on evidence.

Explain: Provide information about how or why a relationship, process, pattern, position, situation, or outcome occurs, using evidence and/or reasoning. Explain "how" typically requires analyzing the relationship, process, pattern, position, situation, or outcome, whereas explain "why" typically requires analysis of motivations or reasons for the relationship, process, pattern, position, situation, or outcome.

Identify: Indicate or provide information about a specified topic, without elaboration or explanation.

In part A of the sample question, the command verb is "identify," indicating that you need to correctly interpret the data in the image. In part B, the command verb changes to "describe," which means you'll need to go one step further and interpret and analyze data in the graphic that you have found.

Part C starts with "draw a conclusion," meaning that you will need to tie together the evidence you found in part B to come up with a final (accurate) statement on what this means. Finally, part D begins with the task verb "explain," showing that you must make a clear connection between the data in this graphic as a whole and the principle of federalism.

Step 3: Know Where You'll Earn Your Raw Points

In general, each part in a question (A, B, C, and D) will correspond to 1 raw point , but not all questions are like this.

After finding the task verb in the part of the question you're answering, take note of how many examples or descriptions you need to provide , as each will likely correspond to a point in your raw score for the question. There might also be more than one task verb in a question, in which case you'll likely get at least 2 raw points for it.

As a reminder, here is the maximum number of raw points you can earn for each question (don't forget that each question is still worth the same percentage of your score: 12.5%):

Take care to answer the question thoroughly but directly , addressing all points in a way that will make it easy for graders to assess your response. Remember that you don't need to write an essay for the first three FRQs, so just go straight for the answer to avoid any ambiguity.

In the sample question, we know there will be 4 raw points you can earn. And since the tasks are divided into four parts (labeled A-D), we can assume that each part will be worth 1 raw point .

You can see more sample FRQs and how they're graded with the official scoring guidelines here .

Step 4: Reread Your Answer

Once you've come up with an answer, reread what you wrote to ensure it makes sense and addresses the question completely . Did you give the correct number of descriptions or examples asked of you? Does your answer directly respond to what the question is asking?

If you're satisfied, move on to the next part of the question and return to step 2!

Step 5: Pace Yourself

The final step is to keep track of time so you can be sure you're pacing yourself effectively and are not spending too much time on any one question. As a reminder, you'll have one hour and 40 minutes for the entire free-response section of the AP Government exam.

It's suggested that you spend the following amounts of time on each FRQ:

As you can see, you should spend about an equal amount of time on the first three FRQs and save most of your time for your essay , which will likely require the most effort of the four.

A Real AP Government FRQ Example + Analysis

Now, let's go through the answers to a real AP Government free-response question from the 2019 released questions to show you what your responses should look like. This question is an example of a Concept Application question on the exam, meaning it's worth 3 raw points (1 point each for parts A, B, and C).

This question is all about the Johnson Amendment, which does not allow religious organizations to engage in political activities and contribute money to political campaigns. As this passage explains, the Alliance Defending Freedom, a religious group, encourages pastors to challenge this law by participating in an annual event called Pulpit Freedom Sunday.

Below, we go through how to answer each of the three parts correctly using the scoring guidelines .

Part A—1 Point

Part A asks you to come up with an example of a specific action Congress could take to address the concerns of the Alliance Defending Freedom. In other words, what could Congress do to allow groups such as the Alliance Defending Freedom to speak freely about political campaigns?

Note that the command verb used here is "describe," meaning you must "provide the relevant characteristics of a specified topic," or elaborate on what you're proposing and why it would work.

There are two possible answers you could put down here, according to the scoring guidelines:

• Congress could pass a law that would reverse the Johnson Amendment.
• Congress could pass a law to allow religious organizations to participate more directly in politics.

Part B—1 Point

Part B asks you to go into more detail about what you proposed in part A . You must talk about how partisan divisions (i.e., differences in political parties among politicians) could stop whatever you proposed in part A from going into effect (whether that's a new law altogether or a reversal of the original Johnson Amendment).

The task verb used here is "explain," so you must use evidence to show how the action you wrote down in part A could be blocked or reversed.

Here are two possible answers , according to the scoring guidelines:

• Partisan divisions make it more difficult to pass a law because parties adhere to different ideological points of view.
• If Congress and the president are from different political parties, the president might threaten to veto the legislation.

Part C—1 Point

The final part of this free-response question asks you to examine the scenario again, this time from the perspective of the Alliance Defending Freedom , or the religious group in question.

How might the Alliance argue that the Johnson Amendment, which prevents them from speaking on political issues and contributing money to political campaigns, is taking away their rights?

The key here is to first think about what rights these could be . Perhaps freedom of speech or freedom of religion? As you probably noticed, the task verb is "explain," so once again you must use plenty of evidence to show why this contentious relationship exists between the Alliance and the Johnson Amendment/the US government as a whole.

Here are examples of answers you could write, according to the official scoring guidelines:

• The Alliance Defending Freedom and other religious groups might argue that their First Amendment rights are being violated.
• The Alliance Defending Freedom and other religious groups might argue that their freedom of speech/religion is being violated.

Essential Resources for Practicing AP US Government FRQs

There are several resources you can use to hone your skills for answering AP Government FRQs.

Official College Board Resources

The College Board website hosts free-response questions from previous tests that you can use for practice. I recommend starting with the 2019 FRQs (unfortunately, they don't come with sample student responses), as these will look the most like the questions you'll get on test day.

Once you've used those, you can look at FRQs from the 2018 test and earlier; most of these come with sample student responses so you can see what a good response looks like.

If you're hoping to practice FRQs in the context of a full-length test, here are some links to past AP Government exams you can download (as always, prioritize the most recent tests):

• 2018 Practice Test
• 2013 Practice Test
• 2012 Practice Test
• 2009 Practice Test
• 2005 Practice Test
• 1999 Practice Test

These are by far the best sample AP US Government free-response questions you can get because they most accurately represent what you'll see on the real test.

AP Government Review Books

AP Government review books are also solid resources for free-response practice, though they vary a lot in quality.

The Princeton Review's prep book for AP Gov includes five full-length practice tests , so there should be tons of free-response questions you can use to hone your skills. Barron's AP US Gov review book also has some useful practice tests and free-response questions.

If you use these unofficial free-response questions for practice, just be sure to intersperse them with official questions from the College Board so that you maintain an accurate sense of what to expect on the real test.

Recap: Everything to Know About AP US Government FRQs

The four free-response questions on the AP US Government and Politics exam can be approached methodically to earn the maximum number of points.

Read the intro and conclusion to the question first so you can get your bearings. Then, for each of the separate parts, identify the task verb, figure out where you'll earn your raw points, and double-check your answer for any missing pieces or careless errors.

You should also pace yourself so that you're spending no more than 20 minutes each on the first three questions and 40 minutes on the essay.

I suggest practicing at least a few free-response questions before heading into the AP exam. The best resource to use is the College Board website, which contains an archive of past questions accompanied by scoring guidelines and sample student responses. These questions are pretty simple compared to the free-response questions on other AP tests once you get the hang of them!

What's Next?

Not sure where to begin in your AP prep? Our five-step plan will prepare you to take on any AP test .

If you're missing some of your notes that you need to study for AP Gov, check out this article with links to all the content you need to know for the test . You can also learn about the test as a whole with our comprehensive AP Government and Politics review guide .

Do you have a target score in mind for this exam? Learn more about what it takes to earn a 5 on an AP test and whether you should aim for one yourself.

These recommendations are based solely on our knowledge and experience. If you purchase an item through one of our links, PrepScholar may receive a commission.

Samantha is a blog content writer for PrepScholar. Her goal is to help students adopt a less stressful view of standardized testing and other academic challenges through her articles. Samantha is also passionate about art and graduated with honors from Dartmouth College as a Studio Art major in 2014. In high school, she earned a 2400 on the SAT, 5's on all seven of her AP tests, and was named a National Merit Scholar.

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AP US Government FRQ

Ap government free response.

Check out the following resources for the AP Gov FRQ. Be sure to watch these strategy videos and work through all of the free response practice questions.

Official Sample FRQ

Frq strategy videos, how to write ap gov frqs, argumentative essay.

AP Government | Practice Exams | FRQ | Notes | Videos |  Flashcards |  Study Guides

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AP Gov Free Response Questions (FRQ) – Past Prompts

12 min read • may 12, 2023

Fatima Raja

We’ve compiled a sortable list of a bunch of the AP US Government & Politics past prompts! The AP Gov essays (or all written portions) are 50% of the exam including short-answer questions (SAQs) and an Argument Essay. It’s important that you understand the rubrics and question styles going into the exam. Use this list to practice!

By practicing with previously released free response questions (FRQs), you’ll build critical-thinking and analytical skills that will prepare you for the exam. These past prompts have been designed to help you connect concepts and ideas to each other while applying your knowledge to real-life scenarios.

The AP Gov curriculum was updated in 2018 to focus more on primary documents and have more specific course content outlines, but the past prompts are still a good resource to practice with!

If you need more support with AP Gov, join us live for reviews, concept explanations, practice FRQs, and more!

All credit to College Board.

👉 2019 AP Gov FRQs

Qualitative Analysis

Interactions among branches of government (congress, policy-making, interest groups).

Since 2008 the Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative Christian interest group, has promoted an annual event known as Pulpit Freedom Sunday. On this occasion, pastors are encouraged to challenge a provision of the tax law known as the Johnson Amendment, which prohibits political activity by certain nonprofit organizations, including religious organizations. While the Johnson Amendment does not restrict religious leaders from speaking out regarding social issues, it does prohibit them from contributing money to political campaigns or speaking out in favor or against candidates running for political office.

On Pulpit Freedom Sunday, as an act of civil disobedience, pastors and religious leaders preach openly about the moral qualifications of candidates seeking office.

Describe an action Congress could take to address the concerns of the interest group in the scenario.

In the context of the scenario, explain how partisan divisions could prevent the action described in part A.

Explain why the Alliance Defending Freedom might argue that their constitutional rights are threatened by the Johnson Amendment.

What are they actually asking?

To carefully read the provided passage and then use the information provided to describe responses that Congress could take, potential partisan obstacles, and how an interest group could argue their rights are being threatened by the scenario.

Quantitative Analysis

American political ideologies and belief (political parties, polls).

Identify the political affiliation of people who are most likely to believe elected officials should compromise.

Describe the difference between Democrats and Republicans on their attitudes of whether government officials should stick to their principles, based on the data in the bar graph.

Explain how the data in the bar graph could influence how a Republican candidate would shift his or her campaign positions after securing the Republican nomination for president.

Explain how the data in the bar graph could affect policy making interactions between the president and Congress.

Using the graphic provided and your knowledge of the AP Gov course, analyze the data provided and apply it to the situations provided.

Supreme Court Case

Civil liberties and civil rights (civil rights, fourteenth amendment).

In the 1950s, Pete Hernandez, a Mexican American agricultural worker, was found guilty of murder and sentenced to life in prison by an all-white jury in Jackson County, Texas. Hernandez’s defense claimed that people of Mexican ancestry had been discriminated against in Jackson County. They pointed to the fact that no person of Mexican ancestry had served on a jury in 25 years and that the Jackson County Courthouse itself practiced segregation in its facilities. The five jury commissioners, who selected the members of the grand jury, testified under oath that they selected jurors based only on their qualifications and did not consider race or national origin in their decisions.

In the ensuing case, Hernandez v. Texas (1954), the Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of Hernandez, deciding that evidence of discrimination against Mexican Americans existed in Jackson County and that the Constitution prohibits such discrimination.

Identify the clause in the Fourte enth Amendment that was used as the basis for the decision in both Brown v. Board of Education (1954) and Hernandez v. Texas (1954).

Explain how the facts in both Brown v. Board of Education and Hernandez v. Texas led to a similar decision in both cases.

Explain how an interest group could use the decision in Hernandez v. Texas to advance its agenda.

Using your knowledge of the 14th Amendment and Brown v. Board of Education , explain the decision and explain how you would apply it to Hernandez v. Texas .

Argument Essay

Foundations of american democracy (federalism).

The United States Constitution establishes a federal system of government. Under federalism, policy making is shared between national and state governments. Over time, the powers of the national government have increased relative to those of the state governments.

Develop an argument about whether the expanded powers of the national government benefits or hinders policy making.

Use at least one piece of evidence from one of the following foundational documents:

The Articles of Confederation

The Federalist 10

Using one of the documents listed and additional outside evidence, argue whether or not the expanded powers of the federal government is good or bad for policy-making.

👉 2018 AP Gov FRQs

Political Participation (political parties, third-parties)

Political parties seek to win elections to control government

Identify two activities that political parties do to win elections.

Describe one way third parties can affect elections.

Explain how single-member districts make it difficult for third parties to win elections.

Explain how electoral competition is affected by gerrymandering.

What are they actually asking for?

Demonstrate your understanding of how electoral competition affects third-parties and is affected by gerrymandering.

Political Participation (polls)

Public opinion polls are commonly used by politicians and the media.

Identify two characteristics of a reliable scientific public opinion poll.

Describe two ways polling results are used by politicians.

Explain how frequent public opinion polls impact media coverage of political campaigns.

Demonstrate your understanding of polling by explaining what makes a poll reliable and how they are used.

Quantitative Reasoning

Interactions between branches (vetos).

The United States Constitution gave Congress and the president specific legislative powers. As a result, the interactions between the two are dynamic and complex.

Describe the constitutional principle of checks and balances.

Describe EACH of the following presidential powers in the legislative process:

State of the Union address

Using the data in the chart, describe the relationship between the number of presidential vetoes and the number of congressional overrides.

Explain how Congress can reduce the likelihood of a presidential veto.

Demonstrate your understanding of checks and balances by explaining the relationships between vetos, the State of the Union Address, and congressional overrides.

Interactions Between Branches (republicanism)

In a democracy, what the majority wants should influence public policy. The opinion of the majority is sometimes, but not always, reflected in policy change.

Explain how interest groups reduce the influence of public opinion on policy.

Explain how EACH of the following increases the likelihood of policy change.

Newly elected president

National crisis

Describe the role of EACH of the following institutions in the policy process.

Demonstrate your understanding of the policy-making process by explaining the influence of interest groups, the media, and public opinion and explain how different situations can affect it.

👉 2017 AP Gov FRQs

Foundations of Democracy (Supreme Court)

The framers of the Constitution intended the Supreme Court to be politically insulated. Despite this intent, the Supreme Court is not completely insulated from political influences.

Describe one constitutional provision that seeks to insulate the Supreme Court from public opinion.

Identify a power exercised by the Supreme Court that acts as a check on another branch of the federal government.

Explain how each of the following can limit the independence of the Supreme Court.

Explain how the Supreme Court protects its political independence.

Explain how the Supreme Court maintains its independence from public opinion and how Congress and the President can limit it.

Political Participation (Interest Groups)

Interest groups play an important role in the political process.

Identify the primary goal of interest groups.

Describe EACH of the following strategies used by interest groups.

Amicus curiae

Explain how EACH of the following hinders the success of interest groups in obtaining their primary goal.

Separation of powers

Bureaucratic discretion

To describe the functions and goals of interest groups in policy-making.

Interactions Among Branches of Government (Federal Spending)

Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare are all mandatory spending programs, also known as entitlement programs.

Identify a change in federal spending between 1970 and 2023 (projected) based on the chart above.

Describe the difference between entitlement programs and discretionary programs.

Describe one demographic trend that has contributed to changes in entitlement spending.

Explain why changes in entitlement spending make balancing the federal budget difficult.

Explain how deficit spending affects the projected trend in net interest.

To describe how federal spending, including entitlement and discretionary programs, functions and is affected by different factors.

Interactions Between Branches of Government (federalism)

The balance of power between the United States national government and state governments is shaped by the Constitution and Supreme Court rulings.

Describe EACH of the following constitutional provisions.

Supremacy clause

Tenth Amendment

Explain how ONE of the following court rulings changed the balance of power between the national government and state governments.

United States v. Lopez

Obergefell v. Hodges

Describe TWO advantages of federalism for the creation of public policy in the United States.

To explain how the relationship between the state and federal governments is shaped by constitutional clauses and has changed over the years.

👉 2016 AP Gov FRQs

Political Participation (linkage institutions)

Linkage Institutions - such as political parties, the media, and interest groups - connect citizens to the government and play significant roles in the electoral process.

Describe one important function of political parties as a linkage institution in elections.

Describe the influence of the media on the electoral process in each of the following roles.

Gatekeeping/agenda setting

Scorekeeping/horse race journalism

Describe two strategies interest groups use to influence the electoral process.

Explain how, according to critics, interest groups may limit representative democracy.

Describe the relationships between interest groups, political parties, and the media as linkage institutions and the federal government and how they affect elections and policy-making.

Political Participation (Demographics and Elections)

The United States is experiencing a dramatic change in the makeup of its population. These changes have political consequences for political institutions.

Identify a trend depicted in the chart.

Assuming that recent voting patterns continue, explain how the trend identified in (a) is likely to affect the electoral success of either the Democratic Party or the Republican Party.

Explain how the demographic changes shown in the chart above are likely to affect the way in which parties operate in Congress.

Describe two specific actions that presidents can take to respond to the demographic changes in the chart above.

Describe how demographic changes will affect political parties and the electoral process.

Interactions Between Branches of Government (policy-making)

The public policy process involves interactions between Congress and the bureaucracy.

Identify the primary role of Congress in the policy process.

Explain how divided party control of Congress can make the policy process difficult.

Identify the primary role of the bureaucracy in the policy process.

Explain how one of the following increases the power of the bureaucracy in the policy process.

Rule making

Explain how each of the following enables Congress to limit the power of the bureaucracy.

Oversight hearings

Power of the purse

Describe the policy-making process, its challenges, the bureaucracy's role within it, and how Congress conducts oversight over the bureaucracy.

Interactions Between Branches, Political Participation (federalism, voting)

The Constitution limited the power of the national government and restricted popular control; however, citizen participation has changed over time.

Explain how each of the following constitutional features protects against the concentration of power in the national government.

Checks and balances

Explain how one of the following features of the Constitution limited the people’s ability to influence the national government.

Electoral college

Selection of senators before the Seventeenth Amendment

Describe a constitutional amendment that increased suffrage.

Describe the effect of one of the following laws on citizen participation in elections.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (Motor Voter Act)

Explain how the power of the federal government is limited, how people's influence on the federal government was limited, how suffrage increased, and how the passage of certain legislation affected voter participation.

👉 2015 AP Gov FRQs

Interactions Among Branches of Government (presidential roles)

American politics has often been called an "invitation to struggle." Although in recent years the president has been thought to have an advantage in policy making, there are still constraints on the power of the president.

Describe a power of the president in each of the following roles.

Chief legislator

Chief bureaucrat or chief administrator

Explain how each of the following limits the president’s influence in policy making.

Civil service employees

The Supreme Court

Describe the influence of divided government on the policy-making process.

Explain how the president can influence policy-making as well as the limits that the Supreme Court, civil service, and a divided government could place on. them.

The framers of the Constitution devised a federal system of government that affected the relationship between the national and state governments.

Compare state sovereignty under the Articles of Confederation and under the Constitution.

Explain how each of the following has been used to expand the power of the federal government over the states.

Commerce clause

Explain how each of the following has played a role in the devolution of power from the national government to the states.

Block grants

Supreme Court decisions

Describe how the relationship between the federal and state governments has changed and how different branches have played a role in that change.

Qualitative/Visual Analysis

Political participation (electoral college).

The framers created the electoral college to elect the president of the United States. This system influences the campaign strategies of presidential candidates.

Describe one reason that the framers chose to use the electoral college as the method to elect the president.

Describe the message the cartoon above conveys about presidential elections.

Explain why California, Texas, and New York do not appear prominently in the cartoon above.

Describe two campaign tactics presidential candidates use to win the key states identified in the cartoon above.

Explain the electoral college, how it functions, and how it affects presidential campaigns.

Civil Liberties and Civil Rights (civil rights and liberties)

The Fourteenth Amendment protects civil rights and civil liberties.

Describe the difference between civil rights and civil liberties.

Identify the primary clause of the Fourteenth Amendment that is used to extend civil rights.

Describe a specific legislative action that extended civil rights to each of the following.

Persons with disabilities

Identify the primary clause of the Fourteenth Amendment that is used to extend civil liberties.

Explain how civil liberties were incorporated by the Supreme Court in two of the following cases.

Gideon v. Wainwright

Mapp v. Ohio

Miranda v. Arizona

Demonstrate your understanding of civil rights and liberties, the Fourteenth Amendment, and Supreme Court cases affected by it.

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AP® US Government

Ap® us government faq: everything you need to know for 2024.

• The Albert Team
• Last Updated On: February 8, 2024

Read below for detailed answers to the most common questions about the 2024 AP® United States Government and Politics exam.

What We Review

Is AP® US Government easy? What can make it hard?

The AP® US Government and Politics exam is more difficult than a regular high school level government and politics course. AP® courses are generally meant to simulate introductory college-level courses, so the AP® exams are crafted to test content understanding higher than most high school courses. 

Compared with other AP® courses, the AP® US Government and Politics exam is more difficult than other AP® exams, as explained below.

On the 2023 AP® US Government and Politics exam, 49.2% of students who took the exam scored a 3 or better . The mean score for 2022 was 2.59. In general, scores on the AP® US Government and Politics exam are a bit lower on average than other AP® exams.

The statistics above are based on an average of approximately 300,000 yearly exam takers.  In 2023, there were 329,132 test-takers. The AP® US Government and Politics exam is among the more popular exams in the AP® course catalog.

If you want to achieve the highest score possible on the AP® US Government and Politics exam, it is useful to understand which of the course’s units carry more weight than others on the exam. This knowledge will help you focus on those units as you study.

The AP® US Government and Politics exam has two units that carry between 45% and 63% of the total exam. Unit 2: Interactions Among Branches of Government is weighted at 25-36%, and Unit 5: Political Participation is weighted at 20-27%. Focusing half of your study time on these two sections will ensure that you’re prepared for approximately half of the exam questions. 

The rest of the units for the AP® US Government and Politics exam are weighted as follows:

• Unit 1: Foundations of American Democracy (15-22%)
• Unit 3: Civil Liberties and Civil Rights (13-18%)
• Unit 4: American Political Ideologies and Beliefs (10-15%)

While the percentage weighting for Units 1, 3, and 4 are lower than that for units 2 and 5, they still make up a significant portion of the exam, so you should be sure to cover all AP® US Government and Politics course content topics in preparation for the exam. 

Achieving a score of 3 or better on the AP® US Government and Politics exam is no easy feat. You may find it useful to know exactly how many questions you must correctly answer in each section to pass this exam. Albert’s AP® US Government and Politics score calculator (previewed below) shows that you would need to answer at least 28 of the 55 multiple-choice questions correctly and at least half of the total possible points on the free-response questions to get a score of 3 or higher.

Is AP® US Government and Politics worth it?

There are many reasons why students feel that taking AP® US Government and Politics is worth it for them. First, taking AP® courses shifts students’ mindset toward the critical thinking and analysis required in college courses. Doing well in the course can help students to build their confidence academically. 

When applying to colleges, the AP® courses on your high school transcript will show admissions counselors that you are prepared for college’s rigors. According to College Board research , “students who receive a score of 3 or higher on AP® Exams typically experience greater academic success in college and have higher graduation rates than their non-AP® peers.”

Of course, parents will be very interested in the potential cost-savings of taking AP® courses. At many colleges, students who pass an AP® exam can substitute that exam for the class in college. This translates into savings on college tuition and can sometimes mean that the student can graduate early, if they entered college with a significant number of college credits at high school graduation. 

This chart highlights just a few of the hundreds of colleges that accept AP® US Government and Politics for college credit and how that can translate into tuition savings.

When you factor in the tuition savings, the academic confidence, and the benefits in the admissions process, you can see that taking AP® US Government and Politics is worth it.

When is the 2024 AP® US Government and Politics exam?

The 2024 AP® US Government and Politics exam will be given in person using paper-and-pencil tests. The 2024 AP® US Government and Politics exam will take place on:

Mon, May 6, 2024 at 8am local time

Curious about when other AP® exams are happening in 202 4? View or download the complete AP® exam schedule here .

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When do AP® US Government and Politics scores typically come out?

According to the latest update from the College Board exam season timeline , students will receive their AP® scores in July 2024. Historically, the College Board typically releases AP® scores early in the month of July.

You’ll be able to access your AP® scores online with your College Board account username and password.

How is AP® US Government and Politics scored? What’s the weighting of different questions?  

Below is a breakdown of the scoring for the AP® US Government and Politics exam:

The first section of the AP® US Government and Politics exam consists of 55 multiple-choice questions. You will have one hour and 20 minutes to complete this section. This section consists of approximately 30 individual questions and 25 set-based questions. The set-based questions will cover analysis of quantitative material, text-based primary and secondary sources, and qualitative visual information. 

Section 2 of the AP® US Government and Politics exam is the free response portion. This section consists of four questions you must answer within the one hour and 40 minute time limit. The first question will be a concept application in which you must describe and explain the effects of a particular political scenario, institution, behavior or process. 

The second question will require a quantitative analysis of supplied data. From this data, you must identify any trends or patterns you see and relate these to a political scenario, institution, behavior or process. 

The third question will require a comparison of a non-required and required Supreme Court case with an explanation of which elements from the required case are relevant to the non-required case.

NOTE: Although the Supreme Court recently overturned  Roe v. Wade , this case is still required course content and is part of Unit 3, along with  Griswold v. Connecticut and  Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization . Any of these cases can be assessed in AP® questions, but none of them will be the focus of Free Response Question 3.

The fourth free-response question is an argument essay. In this response, you will need to develop an essay-length argument using supplied documents and relevant course concepts.

Reminder: When creating a thesis statement to answer the free-response questions, make sure that you establish a strong position. Simply restating the prompt does not go far enough in creating a strong thesis statement. 

The AP® US Government and Politics exam is weighted as follows:

What happens if you fail AP® US Government and Politics?

The important thing to remember if you fail the AP® US Government and Politics exam is not to panic. You can retake the exam as many times as you choose in order to pass or even to achieve a higher score. Note that you will have to pay the exam fee each time you retake the exam.

If you are worried about the impact of failing the AP® US Government and Politics exam on your high school GPA, don’t worry. Most schools do not use your AP® US Government and Politics exam score as part of your course grade. Instead, they base that grade on your coursework, class tests and assignments. So failing this AP® US Government and Politics exam should not have any impact on your GPA.

If you are using the AP® US Government and Politics exam for college credit, failing the exam would disqualify you from getting credit for the course. If you receive a score of 3 or higher on the exam, you’ll want to check with your college of choice to see if your score qualifies for college credit. Typically, scores lower than 3 do not qualify for credit.

You can minimize the impact of failing the AP® US Government and Politics exam on your college admissions chances if you retake the exam and pass it. Students are in control of which colleges receive their AP® scores, so you have the option of not sending your low score to particular colleges. Even if you do send them a low score, most schools will allow you to replace that score with a higher score if you retake the exam. 

When do students typically take AP® US Government and Politics? When is best?

The AP® US Government and Politics exam is one that students typically take in their last two years of high school. 

When you should take the AP® US Government and Politics exam will depend on the requirements of your high school. Some schools will require students take certain prerequisite courses, typically an introductory U.S. History course, so taking AP® US Government and Politics in your freshman year could be a challenge. 

Many students wait until their junior or senior year to take AP® US Government and Politics. By the second half of your high school career, you are better able to manage the demands of high school courses and may have even taken one or two other AP® courses and are more aware of what to expect. 

If you take other AP® courses prior to taking the AP® US Government and Politics exam, you will have more experience with the types of questions required in AP® courses and the level of detail required in the free-response section of this exam. All of this experience will help you be more successful in this course detailing the United States government and political process. 

The decision of when to take the AP® US Government and Politics exam will be different for each student. Your parents, guidance counselor and teachers can assist you with this decision and help you decide when is the right time to take AP® US Government and Politics.

Where can I find past AP® US Government and Politics exams?

You can find past ap® us government and politics exam questions on the college board’s ap® central website ..

The College Board has also provided online access to the practice tests for the last few years so that you can become familiar with the types of questions on past exams. These practice tests will also allow you to understand the academic rigor of the questions and to see what kinds of answers have resulted in full credit in the past. 

Below are links to the AP® US Government and Politics exam practice tests for the last five years:

• 2023 AP® US Government and Politics Free-Response Questions
• 2022 AP® US Government and Politics Free-Response Questions (Set 1)
• 2022 AP® US Government and Politics Free-Response Questions (Set 2)
• 2021 AP® US Government and Politics Free-Response Questions (Set 1)
• 2021 AP® US Government and Politics Free-Response Questions (Set 2)
• 2019 AP® US Government and Politics Free-Response Questions
• 2018 AP® US Government and Politics Free-Response Questions

NOTE: The 2020 AP® US Government and Politics Exam is not listed above because it had a unique format given the COVID-related adjustments.

The course content was changed for the 2018-2019 academic year .

If you are interested in examples of multiple choice questions for the AP® US Government and Politics exam, you can access those here . The number of multiple-choice questions in the guide is limited, so it won’t encompass all of the content and learning objectives that the actual exam will cover. But it does provide a glimpse into what to expect from the multiple-choice portion of the exam.

If you want to get more practice on the multiple choice portion of the AP® US Government and Politics exam, visit Albert to find hundreds more multiple choice practice questions that are aligned with the learning objectives and units covered by the AP® US Government and Politics.

The AP® Central website contains a wealth of other useful information that you should consider reviewing in order to maximize your chances at a high score on the AP® US Government and Politics. These resources include:

• AP® US Government and Politics Scoring Guidelines: 2023 / 2022 (Set 1) / 2022 (Set 2) / 2021 (Set 1) / 2021 (Set 2) / 2019 / 2018 / 2017 / 2016
• AP® US Government and Politics Chief Reader Reports: 2023 / 2022 / 2021 / 2019 / 2018 / 2017 / 2016
• AP® US Government and Politics Scoring Reports: 2023 / 2022 (Set 1) / 2022 (Set 2) / 2021 (Set 1) / 2021 (Set 2) / 2019 / 2018 / 2017 / 2016

Viewing the scoring guidelines can be useful because they will show you how the points are assigned for each short answer question.

While the multiple choice questions are straightforward at one point each, the short answer questions are more subjective to grade. The scoring guidelines above can provide examples of the types of answers awarded full or partial credit on past exams. 

The Chief Reader Reports are very useful for getting even more insight into the grading process for the short answer and essay questions. This report explains the expectations for each question and provides guidance on the information and elements that are necessary for a successful response.  Using this report you can find out what kinds of information you must include and get a glimpse of where other students fell short in answering the question. 

For example, the 2019 Chief Reader Report for AP® US Government and Politics revealed that many students struggled with establishing a unique line of reasoning. Instead, they often just restated the question prompt.  The reader felt that this signaled a tentativeness in their argument.  

The Scoring Report for AP® US Government and Politics is useful because it shows you which questions were most missed by students in past exams and which ones were most often answered successfully. For example, in 2019, question #3 had a mean score of 1.74 out of 4 possible points, which was the lowest mean score of all of the questions. 

The correct answer to this question required students to read a Supreme Court case summary and compare it to the required course case. Students also had to identify the common clause in the Constitution that applied to the cases. The Chief Reader Report showed that students often identified the wrong clause. Those that did identify the correct clause missed points by discussing the ruling rather than the facts of the case.

Once you’ve reviewed all of the resources above, you should also review the sample responses for the AP® US Government and Politics. Three sample responses are provided for each question. At the end of the three responses, there is a breakdown of how many points each would have received as well as detailed explanations of why they earned or failed to earn points. 

The AP® Central website provides a wealth of information about the successful answering and scoring of the short answer and essay questions for the AP® US Government and Politics exam. With all of this emphasis on these questions, it can be easy to forget that 50% of the exam score comes from your ability to successfully answer the multiple choice questions. Albert provides you with thousands of multiple-choice practice questions that are aligned with the AP® US Government and Politics. Each question includes a detailed explanation of each question and the correct answer. 

Click here to learn more about Albert

Who should take AP® US Government and Politics? What sort of students may like it more than others?

There are a variety of factors to consider when deciding if you should take AP® US Government and Politics. If you enjoy current events and the workings and origins of the American political system, the course content will be interesting to you. The course overview can give you more insight into what the course will cover. 

Of course, no student is required to take AP® US Government and Politics in order to graduate. If the content outlined in the course overview does not align with your interests and strengths, you might want to choose a different AP® course. The College Board provides a wide variety of AP® courses and you would be better off choosing one you are interested in, as this will consume a good portion of your academic time for the year. 

Taking the AP® US Government exam can be a good idea if you are planning on attending college. This is especially true if you plan to major in political science, history or any other writing and reading intensive major. AP® courses like AP® US Government and Politics can help you get acclimated to the rigors of college-level courses. They can also signal to admissions counselors that you are serious about and prepared for college academics. 

Getting a higher score on AP® exams can increase your chances of being accepted at some highly selective colleges. If your goal in taking the AP® US Government and Politics exam is to score a 5, it will be useful to know the difficulty of achieving this goal on this particular exam. For 2022, 12.0% of students who took this exam scored a perfect 5. 

This percentage is higher than that of most of the AP® History exams.

Achieving a perfect score on any AP® exam is a difficult task. You should choose AP® courses that best align with your skills and interests rather than choosing those with the best chance for a perfect score. While the final choice is up to you, the decision of which AP® courses to take should be made in consultation with your teachers, your guidance counselor and your parents. 

How do students typically score on AP® US Government and Politics? What’s the score distribution?

How students typically score on the AP® US Government and Politics exam depends on such factors as how well they studied for the exam, their aptitude for the subject, and their writing ability. The chart below outlines the score distributions for the AP® US Government and Politics exam for the last three years. 

This exam has historically yielded a passing rate of around 50% or better. The number of AP® US Government and Politics exam test-takers has remained relatively stable over those years.

The 2023 AP® US Government and Politics exam mean score was 2.59 . This mean was based on a total of 329,132 students who took this exam in 2023 . 

Need help preparing for your AP® US Government exam?

Albert has hundreds of AP® US Government practice multiple-choice questions, free-response questions, and full-length practice tests to try out.

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