Total Electoral College Votes and Popular Votes in the 15th US Presidential ElectionCandidateTotal electoral college votesTotal popular votesJames K. ...
GMAT Information and Ideas : (Ideas) Questions
Total Electoral College Votes and Popular Votes in the 15th US Presidential Election
| Candidate | Total electoral college votes | Total popular votes |
|---|---|---|
| James K. Polk | 170 | 1,339,494 |
| Henry Clay | 105 | 1,300,004 |
| James Gillespie Birney | 0 | 62,103 |
A student is writing a paper on the history of the 15th presidential election in the United States, which was held in 1844. The student needs to determine how many electoral college votes were cast for the winning candidate, James K. Polk. According to the table, James K. Polk received ______
Which choice most effectively uses data from the table to complete the statement?
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| "Total Electoral College Votes and Popular Votes in the 15th US Presidential Election" |
|
| Data Table showing James K. Polk: 170 electoral, 1,339,494 popular; Henry Clay: 105 electoral, 1,300,004 popular; James Gillespie Birney: 0 electoral, 62,103 popular |
|
| "A student is writing a paper on the history of the 15th presidential election in the United States, which was held in 1844. The student needs to determine how many electoral college votes were cast for the winning candidate, James K. Polk. According to the table, James K. Polk received ______" |
|
Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: The data table shows James K. Polk won the 15th US presidential election with 170 electoral college votes.
Argument Flow: The content presents election data from 1844, then sets up a task requiring us to use that data to complete a statement about the winning candidate's electoral vote total.
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
This is a fill-in-the-blank question asking us to choose the best logical connector. The answer must create the right relationship between what comes before and after the blank.
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- The question asks us to complete a statement about James K. Polk's electoral college votes using the data table
- Looking at the table, we can see that James K. Polk received 170 electoral college votes
- The sentence structure suggests we need a complete phrase that would naturally complete "According to the table, James K. Polk received ______"
✓ Correct
- Directly states the data from the table: Polk received 170 electoral college votes
- Matches our prethinking perfectly and completes the sentence naturally and accurately
✗ Incorrect
- States 103 electoral college votes, which doesn't appear anywhere in the table
- This number isn't associated with any candidate in the data
✗ Incorrect
- States 62 electoral college votes, which doesn't appear in the table
- The closest number is 62,103, but that's Birney's popular vote count, not electoral votes
- This represents the trap of confusing popular vote numbers with electoral vote numbers
✗ Incorrect
- States 44 electoral college votes, which doesn't appear in the table at all
- No candidate received this number of electoral votes according to the data