Q 01/05

Who was the first vice president of the United States?

A) Thomas Jefferson

B) Aaron Burr

C) John Adams

D) George Clinton

Answer · why

C) John Adams

He complained to his wife Abigail that the job was 'the most insignificant office that ever the invention of man contrived'.

Q 02/05

Which vice president holds the record for the most tie-breaking votes in the Senate, with 33?

A) Mike Pence

B) Dick Cheney

C) John C. Calhoun

D) Kamala Harris

Answer · why

D) Kamala Harris

She presided over a 50-50 Senate, which is how she passed the 31-vote mark that had stood since the 1830s.

Q 03/05

How many vice presidents have never cast a single tie-breaking vote?

A) Two

B) Five

C) Twelve

D) Twenty

Answer · why

C) Twelve

Ties are rare, and many veeps served in Senates with lopsided majorities where their vote was never needed.

Q 04/05

Before the Twelfth Amendment, how did someone become vice president?

A) They were appointed by the new president

B) They were elected by the Senate from its members

C) Each party nominated a separate candidate

D) They were the runner-up in the presidential vote

Answer · why

D) They were the runner-up in the presidential vote

That is how the 1796 election produced a president and vice president from opposing parties, and the runner-up spent four years frustrating the winner...

Q 05/05

The Twelfth Amendment, separating president and vice president ballots, was first used in which election?

A) 1800

B) 1812

C) 1804

D) 1820

Answer · why

C) 1804

It was rushed through after the 1800 fiasco, when Jefferson tied with his own running mate and the House needed 36 ballots to sort it out.