Sample Questions & Scoring Guidelines
The AP U.S. Government & Politics Exam covers the following major content areas: constitutional underpinnings of U.S. government; political beliefs and behaviors; political parties, interest groups, and mass media; institutions of national government: the Congress, the presidency, the bureaucracy, and the federal courts; public policy; and civil rights and civil liberties. The following skills, abilities, and knowledge are tested in the exam:
- Knowledge of facts, concepts, and theories pertaining to U.S. government and politics
- Understanding of typical patterns of political processes and behavior and their consequences (including components of political behavior, the principles used to explain or justify various government structures and procedures, and the political effects of these structures and procedures)
- Analysis and interpretation of data and relationships in U.S. government and politics
- Written analysis and interpretation of subject matter
You can find additional free-response questions and scoring guidelines on AP Central, along with grade distributions and examples of actual students' responses and commentary that explains why the responses received the scores they did.
Multiple-Choice Questions
For sample multiple-choice questions, refer to the Course Description
AP Government and Politics Course Description (.pdf/815K).
Free-Response Questions
2009 Free-Response Questions (.pdf/467K)
2008 Free-Response Questions (.pdf/127K)
2007 Free-Response Questions (.pdf/158K)
2006 Free-Response Questions (.pdf/86K)
2005 Free-Response Questions (.pdf/163K)
2004 Free-Response Questions (.pdf/146K)
2003 Free-Response Questions (.pdf/147K)
2002 Free-Response Questions (.pdf/141K)
Scoring Guidelines
2009 Scoring Guidelines (.pdf/78K)
2008 Scoring Guidelines (.pdf/89K)
2007 Scoring Guidelines (.pdf/137K)
2006 Scoring Guidelines (.pdf/289K)
2005 Scoring Guidelines (.pdf/116K)
2004 Scoring Guidelines (.pdf/78K)
Additional Tools
Study Skills and Test-Taking Tips for History and Social Sciences
